It took a while for him to settle into the new season, but it appears that Ryan Franczek is now in a steady rhythm at the plate.
The second baseman's average currently stands at .218, and although the average doesn't rank near the top on the team, Franczek has been one of UMass's most consistent hitters recently.
Franczek went just 2-for-8 in three games against Saint Joseph's this weekend, walking six times, which left him with a .571 on-base percentage for the series. He's second on the team with 20 walks this season, behind leadoff-hitter Brian Baudinet (22).
He also scored a team-high seven runs in the series.
"I think he's starting to swing like we know he can," UMass coach Mike Stone said after last Wednesday's lost to Sacred Heart, in which Franczek had four hits. "He's just got to keep his front shoulder down and keep his head on the ball. He'll be fine; he's got a good swing. It's just a matter of discipline to stay on the ball."
Although coaches sometimes move players down in the lineup when they're struggling, Stone elected to keep Franczek in the No. 2 spot, a move that appears to be paying dividends.
Even when he was struggling, Stone still wanted Franczek to receive as many as bats as possible per game, as he values the seniors' base stealing (11-for-14 this season) and bunting abilities.
Multner streaking
One player who came in this season and excelled immediately is right fielder Kyle Multner.
Hitting from the nine spot for the majority of the season, Multner's current 14-game hitting streak leads the team.
The freshman from Peabody, Mass., has been consistently batting over .300 this year. Multner helped his season average (.339) by going 5-for-12 against the Hawks this weekend.
Stone switched the lineup card for the first and third games of the weekend series. Instead of Multner hitting in his regular spot in the lineup, he was moved to sixth, behind Andy Tuetken.
However, he went 2-for-8 in those games, and enjoyed his best game of the weekend in the ninth spot, going 3-for-4 with his sole RBI of the series in Game 2.
Stayin' Alive
Though not in prime position right now, UMass still remains mathematically alive in the race for a spot in the Atlantic 10 Tournament.
Six teams qualify for the conference tournament, and while the top four appear to be in good position to lock up a bid in the near future, the final two spots remain available for the remainder of the conference to take.
One thing the Minutemen have working in their favor is the remaining conference schedule.
Rhode Island, Dayton and Fordham currently hold the fifth through seventh spots in the standings while UMass is tied with Saint Joe's for 11th, two games behind the final spot.
The Minutemen host Dayton in a three-game series this weekend, before traveling to Rhode Island next weekend and then finishing up the season at Earl Lorden Field against Fordham from May 15-17.
Winning games in these series is not only important so UMass can make up ground in the standings but also to gain an edge if a tiebreaker were necessary.
The first tiebreaker for the tournament involves head-to-head competition, and since the weekend series are three games, the results will be crucial.
Pitching inconsistent
UMass has not had a shortage of pitchers this season, and while virtually everyone on the staff has pitched well at some point, consistency is something it's still searching for.
The team earned run average is nearly one run higher than last year (6.04 versus 5.05) while the staff is considerably younger.
One problem the team has encountered is finding a consistent arm in the bullpen once the starter is removed from the game.
Garrett Butt, Charlie Benson and Aaron Smith have all struggled with ERAs over nine while Nathan Monroy and Mitchell Eilenberg have pitched better, but still hold ERAs over four.
Since the staff is young, the Minutemen rely on the bullpen often, as the starters don't often pitch more than six innings.
However, the team did receive productive outings from their starters this weekend.
Mike Dicato pitched a complete game and Mitchell Clegg pitched eight innings - these were the two games the team won.
When the starters give outings such as these, it puts less pressure on the arms of the bullpen and gives UMass a better chance to have success.
Mike Connors can be reached at mjconnor@student.umass.edu.
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