Softball will play home and away series versus second-place Big Red

For every team there comes a point where one mistake — one loss — can send the whole season crashing down. For the softball team, that make-or-break moment is now.

The Tigers (20-27 overall, 10-6 Ivy League) will travel to Ithaca, N.Y., this afternoon to play a doubleheader against Ivy South rival Cornell (30-11, 11-5). Both teams will then travel back to Princeton to play another two-game set at Class of 1895 Field on Sunday.

Heading into these final four games of their Ivy season, the Tigers know they must win all of them to qualify for postseason play. Princeton currently sits third in the Ivy South, four wins away from tying first-place Penn (23-17, 14-6) for the Ivy title.

One loss will crush the Tigers' hopes of playing next weekend in the Ivy League Championship. If Princeton manages to sweep both doubleheaders, however, it will face the Quakers in a one-game playoff to determine the Ivy South winner.

"We will come out of this weekend on our way to the Ivy Championships," freshman pitcher Jamie Lettire said, "as long as we keep a positive attitude and have fun playing the game."

The Tigers' opponent this weekend also has much at stake. The second-place Big Red is only one game behind Penn and can clinch the Ivy South title outright with four wins, or force a tiebreaker with three.

Cornell has been hitting its stride recently as both its bats and its pitching have been up to almost every challenge thrown at them. The Big Red boasts an impressive seven players batting over .300, including outfielder Jenna Campagnolo, who leads the way at a .382 clip. Catcher Sarah Ruben is barely behind her at a strong .371.

While Campagnolo and Ruben have racked up the hits, freshman Alyson Intihar is possibly the most dangerous hitter on Cornell's roster. Intihar has knocked in 34 runs this season along with nine home runs. Just last week she was named both the Rookie of the Week and Player of the Week in the Ivy League, so the Tigers will have to be aware of her presence in the lineup at all times.

Princeton's top two pitchers, junior Kristin Schaus and Lettire, will have their hands full getting through the Big Red batting order. Schaus is known around the Ivies as a dominating strikeout pitcher and will use that ability to prevent the Big Red players from even putting the ball in play. The fewer runners Cornell can get on the base paths, the less damage its power hitters can do in the middle of the lineup.

To go along with its sluggers, the Big Red also has speedsters. Outfielder Ashley Wolf has been successful on 16 of 19 stolen base attempts. Princeton will have to be wary of Wolf's ability to get around the bases and make quick decisions when she has the chance to run.

Cornell's excellence carries over to the field, where the team boasts a gaudy .962 fielding percentage. On the mound, the Big Red's one-two punch of Haley Mirrer and Jenn Meunier has been rattling off win after win and holding opponents to a .255 batting average. Earlier this month, Mirrer and Meunier were on six-game winning streak before Penn snapped it as it took over the top spot in the league.

The Tigers will look to capitalize on sophomore infielder Kathryn Welch's strong hitting to rattle the confidence of the Cornell pitchers. The reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year leads Princeton with 32 RBI, 13 more than any of her teammates.

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Princeton will need its players, even Welch, to step up their games heading into this critical of series.

"We are going into this weekend extremely well prepared both mentally and physically," Lettire said. "We all know what is on the line, and as a team we are extremely excited to get out there and finally show what we are capable of."