Last week, the baseball team was scheduled to take on MIT and rival Williams. Due to weather complications, Wednesday’s game against MIT was cancelled. However, by Friday, the snow had melted and the men were ready to revive the oldest baseball rivalry in the history of the sport: Amherst versus Williams.

The purple and white started off strong when Max Steinhorn ’18 and Ariel Kenney ’18 crossed home plate to earn an early 2-0 lead. In the top of the third, Yanni Thanopolous ’17 sent a homer over the right center field fence, knocking in three runs and increasing the lead to 5-0.

Williams responded with one run, but then Anthony Spina ’17 shut them down with another Amherst home run. The purple and white ended up on top with an impressive 11-4 win.

“The Amherst-Williams series is always a big rivalry because of its historical tradition and it felt great to help our team secure the big win on Friday’s opener,” Spina said.

The men returned to the field on Saturday morning for a double header against rival Williams. This time, the Ephs began with a 2-0 lead, but Amherst quickly answered with four runs in the first two innings. The Ephs were never able to score again, and the purple and white secured the victory with an insurance run in the sixth, making the final score 5-2. Sam Ellinwood ’18 led the offense with a perfect 3-for-3, while Riley Streit ’16 tossed a complete game for Amherst, only letting in two runs.

Later in the afternoon, Amherst lost momentum and was defeated by Williams, 4-5. Though the purple and white outhit the Ephs 10-9, Williams was able to capitalize on more scoring opportunities.

The game was close; Amherst gave up two runs in the top of the ninth to grant their rivals a 5-3 lead. Steinhorn hit a sacrifice fly to score Ellinwood, making the score 5-4, but the purple and white were unable to come up with a game tying hit in the bottom of the ninth.

“Every NESCAC game is important to us. Every year we set out with the goal of winning a NESCAC championship so picking up as many conference wins as we can is crucial for us,” Ellinwood said.

Regardless, Amherst records an overall win against Williams, winning two out of three games. The men take the field again on Wednesday, April 13, against Worcester State at Rockfield Park.