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Princeton University Athletics
Baseball Set To Open NCAA Tournament At Auburn
May 28, 2003 | Baseball
May 28, 2003
Princeton, N.J. - The Princeton baseball team will take the field Friday night for the first time in three weeks in the first game of the Auburn Regional of the NCAA tournament. The Tigers will meet the host, Auburn, in the day's second game while Clemson and Ohio State will clash in the first game.
History Lesson - Princeton is making its third trip to the NCAA baseball tournament in the last four years. In all the Tigers have made eight NCAA appearances and have an overall record of 2-13 in tournament games.
How Princeton Got Here - Princeton received the automatic berth awarded to the Ivy League champion. The Tigers were 15-5 in the Ivy League regular season, winning the Lou Gehrig Division by three games over Penn. The Tigers then hosted Harvard in the league championship series and defeated the Crimson two games to one.
Tigers vs. Tigers - Princeton and Auburn will meet for the first time in both school's baseball histories. During the regular season, the two teams shared only one common opponent, North Carolina. Princeton split a pair of games with the Tarheels while Auburn swept them in a three-game series. Another Tiger and a Buckeye - Princeton will meet either Clemson or Ohio State in the second game of the regional. Princeton is 0-1 all-time against Clemson and 1-3 against Ohio State. The lone game against Clemson was a 13-5 loss in regional play of the 1991 NCAA tournament. Princeton's last meeting with Ohio State was an 11-8 win in 1986.
Leader of the Pack - Tiger head coach Scott Bradley has led his team to the Gehrig Division crown in each of his six seasons at the helm, and three times the Tigers went on to claim an Ivy League championship. Bradley is currently 146-133 at Princeton.
More Bradley - Bradley spent nine seasons catching in the major leagues for the New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds. In 1981 he was the Yankees second draft pick, taken behind future NFL Hall of Famer John Elway. Bradley's older brother, Bob, is currently the head coach of the New York/New Jersey Metrostars of Major League Soccer. His younger brother, Jeff, is an editor and staff writer for ESPN The Magazine.
Princeton vs. The Field - During the regular season, Princeton faced five NCAA tournament teams and posted a record of 1-9 in those games. Princeton faced North Carolina (1-1), North Carolina State (0-2), Richmond (0-4), Rutgers (0-1) and UNC-Wilmington (0-1).
Princeton Nationally - Three Tigers have ranked in the Top 30 this season in the national statistics. Pitcher Thomas Pauly currently stands third in the nation with a 1.25 ERA and fourth with 13.1 strikeouts per nine innings pitched. Outfielder B.J. Szymanski ranks 18th with .14 triples per game and catcher Tim Lahey sits just outside the top-30 with .27 homeruns per game.
NCAA Experience - Nine current Tigers have appeared in NCAA tournament games. Eric Fitzgerald leads all position players with three games played, while pitchers David Boehle, Bill Broome and Ryan Quillian each have two appearances.
Totally Pauly - Junior pitcher Thomas Pauly leads Princeton with six saves and is tied for the team lead in wins with six. After spending the season coming out of the bullpen, Pauly made two starts down the stretch, both complete game wins, to help lead Princeton back to the NCAA tournament. Pauly was named a first-team All-Ivy, first-team All-State and a Verizon Academic All-District. Boehle'd Over - Senior pitcher David Boehle earned Princeton's first NCAA tournament win in over 36 years when he earned a complete-game win against The Citadel in 2001. Princeton won the game 11-6 and Boehle struck out six batters.
Fitzgerald - Eric Fitzgerald's 12-game hitting streak was the longest of the season for the Tigers. He is one of only three Tiger fielders to appear in a tournament game. He is 1-for-8 in three games with two runs scored and three RBIs.
Homerun Derby - Princeton's 28 homeruns is third in the Tigers' all-time record book for long balls in a season. Leading the way is Tim Lahey, who has blasted 11 homeruns in 41 games this season and ranks second in the Princeton record books for homers in a season.
Not That Jon Miller - Senior third baseman Jon Miller, not to be confused with the ESPN announcer, leads the Tigers in almost all offensive categories. Miller had served predominantly as a catcher during his first three years in a Princeton uniform, but transitioned to third midway through the season.
Two-Sport Stars - Sophomore outfielders B.J. Szymanski and Will Venable each compete for the Tigers in two sports. Szymanski will be Princeton's top receiver in the fall for the football team, while Venable will be the starting point guard on the basketball squad.
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