Snyder, Schauss hurl softball to title

Thanks to savvy scheduling prior to the season and stellar play throughout it, the Ivy League champion softball team (36-20 overall, 12-2 Ivy League) was able to close out the year in a situation identical to how it opened play — as an underdog battling some of the nation's toughest competition.

Princeton's season ended on May 21 in Tucson, Ariz., with a 6-3 loss to Oklahoma State in the semifinals of the NCAA tournament regionals, but only after the Tigers had downed Lehigh, 3-1, earlier in the day for their first regional-round win since 1996.

The tournament appearance thus proved to be the final success in a season that was full of them for the Tigers. Princeton's winning ways emerged — and never disappeared — after a 15-game road trip to California early in the season that culminated with a 2-0 win over a Stanford team then ranked No. 3 in the country.

Appropriately, the starting pitcher in the wins against both Lehigh and Stanford was junior Erin Snyder, the Tigers' dominating ace and the unanimous selection for Ivy League Pitcher of the Year. Snyder struck out more batters on the season, 225, than any pitcher in Princeton history. On her way to a 17-5 record that included 18 complete games and 10 shutouts, she held opposing hitters to a .186 batting average and consistently gave her team a chance to win with her 0.93 earned run average.

In two of her starts this past season, though, Snyder made sure victory was the only possible outcome. She became the first Tiger ever to record two perfect games in one season, shutting down Fairfield, 8-0, on March 29, then duplicating the exceptional feat on April 17 in a 5-0 win over Dartmouth.

Though Snyder was not quite perfect in Tucson, her competitive drive and impressive repertoire of pitches were on full display during her two tournament starts. After looking somewhat overmatched in the first game of the regional playoff — a 6-1 loss to Oklahoma State — Snyder regained her old form during the must-win game against the Mountain Hawks (NCAA regionals are double-elimination, with just one team advancing to super-regionals from each four-team bracket).

Snyder also contributed at the plate against Lehigh, notching two hits and scoring a run. The solid performance at the plate was no fluke for Snyder, Princeton's cleanup hitter. She led the Tigers with 30 runs batted in, while batting .295 and homering six times. When not on the mound, Snyder stayed in the lineup and played first base, doing all that she could to support freshman pitcher Kristen Schaus, Princeton's often-dazzling No. 2 starter and the Ivy League Rookie of the Year.

Schaus put together a record of 14-9 during her first season, while posting a 1.55 ERA. She struck out 217 batters, a total second only to Snyder's among league leaders and a Princeton rookie record.

Schaus was on the mound for the Tigers' final game against Oklahoma State, and though the six runs and eight hits that she ultimately let up suggest that she still has room to improve, the considerable talent that she already possesses was on display over the game's first five innings, when she held the mighty Cowgirls scoreless on just two hits.

Before Schaus unraveled, the Tigers held a 3-0 lead and appeared destined to meet Arizona, the region's No. 1 seed, the next day in the regional final. All three Tiger runs were driven in by the team's most feared offensive weapon, slugging senior centerfielder Melissa Finley.

Playing in the last game of a Princeton career during which she received all-Ivy honors four times, Finley went yard in each of her first two at-bats, smashing a two-out solo home run in the first inning before crushing a two-run shot to left field in the third, again with two outs.

With Schaus and Snyder allowing just a run or two per start, it was not rare for Finley to singlehandedly create all the runs that the Tigers needed in a game this season. Her .321 batting average, .554 slugging percentage and .418 on-base percentage all led the Tigers, as did her eight home runs and 30 runs scored.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

In other words, Finley's presence will be greatly missed next year. Even as Schaus and Snyder learn to take more control over every game they pitch, Princeton's lineup will still have to provide its two aces with run support. Snyder herself is sure to contribute, but some combination of junior shortstop Cristina Cobb-Adams, sophomore designated hitter Calli Jo Varner and freshman second baseman Lauren Bierman — all of whom showed flashes of brilliance this past season — will have to emerge as more consistent offensive threats.

If they are able to do so, Princeton fans can expect to see the Tigers back in the NCAA Tournament next year, again taking on the Stanfords and Oklahoma States of the softball world — but this time, with a legitimate shot at shedding their underdog status.