The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/2002/04/29/baseball-snaps-losing-skid-with-2-2-split/)
Baseball Snaps Losing Skid With 2-2 Split
By wpengine | April 29, 2002
Going into this past weekend's four-game series against Gehrig Division foe Columbia, the Red had lost 11 consecutive games. Not only did the losing streak drop the team's record to an unsightly 10-25, but it also mathematically eliminated the Red from Ivy League championship contention. Relegated to a spoiler role, the Red was able to split the weekend series against the second place Lions, who entered the series at 7-5 in Ivy League play, 18-19 overall. On Saturday, Cornell dropped the opener 6-0 before rebounding in game two for a 9-6 victory. Yesterday's games produced another split, with Cornell once again dropping the opener, losing 4-2. In the nightcap, the Red ensured a series split with a late-inning comeback, defeating the Lions 7-6.
In Saturday's opener, the Red's attempt to end its 11-game losing streak was derailed early. Columbia's potent offense opened the scoring in the third inning on a two run home run by slugger Matt Buckmiller. The Red's usually consistent No. 1 starter, senior Brendan McQuaid, surrendered three more runs in the fourth before being relieved by freshman Connor Kelly. Taking the loss, McQuaid dropped to 3-4, giving up five runs and six hits in three plus innings. Kelly contributed a strong performance out of the bullpen, limiting the Lions' to one unearned run on one hit in four innings.
While the Red received a poor pitching performance from McQuaid, Columbia's Matt Waldman scattered four hits in a masterful complete game shutout. Only sophomore Dan Baysinger and seniors Erik Rico, Flint Foley, and Andrew Luria were able to collect harmless singles against Waldman, who improved his record to 3-2.
Having lost 12 in a row, the Red came out in the Saturday's nightcap hoping to avoid unlucky loss No. 13. Behind 5 1/3 innings of no-hit baseball by sophomore pitcher Chris Schutt and a strong performance by its bullpen, the Red defeated Columbia 9-6, winning its first game since April 13. The Red's offense also exploded, outhitting the Lions 14-3.
Scoring twice in the first, third, and fifth innings, Cornell claimed a 6-0 lead. However, a four-run sixth by the Lions knocked Schutt out of the game, closing the Red's lead to 6-4. The Red countered with two runs in the sixth and another run in the seventh, protecting a 9-4 lead going into the ninth inning. Junior closer David Sharfstein struggled in the ninth, giving up two runs, but pitched himself out of a jam, guaranteeing the Red its first victory since an April 13th win against Yale.
The Red's offensive outburst was keyed by Rico, who continued his season-long hitting prowess. Going 3-4 with two home runs, a triple, four runs scored and five RBIs, Rico's first inning RBI triple opened the scoring in game two. The outfielder scored to make it 2-0 when Luria singled. Complementing Rico's big game were senior Vince Santo, junior Matt Miller, and Luria, who contributed two hits apiece.
Head coach Tom Ford commented on Rico's offensive production, saying, "Erik had a great weekend, and they kept trying to pitch around him. He just stayed patient, made great adjustments, and came through with big hits."
Columbia starter Adam Schwartz absorbed the loss, giving up five runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. His Cornell counterpart, Schutt, baffled Lion batsmen over 5 1/3 innings of no-hit ball before succumbing to a streak of wildness in the sixth that contributed to the Lion's closing the score to 6-4. Schutt picked up the win, his first on the year. Freshman Matthew Light, junior Mike Martino, and Sharfstein closed out the win, combining for 3 2/3 innings of two run relief.
"Schutt was totally dominant, but he didn't have the command we needed," Ford said of the Red's pitching performance in the second game. "We hated to take him out like that when he was working on a no-hitter, but we were more concerned with winning the game than the no-hitter. So, we brought in a couple guys to close out the game, and they did a nice job getting us the win."
Yesterday's doubleheader saw Cornell pick up its second victory in as many days. The Red's Dan Baysinger was on the wrong side of a 4-2 pitchers' duel in the opener, but the team rebounded in the second game, winning 7-6.
In the opener, Columbia raced to a 3-1 lead after two innings, adding a run in the fourth to make it 4-1. In the sixth, the Red rallied, making it 4-2 when Schutt scored on an error with two outs. However, the Red was unable to overcome the deficit, leaving two men on base. Cornell's only other run came in the second, when Miller drilled an RBI triple to deep right field, scoring Schutt. Miller was one of three batters for the Red who had multiple hit games, joining Rico and Schutt. Schutt also scored two runs.
On the mound, Baysinger pitched well, scattering 11 hits over seven innings. Dropping to 1-4 with the complete game loss, the sophomore surrendered four runs, only three of which were earned. Unfortunately, Baysinger was outdueled by Columbia's Brian McKitish, who also registered a complete game, giving up two runs while scattering eight hits. With the win, McKitish improved to 5-3.
Ford summed up Baysinger's tough luck loss, saying, "Dan pitched a really good ball game, but just got some bad luck. They got some hits on him, but mostly bloopers. Overall, he pitched well enough to win, but sometimes it doesn't happen."
In game two, late inning heroics lifted the Red to a 7-6 victory. The Red scored early to take a 4-0 lead after two innings, but Columbia battled back, reducing Cornell's lead to 4-3 after seven innings. Rico faltered in the eighth inning, and was relieved by Sharfstein. The reliever promptly delivered a wild pitch, advancing two Columbia runners into scoring position. A two run single by Keith Palmeri followed, giving the Lions' their first lead of the game. A passed ball allowed Columbia to score another run, extending its lead to 6-4.
Down by two, the Red's shortstop, Jim Jackson, delivered a lead off single to begin the bottom of the inning. Foley's RBI double followed a walk by Rico, making it 6-5. A wild pitch allowed Rico to score from third, knotting the game at six. Foley scored the go-ahead run on yet another wild pitch, putting the Red on top, 7-6.
Before the Red could enjoy its second victory in as many days, Sharfstein needed to work himself out of a ninth inning jam. The closer hit a batter, and allowed a single to put runners on first and second. Another single by Columbia's Steve Compton threatened to score Mark DiGesu from second base, but a strong throw from outfielder Jon Finch nailed the Lion baserunner before he could score the tying run.
Ford recounted the play, saying, "It was a well-hit ball, and Jon came up throwing. He put it right on the money, and Paul Hudson hung onto the ball to make the tag. It was a great throw. Jon is a good athlete, and has a good arm, and really made a nice play."
After the play at the plate, Sharfstein proceeded to end Columbia's threat by striking out Scott Palmeri, garnering the Red a weekend split. Sharfstein's two innings of relief garnered him his third victory of the year after seven plus innings from starter Erik Rico, who gave up five runs.
Offensively, Cornell had seven hits off of Columbia's starter Brian Doveala, Brendan Quinn, and losing pitcher Jessen Grant. Santo, sophomore infielder Dan Parant, and Foley each contributed multi-hit games, with Foley adding 2 RBI.
With the weekend split, the Red improved to 12-27 overall, 4-12 in Ivy League action. Columbia's Gehrig Division championship hopes remain alive, with the Lions situated two games behind division leading Princeton. The Red will return to action this Wednesday when it hosts non-conference foe Siena at Hoy Field before finishing its 2002 season against Pri
nceton.
Archived article by Mark Fetzko
Softball Hosts Ithaca College for Twin Bill
By wpengine April 30, 2002
The Ivy League portion of its schedule may be over, but the season continues for the women's softball team. The Red (25-19) will host the cross-town Ithaca Bombers (28-10) in an afternoon doubleheader today. The visitors from the South Hill have been nothing short of spectacular this season. The Bombers have won the Empire 8 championship and are riding a seven-game winning streak into today's contests. "They're a fine ball club, and every time we face them we know we're in for a dog fight," summed up head coach Dick Blood. Ithaca has found success both at the plate and on the mound. Seven stalwarts in the lineup have batting averages of over .300, including catcher Kristin Furdon, who leads the club with seven homers and 32 RBI. Third baseman Kerri Barber has also been dangerous with the bat, as she is second to Furdon in both home runs (3) and RBI (24). "They are a bunch of solid, disciplined hitters,' explained Cornell sophomore pitcher Sarah Sterman, "we'll need to make them hit pitches we want them to hit because they'll be patient and take walks." The Bombers have also received great pitching from hurlers Abbey Pelot and Abby Hanrahan. Pelot has accrued a 1.41 ERA over her 18 starts and has won 13 of her 17 decisions. However, Hanrahan is the strongest threat for the Red, having won 14 games on the season. She has a 1.49 ERA and has held opponents to a .192 batting average. As a staff, Ithaca has limited its opponents to a batting average below .200. Cornell comes into the twin bill after sweeping Columbia in its final Ivy weekend. The Red, on the strength of 14 scoreless innings from sophomore pitcher Sarah Sterman, prevailed in two close duels to finish the league season in third place. "It was a real confidence boost for us," said Blood, "we'll need that energy to finish strong and compete with teams like Ithaca College." For the Red, Sterman has been nearly unhittable this season, especially as of late. She has not allowed a run in 22 consecutive innings and has tossed three consecutive shutouts. Her 1.22 ERA and 17 wins are both tops on the staff. Freshman Lauren May continues to swing a hot bat, leading Cornell with a .386 batting average. She hit a two-run single to give the Red its only runs of a 2-0 victory over Columbia on Saturday. If the Red hopes to receive a bid to the four-team ECAC tournament in a couple weeks it will probably need to sweep its remaining seven games. The tournament is a postseason invitational that draws from a field of 64 ECAC teams according to strength of schedule and record. It will be the Red's goal for the remainder of the season and the Bombers will be its first obstacles today. "We're in a really good state of mind," finished Sterman, "we know we can play ball and now we just have to go out there and do it." The first game of today's doubleheader will begin at 3:30 pm at Niemand-Robison Field. Archived article by Alex Ip
Cornell's Top 10 Freshmen
As each new class climbs the Hill each August, they carry with them expectations for success and aspirations for the beginning of something big. The Class of 2005 certainly lived up to these expectations in its rookie season, setting records and garnering several individual and team honors along the way. After much deliberation, the top 10 freshmen as selected by the sports staff of the Cornell Daily Sun. Kate Boyles Women's Cross Country The women's cross country team earned its first national ranking (20) since 1998 in the fall of 2001, and Boyles was right in the thick of the harriers' success. Boyles seemingly came out of nowhere, placing sixth at Heps and earning first team All-Ivy honors. Her 17:53.8 mark in the 5000m was a team best. She also scored for the Red at the Pre-National Meet and the Iona Invitational. Sean Greenhalgh, Men's Lacrosse In perhaps the greatest compliment paid to him this season, Greenhalgh was double-teamed throughout Princeton's 12-7 victory over the Red on April 20. By limiting Cornell's most prolific scorer to just one goal, Princeton was able to prevail with the win. With just one regular season game remaining, Greenhalgh has made his mark on the Red and its record books. His 33 goals and 35 total points are both Cornell freshman records. He also leads the Red with a .541 scoring average. Elissa Kline Women's Swimming Freestyle specialist Kline made waves in her rookie campaign, as her 1:53.68 in the 200m freestyle at the Ivy Championship was good enough for fourth-best all-time at Cornell. She also posted the Red's top times of the season in the 100 freestyle and 200 individual medley. She was also a member of the 200, 400, and 800 freestyle relays as well as the 400 medley relay. Travis Lee, Wrestling It was a whirlwind season for 125-lb sensation Lee this year. In addition to placing seventh nationally in his weight class, the All-American was also named the EIWA and Ivy League Rookie of the Year. He won his weight class for the first time in his collegiate career at the New York State Championship in January, claiming the honor of Most Outstanding Wrestler for the tournament while leading Cornell to a first place finish. David LeNeveu, Men's Hockey Splitting time between the pipes with senior All-American Matt Underhill, LeNeveu played a key role in the Red's most successful season in many years in 2002. He was named to the ECAC All-Rookie team, posting the second best conference GAA (1.54) ever, trailing only teammate Underhill. He led the nation with a 1.50 GAA, and placed fourth with a .936 save percentage. His GAA was the second-best season mark in Cornell history, trailing only some guy named Dryden. Lauren May, Softball With its Ivy season complete and only five games remaining on its schedule, the softball team is well aware its most prolific player of 2002. May, the Red's shortstop and No. 3 hitter has already broken the school records for home runs and RBI, with 16 and 48 respectively. She also leads the team in walks, batting average, total bases, and slugging percentage. She has been named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week twice this season and was named its Player of the Week once. Meghan Miller, Gymnastics Miller led a resurgence of the gymnastics team this year, collecting ECAC Rookie of the Week honors twice, as well as being named ECAC Rookie of the Year. The All-American was both the Ivy League and ECAC champion on the uneven bars and finished fourth nationally. She posted the top scores of the season for the Red in the uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise. Her efforts helped the Red to score above 190 four times. Steve Reuter, Men's Soccer Starting at forward in 13 of the Red's 16 games, Reuter was the second leading scorer on the team, netting four goals and adding one assist. In the games in which Reuter scored, Cornell was 4-0. One of his four goals was against national powerhouse Penn State, which lost only three games in 2001. Reuter added a goal and an assist in Ivy play. Tony Shultz, Men's Diving Shultz made a name for himself in his rookie campaign as the top 1m and 3m performer for the men's diving team. He won both events at two meets and claimed the top spot in the 1m in three others. The leading scorer on the team, Shultz placed fifth in the 1m and ninth in the 3m at the EISL Championships in March. Katie Thomas, Women's Soccer Twice named Ivy League Rookie of the Week, Thomas was placed in the unenviable position of goalkeeper for the women's soccer team. Despite ending up on the short end of six shutouts, Thomas led the league with 104 saves. She also tied a school record with 17 saves in one game (against Stony Brook). Thomas played every minute of every game for the Red in 2001 and garnered an All-Ivy honorable mention nod. Archived article by Owen Bochner