Tigers in hunt for Ivy title

The Tigers emphatically proved that they have all the qualities of champions in their decisive doubleheader against the Big Red on Sunday, winning both games to secure Princeton’s place in the Ivy League Championship series after the two teams split their first two games. The Orange and Black will face Harvard next weekend for the Ancient Eight crown.

The first doubleheader took place Friday at Cornell. The Tigers jumped out to an early 3-0 lead with a three-run home run from sophomore rightfielder Kelsey Quist. Senior starting pitcher Kristen Schaus held the Big Red in check and maintained the lead. Her classmate, catcher and co-captain Beth Dalmut, contributed three RBI on a pair of singles in the sixth and seventh frames, with the second single giving Princeton a decisive 8-4 lead. Quist then hit her second home run of the game, a solo shot, to cap off a three-run seventh inning. Cornell rallied in the bottom of the last frame, scoring one, but ultimately fell 9-5.

The nightcap, however, didn’t go the Tigers’ way. Sophomore starting pitcher Jamie Lettire provided the sole offensive blow for Princeton, a two-run home run over the centerfield fence that gave Princeton a 2-1 lead. In the circle, Lettire was not able to keep the Big Red bats at bay, surrendering one run in the fourth before being relieved by freshman pitcher Michelle Tolfa. The Tigers were not able to muster any additional offense, with just one hit in the last three innings, and they dropped the game 5-2.

After a day off Saturday, the two teams met in Princeton to fight for a chance at the title. Junior shortstop Kathryn Welch noted the team’s determined mindset heading into Sunday’s games.

“We knew it was going to be a slugfest,” Welch said. “We knew Cornell are good hitters and that we are good hitters. We just wanted to come out intense and outhit them.”

A two-run triple gave the Big Red a quick 2-0 lead, but the Tigers narrowed the margin to one in the bottom of the first inning as sophomore second baseman Collette Abbott was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, forcing in a run.

Then the real fireworks began. Cornell hit back-to-back home runs in the second inning and had an RBI double in the third to jump ahead 7-1, but Princeton was not finished. Displaying outstanding resilience, the Tigers stormed right back with a two-run shot from Welch in the third inning and a three-run blast to centerfield from freshman third baseman Megan Weidrick in the fourth.

Princeton ended up giving most of those runs back in the next inning. A series of singles and a two-run double, followed by a throwing error, gave the Big Red a four-run fifth and an imposing 11-6 lead.

The Tigers started the sixth inning by loading the bases with two walks and a single from junior leftfielder Brianna Moreno. Welch then stepped up to the plate and blasted a 1-1 offering over the right centerfield wall for a monumental grand slam. A single from Quist then set up Lettire as the go-ahead run. Lettire launched a full-count pitch into the trees behind the centerfield wall. The six-run offensive burst was all Princeton needed to take the game, 12-11.

Also notable was the running catch made by freshman centerfielder Brittney Scott, which played an integral role in preserving Princeton’s fragile 12-11 lead in the top of the seventh inning.

“Even though we were down by a lot of runs, it never felt like we were going to lose,” Dalmut said. “We knew from the beginning that we were going to win today, and we did.”

The excitement was far from over. A Tiger victory in the second game would clinch the division, but Cornell was not about to let that happen without a fight.

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The Big Red again jumped out to a 2-0 lead again in the second inning with four groundball singles. Quist led the Tiger charge in the bottom of that inning, leading off with a double to centerfield. Dalmut’s single set the stage for junior first baseman Erin Miller, whose clutch hitting helped Princeton dispose of Penn last weekend. Miller delivered a double down the leftfield line, plating Quist. Freshman Kristin Arguedas pinch hit for Moreno with runners on second and third and came through with a clutch seeing-eye RBI single through the left side. Weidrick followed up with another single, driving in both Miller and Moreno — who re-entered for Arguedas as a pinch runner — to give the Tigers a 4-2 lead.

Cornell came back, capitalizing on a two-run home run in the fourth and a leadoff double in the fifth inning. The Tigers were down 5-4 entering the bottom of the seventh inning. Welch, one of heroes of the first game, stepped to the plate. She didn’t waste any time, blasting the first pitch she saw deep into the centerfield trees. Lettire stepped up two batters later with the game tied at five. Working the count to 3-1, Lettire caught a fastball squarely and deposited it over the left centerfield wall, giving the Tigers a walk-off win and the Ivy South crown.

“I just went back to hitting 101,” Lettire said of her home run.

Dalmut praised the team’s collective effort, a theme for the Tigers and a sentiment taken to heart by each individual player.

“Every single person on this team contributed something, and everyone came through when we needed them,” Dalmut said. “It’s just a fabulous job by everyone up and down the lineup.”

Head coach Trina Salcido praised her team’s clutch hitting.

“It was nice. I love the way they pick one another up,” Salcido said. “If Kelsey can’t get it done, Jamie will. It’s been the whole season. The constant commitment to one another — the only way you can win these kinds of games is when you are playing for one another.”