Tigers will try to keep Dartmouth, Harvard at bay

Although the softball team is in the midst of a three-game losing streak Princeton (25-12 overall, 5-1 Ivy League) might have had trouble asking for a better way to begin its second Ivy League weekend.

The last time the Tigers dropped three-straight games was in early March, and they followed up that skid with a string of six consecutive wins. With league rivals Harvard (10-12, 3-1) and Dartmouth (7-12-1, 3-1) coming to town for afternoon doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, now would be a perfect time for the team's recent woes to motivate another turnaround.

Princeton remains the Ivy League's one true powerhouse and has looked dominant many times this season, but both the Crimson and the Big Green enter this weekend just a game behind the Tigers in the standings. While Dartmouth's stay among the Ivy elite is not expected to last too long, Harvard could be Princeton's primary source of competition for the league crown this season.

Even in dropping their past few games, the Tigers still have found ways to demonstrate what a force they are to contend with. In particular, the depth of Princeton's talent has been on full display of late.

Opponents resigned to being hurt by senior centerfielder Melissa Finley and junior pitcher Erin Snyder have instead been battered recently by underclassmen like freshman shortstop Lauren Bierman and sophomore designated hitter Calli Jo Varner. In the past week, Bierman and Varner have hit their first and team-leading seventh home runs of the season, respectively.

Despite holding an edge over both of this weekend's opponents talent-wise, the Tigers will need to surpass Harvard and Dartmouth in effort as well to avoid a letdown.

Against the Crimson, Princeton can expect its opponent to push the game's tempo on the basepaths. Harvard leads the league in stolen bases with 15, thanks largely to outfielder Lauren Stefanchik, whose nine steals in as many attempts lead all Ivy players. Stefanchik is also the leading Crimson hitter with a .447 batting average, so Tiger pitchers will have their work cut out for them if they want to save themselves the anxiety that accompanies her reaching base.

Unfortunately for Princeton, gunning down base-stealers is one area that qualifies as a weakness. Senior catcher Ty Ries and the other Tiger backstops have allowed a league-high 33 stolen bases on just 35 attempts. If either of Saturday's games develops into a pitchers' duel — and any time Snyder takes the mound for Princeton there is a good chance one will — the Tigers' success in containing Stefanchik will be crucial.

A glance at Dartmouth's season statistics indicates that the Big Green will provide Princeton with significantly less cause for concern. Dartmouth is hitting .222 as a team, compared to a .296 batting average for its opponents. All together, Big Green hitters have smacked just five home runs this season — a total which Finley and Varner have each surpassed for the Tigers individually.

Things do not get much better for Dartmouth when it takes the field. No Big Green pitcher has a winning record, and the staff's combined earned run average of 4.94 is over three times as high as Princeton's 1.30 mark. Dartmouth's fielding percentage is an Ivy League-worst .921.

While the Big Green's statistics are the kind that make one wonder how the team has managed to put together a winning league record thus far, they are also the kind that the Tigers should avoid seeing as reason to take the Dartmouth team lightly.

The nature of the Ivy schedule makes it so that Princeton has only one pair of games against each league opponent, including apparent doormats like Dartmouth. Securing sweeps of such teams will be crucial to winning the Ivy League, for they provide the cushion in the standings that will allow the Tigers to approach their tougher battles, like the one against Harvard on Saturday, with the confidence of a postseason favorite.