Baseball: Tigers’ Ivy League chances fade as Penn bats prove too much

The baseball team got off to a promising start in its four-game series with Penn, coming through with big hits to win the first game in dramatic fashion. But it could not build on that momentum, as the Quakers continued to pound the ball while the host’s bats fell flat. The Tigers stumbled to their third consecutive 1-3 Ivy League weekend and were officially eliminated from postseason contention.

Princeton (10-27 overall, 5-11 Ivy League) blew a late lead in the first game of the series but came back to score the winning run on a ground ball by senior outfielder Jon Broscious, which sealed an 8-7 victory. But the best-hitting team in the conference put on an offensive display over the final three games that the Tigers could not match, stroking 55 hits in four games. Penn (20-17, 9-7) took the final three contests handily, winning 13-7, 8-1 and 14-3.

“It was a rough weekend for us,” junior pitcher Dan Barnes said. “Penn’s got some really good hitters on their team. They hit the ball well, and a lot of their balls found holes.”

The first doubleheader was played on Friday, instead of the usual Saturday start, because inclement weather was expected later in the weekend. The schedule change did not faze Barnes, who started the first game. Barnes gave up a run in the first and two more in the second, all unearned, but shut out the potent Penn offense for the next three innings. The righthander, who has occasionally struggled with his command this season, only walked one batter in the game.

The Tigers loaded the bases in their half of the first inning but stranded all three runners. They would not leave another runner on base until the final frame. Senior second baseman Noel Gonzales-Luna and sophomore catcher Sam Mulroy reached base with singles in the third inning. That brought up senior designated hitter Brian Berkowitz, who sent a home run over the right field fence to knot the score at 3-3.

The top of Princeton’s order came through again the next inning. Freshman infielder Alex Flink and leadoff hitter Gonzales-Luna singled, sending freshman outfielder John Mishu to the plate with two outs. Mishu stroked a base hit to center field, driving home Flink to take the lead. The next batter, Mulroy, homered to left, putting the Tigers up 7-3.

The Quakers would not go down quietly. Penn designated hitter Jeremy Maas answered with a two-run home run in the top of the sixth to close the gap. Junior righthander Matt Grabowski came on in the seventh and final inning but could not close out the game. Rightfielder Tom Grandieri led off the inning with a double and came around to score on a single by first baseman William Gordon. Gordon stole second and scored the tying run on leftfielder Adrian Lorenzo’s base hit.

Grabowski got out of the jam, giving the Tigers a chance to win the game. With one out, Mulroy drew a walk and Berkowitz singled to short right field, advancing Mulroy to third. Broscious hit a ground ball to the left of third baseman Dan Williams. Williams tried to start an inning-ending double play, but Broscious beat the relay throw to first as Mulroy crossed the plate.

Junior David Palms started the nightcap for Princeton. Like his predecessor, Palms showed remarkable command, throwing first-pitch strikes to the first 12 hitters and not walking a single batter. However, the Quakers were able to hit the ball hard. Grandieri and shortstop Derek Vigoa each singled and came around to score in the second inning, and Grandieri scored again after a leadoff double in the fourth.

Princeton managed some success against Penn starting pitcher Todd Roth. The Tigers, aided by a pair of Quaker errors, put up a pair of runs in their half of the third inning and took the lead with two runs on three hits in the fourth.

But Penn immediately responded. Five consecutive batters reached base to lead off the fifth inning, scoring three runs and knocking Palms out of the game. Freshman Kevin Link came on in relief with no outs and two on, but he induced a popout and a double play to get out of the jam with no further damage. Princeton pulled within one run on a Mishu solo home run in the bottom of the sixth. The Quakers extended their lead in the seventh when Grandieri answered with a two-run blast of his own, the rightfielder’s fourth hit of the game. But Princeton took advantage of a tiring Roth — who started the seventh inning with his pitch count already at 120 — and some more defensive miscues to score two runs of its own, bringing the score to 8-7.

The visitors finally broke the game open in the eighth inning, loading the bases with nobody out to bring up the top of the order. Link induced a sacrifice fly and a fielder’s choice at home, and almost held the Quakers to just one run. But junior leftfielder Brandon Englert had trouble going back on a deep Williams fly ball, allowing the shot to drop for a two-run triple.

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The Tigers threatened one final time in the bottom of the frame, loading the bases with one out, but could not take advantage. Penn added a pair of insurance runs in the final inning, pulling away for a 13-7 victory. Every Quaker batter had at least one hit and scored at least one run in the game.

“It’s tough mentally to face that kind of lineup, where every kid can hit,” Barnes said.

Penn continued to hit well on Saturday. It struck first again in game one, scoring two runs on a Grandieri home run. Of all the Penn hitters, Grandieri was by far the hottest, as he stroked 12 hits in 18 at-bats and slugged 1.167.

But freshman rightyhander Zak Hermans bore down and held the Quakers to just those two runs through the fourth. He did not receive any run support, however, as Princeton managed just one hit and no runs through four innings against lefthander Chris McNulty.

Link almost got through the fifth inning unscathed, inducing a pair of quick outs. But the Quakers put on a massive two-out rally, getting six consecutive batters on base. A triple to the right-field wall by Lorenzo and a double down the line by second baseman Steve Gable capped the streak, extending the Quaker lead to 7-0.

Princeton had a chance to answer in its half of the frame, loading the bases with nobody out for the top of the order. A sacrifice fly by Gonzales-Luna brought home sophomore shortstop Andrew Whitener, but that would be the only run the Tigers could push across. McNulty cruised to a one-run complete game.

“We struggled a lot with our hitting,” freshman outfielder Nate Baird said. “We were hitting some balls right at people and not hitting others very well. We have a lot of things to work on in the offseason so stuff like this doesn’t happen.”

The final game of the series went in a similar fashion. Senior lefthander Langford Stuber threw very well early in the game, holding the Quakers scoreless through three innings. Penn tagged Stuber for three runs on four hits in the fourth, but the senior was mostly able to keep his opponents off balance.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, Penn righty John Beasley was even better. Beasley was perfect through four innings and did not allow a hit until junior infielder Matt Connor blooped a single into left field in the bottom of the sixth.

Stuber pegged a pair of batters in the top of the sixth, and the Quakers made him pay. Gable drove in catcher Will Davis with a hit-and-run double down the line and came around to score later in the inning to put Penn ahead 5-0.

Penn took total control of the game in the seventh inning, scoring six runs en route to a convincing 14-3 victory.

The Tigers remain tied for last place in the Gehrig Division with Cornell. They will play four games against the Big Red next weekend.