Baseball falls short against difficult Columbia team

This past weekend, Princeton baseball (19-17 overall, 10-6 Ivy League) took its Ivy League-leading record on the road to face three-time League champion Columbia (13-23, 7-9). After splitting the two games on Saturday, the Tigers lost by one run in both games on Sunday. Despite the losses, Princeton still leads the Lou Gehrig Division, but holds just a one-game lead over Penn.

The Tigers have been preparing for the final, difficult stretch of their Ivy League schedule all season. Though Columbia has not done particularly well this year, the Lions have been historically dominant, winning four league titles in the past eight years. Describing Columbia’s strengths, senior co-captain infielder Danny Hoy explained, “They’re very well coached and they have a lot of returning playersthat have won a lot of games in the past.”

Additionally, Hoy explained that the Lions are particularly difficult to defeat at home. Prior to this weekend, the Tigers had not won even once on Columbia’s Robertson Field in the past three years.

The first meeting between the two teams on Saturday began slow but escalated into an 8-4 Columbia victory. Following a Lions run in the fourth, Princeton responded with a high-offense fifth inning. Junior outfielder Danny Baer and sophomore infielder Asher Lee-Tyson jump-started the inning with two quick runs to give Princeton the lead. Co-captains Hoy and Billy Arendt then advanced to first and second bases, respectively. However, the Lions threw Arendt out on his way to third base.

Henceforth, Columbia took control of the game during the bottom of the fifth. The Lions first tied the game up off an Orange and Black pitching error. Then, Columbia’s Robb Paller followed with a grand slam to clinch the game for the Lions.

Saturday’s second game proved more favorable for Princeton. Leading the charge was junior pitcher Chad Powers. The California native pitched all nine innings for the Tigers and allowed only four hits in the process. In the meantime, the usual suspects, Arendt and Hoy, each earned two runs to lead the Princeton offense. In total, the Tigers prevailed 6-2.

Both losses on Sunday proved to be heartbreakers for the Tigers. In the first meeting on the second day, the Lions wasted little time taking the lead, scoring four runs in the first inning alone. Undaunted, Princeton slowly mounted a comeback that climaxed in the final inning of the game. In the seventh inning, Princeton began strong with two doubles and runs from Hoy and Arendt. Thereafter, juniors first baseman Nick Hernandez and infielder Zack Belski took control of first and third bases. However, the Tigers struck out before they could capitalize, giving Columbia a 5-4 victory.

Sunday’s second game was the reverse story of the first. Princeton jumped to a 6-2 lead following the top of the sixth. However, the Lions responded strongly with three runs in the bottom of the sixth and then two more in the seventh. Both teams demonstrated strong offense and were evenly matched for the final game, but the Lions held on to steal an 8-7 victory.

Reflecting on the competitiveness of such tight games, Hoy explained that clinching clutch victories requires strong defense. The Tigers have demonstrated strong defense this season — most recently against Penn — but could not match Columbia in this regard.

Nevertheless, Princeton will take the lone win at Robertson Field and begin preparing for Cornell, the final opponent of the team's regular season. The Bears, though dominant in the past, have descended to a 6-10 Ivy League record this year, giving the Tigers a chance to clinch the Lou Gehrig Division for the first time since 2011.