Some things — like trying to convince Martha Stewart to sleep in and order Chinese food for dinner — are just not going to happen. Tradition and pride are too strong a force to fight with only nine men and a baseball bat. The same case could be made for Cornell's futile attempt to stop Princeton from its gourmet effort at cooking up another Gehrig Division title — their sixth. No sweet and sour chicken today, boys.
Three Tiger victories later, Cornell (10-23 overall, 7-11 Ivy League) bounced back with an effort that was more inconsequential than futile when they won the fourth game of the series. Much too little, too late.
In fact, the whole second day of play was inconsequential — the Tigers (21-19, 14-6) clinched the title on Friday with back-to-back 5-1 and 20-17 wins, securing their spot in the Ivy League Championship Series on May 5 against the Rolfe Division winner which will be determined this week. Sunday the Tigers split, winning 2-1 in the first game before falling 6-3 in the nightcap.
Like Martha and her 5 a.m. working regimen, there was no hesitation at the beginning of the day for Princeton. Senior left fielder Jon Watterson started things off with a double, setting the scene for another homerun from senior first baseman Andrew Hanson — his fifth of the season.
Princeton followed up on its tworun first inning with three in the second inning, giving the Tigers a comfortable 5-0 lead.
Cornell was only able to crack sophomore Ryan Quillian's pitching in the third inning, and even then they were only able to get one run in. Quillian kept the Big Red in check for the rest of the game, striking out nine batters and advancing his own record to 6-2. After six-and-a-half innings, the score was 5-1. The Tigers were 1-0 for the weekend, and half-way to clinching the Gehrig Division title.
Though the deciding victory came only one game later, Princeton still had a ways to go.
That next game was a long one. Eight-and-a-half innings, 84 at-bats and 37 runs later, it seemed as though a deranged carousel had placed itself directly on top of Clarke Field.
The first inning — with both teams held at zero — was typical for a tight defensive baseball game. Cornell started a slow but persistent onslaught in the second inning, earning two runs. Then they did it again in the third inning and one more time in the fourth.
Princeton started out more slowly, bringing only one runner home in the first four innings. In the fifth inning, five batters made it around for the Tigers, leaving Princeton trailing, 7-6. But that was only the beginning.
After Big Red senior Jeff Miller walked the first two Princeton batters, Hanson decided to be consistent, hitting his second home run in two games for the first hit and the first of three homeruns for the inning.
Always a team leader, Hanson's teammates soon followed suit. With two runners on base, senior center fielder Mickey Martin added three runs for the Tigers. Next batter up, next one out of the park. Junior third baseman Eric Voelker pulled his weight, belting Princeton's third homer of the inning. Two more runners made it home to complete the Tiger's nine run inning.
Cornell and Princeton earned three and five runs in the seventh inning, respectively, giving the Tigers a 20-10 advantage heading into the eighth.
The lead seemed insurmountable, but the Big Red were determined to continue the high scoring. Three runs later, the Tigers got their second out of the inning when a Cornell batter fouled out to first. It looked like the game could finally be winding down. But this was not a game that was going to be rushed. Cornell managed to bring four more runners in — making it seven runs for the inning — before Princeton could seal the deal, closing the inning and finally managing to hold Cornell scoreless in the ninth.
The battle was over. Princeton had won the two games necessary to secure the Gehrig Division title. But the weekend continued on as both teams traveled to Ithaca, N.Y., for the final two games of the series.
The third game showed a complete turnaround from the second. The battle of the bats trailed off as pitching became the deciding factor in a close 2-1 Princeton win.
Trailing by a run in the fifth inning, the Tigers were finally able to muster up two runs. It was not so difficult. Freshman center fielder Tim Lahey came up to bat and came right back home again, with a quick trip around the bases in between as he hit the first Princeton homer of the day. Late in the inning,with bases loaded, Cornell pitching walked Hanson, bringing senior second basemen Tim Phillips in for the game-winning run.
Cornell finally managed to turn things around in the fourth game, scoring three runs in the first inning and holding the lead for an eventual 6-3 win.
Again, it was too little, too late if the Big Red had intentions of thwarting Princeton in its quest for its sixth Gehrig Division title. Cornell should have taken a tip from Martha and gotten up —and ready — a little earlier.
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