Seniors look to lead squad to Ivy title

“I think that their drive to get back [to the NCAA regionals] is unlike any other team we’ve had,” head coach Scott Bradley said. “Ultimately, that’s what our goal always is: to go to regionals.”

While finishing atop the Gehrig Division of the Ivy League and advancing to the Ivy League Championship Series will not be easy, many point to the years of experience the position players have and the front end of the starting rotation as promising signs for success.

“This is the best team that I’ve been on in my four years,” senior first baseman Adrian Turnham said in an e-mail. “We’re more talented, but most importantly, we’ve worked much harder than we’ve ever done [before].”

Turnham is one of the seniors whose leadership has been crucial this offseason. Last year, he batted .306 for the season and appeared in all but one game. A switch-hitter, Turnham will be expected to contribute in the meat of the lineup at either the fourth or fifth spot.

At second base, another senior, Dan DeGeorge, will be the expected starter. DeGeorge will be moving over from shortstop, where he started every game last season and scored 47 runs. On the other side of the infield, sophomore Greg Van Horn will start at shortstop. Van Horn had an impressive freshman year, batting .323 and driving in 20 runs, before taking a year off from school.

At third base, sophomore Matt Connor and freshman Andrew Whitener will platoon. Junior Noel Gonzales-Luna will be a utility infielder, and he most likely will see time at multiple positions. Gonzales-Luna specializes in third base, but he can also play shortstop and second base.

Behind the plate is one of Princeton’s strongest players, junior catcher Jack Murphy. Last year, the catcher was a first-team All-Ivy selection, starting every game and batting .391. Murphy hit successfully in all but five games in the 2008 season and led the team with eight home runs.

“Murphy is a bona fide [professional] prospect,” Bradley said. “He’s a real workhorse who also runs our pitching staff.”

Freshman Sam Mulroy, a highly regarded recruit, will back up Murphy behind the plate. Mulroy can also play third base and in the outfield.

Unlike in the infield, where specific players will see most of the time at certain positions, a variety of players will see time in the outfield. The three primary outfielders will be senior Derek Beckman and juniors Jon Broscious and Brian Berkowitz. Beckman is one of the team’s leaders, tallying 42 hits last season. Broscious had seven homers in only 35 games last season, and Berkowitz will be moving into a starting role again after playing in only three games last season.

Junior David Hale and freshman Tom Boggiano will also log time in the outfield, but they will mostly be used in specific situations, such as when Bradley sees certain pitching matchups that are advantageous for the Tigers.

The starting rotation will be anchored by three top right-handed pitchers who can all consistently throw in the low 90 miles-per-hour range: senior Brad Gemberling, junior David Hale and sophomore Dan Barnes. They are all hard throwers, with Hale reaching the mid- to upper-90s at times.

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“Gemberling has vaulted himself into interest from scouts,” Bradley said.

The last spot in the rotation will be filled one of two lefties, sophomore David Palms or junior Langford Stuber. Palms is also considered to be a major league prospect by professional teams.

In the bullpen, the closer role will be given to sophomore righty Matt Grabowski. Other arms in the pen include sophomore righthander Chad Ohlendorf, freshman righthander Ryan Makis, freshman lefthander Stephen Elmore and, if the Tigers are fortunate, sophomore righthander Matt Welsh, who broke his collarbone before Christmas but hopes to be ready to play by the start of the season.

“The key to our team is our front five guys,” Bradley said. “They have a chance to be as talented a group as we’ve ever had and even as talented as any starting staff the league has ever seen.”

With these high expectations for the season, the team is eager to start playing real games. Unfortunately for the Tigers, during the off-season they are limited to indoor practices, and their first taste of a real field was their opening game of the season at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Princeton lost 6-5.

“The big thing is getting our guys ready to play,” Bradley said. “We don’t have a spring training. We only have [our practice facility in Jadwin Gymnasium].”

Bradley said the team will take it easy over the first few games, including during its spring break road trip down South. That trip will provide quite a challenge for the Tigers, as it includes three games against current No. 1 UNC- Chapel Hill.

“[UNC] has so many good pitchers and hitters, but I believe we can compete with them, Turnham said. “[It] should be a fun, challenging experience.”

The team plans to be ready to compete in full force by the final weekend of that trip, when it will face Navy. By then, the pitchers will be on shorter leashes, and the games will be played more like the Ivy League matchups the Tigers will play in as the spring progresses.