Tigers face Stony Brook for pair of double dips

The first few weeks of the college baseball season are viewed primarily as a time to get things figured out. While winning is always preferable, not much emphasis is put on the outcome of the games. That time, though, is coming to a close for Princeton (2-9 overall).

After starting off the season by dropping nine straight, the Tigers now find themselves only one week away from the beginning of the Ivy League season, and they are still searching for their groove.

The final tuneup will be a four-game set against Stony Brook (5-11) this weekend, with doubleheaders on both Friday and Saturday. Friday's matchups will be in Princeton, after which the two teams will travel to Stony Brook for Saturday's games.

"We are going to keep working hard and getting better," sophomore pitcher Gavin Fabian said. "This is our last weekend before conference play starts, so we are going to make a strong effort to get some momentum as we go into next weekend."

The Tigers finally got their first wins of the season in the final two games of a triple-header with Old Dominion in Virginia. The final game was especially impressive, as Princeton hammered the Monarchs, 18-1.

The Tigers are hopeful that the offense displayed in that contest will carry over to this weekend and further on into the heart of the conference schedule. On its way to plating the 18 runs, Princeton belted five home runs, including two each by senior centerfielder Will Venable and junior designated hitter Ryan Eldridge. For Eldridge, that brought his season tally to a team-leading five, while Venable's total now sits at three.

While the recent offensive outburst was a pleasant surprise, the Tigers have succeeded so far this season in putting runs on the board. So far, Princeton is averaging almost six runs per game.

Most of Princeton's problems arise when the team takes the field. Tiger opponents are putting up 8.2 runs per game.

Room for improvement

The pitching staff has been consistent, but the players recognize that there is definitely room for improvement. Currently, no one in the rotation has an earned run average below 3.7, with the staff average at 6.85. Still, the bloated nature of these statistics can be explained by the stiff competition that the team faced over spring break.

The defense behind the pitchers could also stand to improve. Tiger fielders have made 31 errors so far this season, many more than the 13 committed by opponents.

Stony Brook represents a different level of competition for the Tigers than has been the norm so far this season. Despite entering the season as the defending America East league champions, the Seawolves have not yet displayed the success that characterized their play last season. They are struggling thus far, having played to a 5-11 record.

Stony Brook began the season relatively well, with a 4-4 record, but the Seawolves recently have hit a major slide, dropping seven of their last eight games. For a Princeton squad looking to use the games to gain momentum going into the start of Ivy League play, this stretch against Stony Brook provides the perfect opportunity.

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At the plate, the Seawolves have only four players hitting above .300. Comparatively, the Tigers currently have eight above that mark. The Seawolves offense averages only 3.5 runs per game.

While the offense struggles, the Stony Brook pitching staff remains a solid unit, holding teams to under 4.7 runs per game. Thus, while its record is unimpressive, Stony Brook has not been a complete pushover this season.

This year marks only the second time that the two schools have ever met, with the first coming last year in a four-game series like the one this weekend. In that inaugural meeting, the Tigers took three of four from the Seawolves.