Baseball takes lead in Gehrig Division by going 3-1 against Lions

This weekend, amid soggy weather in New York City, division rivals Columbia and Princeton faced off in a four-game series to determine who would sit atop the Lou Gehrig Division of the Ivy League. As the dust settled on the diamond, the Tigers came out on top with three wins and only one loss.

The first game on Saturday found Princeton (16-8 overall, 10-5 Ivy League) bringing the big bats. Columbia (17-17, 7-5) started Matt Waldman, who had earned a spot on the Ivyleaguesports.com Honor Roll for his complete-game victory against Dartmouth last week. Waldman did not have his A-game with him.

The Tigers managed seven runs in Waldman's first three innings pitched. Well-placed hits by several players put Princeton in scoring positions in the top of the second inning. Junior pinch hitter Jon Miller led off the third inning with a home run over the scoreboard. Singles by sophomore outfielder Ryan Reich, freshman first baseman Ryan Eldridge and senior shortstop Pat Boran scored three more runs for the Tigers.

After that, Princeton went cold as Waldman took control for the next three innings, while the Lions' bats came alive. Freshman starter Ross Ohlendorf gave up six runs (three earned) and seven hits, the majority of them coming in the fourth and fifth innings. The Lions posted three runs in each inning, pulling to within one of the Tigers.

Sophomore pitcher Thomas Pauly came in for the bottom of the seventh to close out the game. He gave up only one run, and with two outs, freshman centerfielder Adam Balkan secured the game for Princeton on a diving catch.

The Tigers came out swinging again in the second game, taking an early 7-1 lead through the top of the seventh inning. Freshman lefthander Jason Vaughan started for Princeton, going six innings while giving up 10 hits and five runs. Four of those runs were given up on four batters that he faced in the top of the seventh.

Junior reliever Mark Siano came in for Vaughan and managed to quell the offensive outburst by the Lions. He closed out the game giving up only four hits and two runs.

Once the defense had Columbia under control, the Tigers' offense pounded the nails in the Lions' coffin for Saturday. Good situational hitting put four runs on the board in the eighth and three more in the ninth.

Yesterday found Princeton coming out a little slower. Columbia went up, 2-1, in the bottom of the second, but the Tigers managed to tie it up in the top of the third.

Junior pitcher Ryan Quilian started the game for Princeton and managed to keep it close. He pitched five innings giving up five hits and four runs. Pauly came in for two innings, getting his eighth save of the season.

When Quilian left the game, the score was 5-4. By the time the game ended, it was 11-4. Offensively, the Tigers came alive, putting the game out of reach for the Lions by scoring six runs in the top of the seventh.

Princeton managed to carry that momentum into the final game of the series. On the strength of junior starter David Boehle, who gave up only one run in seven innings, the Tigers had the game well in hand with a 5-1 lead.

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Relieving Boehle was junior southpaw Scott Hindman. Hindman did not have a good day.

Technically, Hindman did not pitch even a fraction of an inning. But in that non-inning, he managed to walk two batters and hit two — all of whom scored, giving him four earned runs. Pauly came in to try to clean up the mess but wound up giving up two hits and one run of his own.

Princeton found itself down by one going into the top of the ninth after leading by four runs earlier in the game.

The Tigers were in need of a clutch performance, but this game, they would not find it. Boran struck out to lead off, and sophomore leftfielder Eric Fitzgerald hit a groundball for an out. With two outs, Princeton rallied as Balkan walked and Miller reached first on an infield error. On that same error, Balkan made it to third. After Miller stole second, the Tigers had the tying and winning runs in scoring positions. But with a full count, freshman second baseman Tyler Hassen went down looking.

But with the 3-1 performance, Princeton remains close with Columbia in Ivy standings. Both teams now have five losses in the League, but the Tigers have garnered more wins, putting them atop the Gehrig division with only one weekend of league play left for them.