Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Softball to Resume Ivy Play Saturday-Sunday at Columbia
April 10, 2008 | Softball
PRINCETON -- Following a perfect run through the Ivy North division, the Princeton softball team will begin Ivy South play this weekend at Columbia for a pair of 12:30 p.m. doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday.
Princeton (11-19, 8-0 Ivy) holds a one-game lead over Cornell (7-1) in the Ivy South, a three-game lead over Penn (5-3) and a five-game lead over Columbia (3-5). The Tigers, however, are unquestionably heading into the more difficult portion of the schedule. Led by Princeton's sweep, the Ivy South went 23-9 against the Ivy North in cross-divisional play over the last two weekends. Harvard, which went 1-3 against Cornell and Princeton and 4-0 against Columbia and Penn, leads the opposite division with a 5-3 record.
The new two-division format began last season, 14 years after Ivy League baseball began using the system. Princeton's sweep of the North was the first inter-divisional sweep in the short history of Ivy softball's divisional format. Princeton's league wins record of 13 set in 2002 was broken by Harvard and Penn, which each went 14-6. An even finish for Princeton in the Ivy South would equal that record.
Princeton is 11-5 all-time against Columbia in a series that began only in 2001, when Columbia joined the Ivy for softball. In Manhattan, Princeton is 6-4, having split the four-game series at the Baker Field Athletic Complex last year.
Tiger Notes...
Princeton as a team and the Tigers individually lead the Ivy League in many statistical categories in Ivy play. Here are the highlights:
? Princeton's 1.93 league ERA is the lowest by more than a full run.
? The Tigers have the top two spots in the Ivy League batting race with sophomore Kelsey Quist hitting .500 and fellow '10 Jamie Lettire hitting .480. The duo, along with junior Kathryn Welch, have the Ivy League lead for home runs with four apiece. Quist (27) and Lettire (25) lead in total bases, on base percentage (Quist .586, Lettire .517) and slugging percentage (Quist 1.125, Lettire 1.071).
? Lettire is also atop two pitching categories in opponent batting average (.125) and ERA. Lettire is the only pitcher in the Ivy League with a 0.00 ERA among those who have pitched at least one inning per team game. She is also the only pitcher in that group without a walk allowed.
? Quist is the Ivy's RBI leader with 13.
K isn't just for Kristen: Senior Kristen Schaus has an Ivy-best 132 strikeouts this season. She stands second on the all-time Princeton list with 776 Ks and needs 43 to catch former teammate Erin Snyder '06.
On Columbia: The Lions are 12-20 overall and 3-5 in the Ivy League after being swept by Dartmouth and Harvard last weekend. Two Columbia batters are hitting above .300, with Keli Leong at .343 and Dani Pineda at .333. Columbia has relied on a freshman, righthander Maggie Johnson, to throw 91 of its 215 innings. The rookie has compiled an 8-6 record and 2.38 ERA, taking credit for 75 percent of Columbia's wins.
I'm honored: Princeton has had three Ivy League weekly honorees, one in each of the three awards the league recognizes. Kristin Arguedas was the league's rookie of the week in March, and Lettire and Schaus earned player and co-pitcher honors, respectively, last week.
Go Eagles: Princeton head coach Trina Salcido and Columbia freshman Stephanie Yagi have a tie in that Salcido coached at and Yagi is an alumnus of El Camino High School in Sacramento, Calif.
Two Pennas for your thoughts: Columbia sophomore Leanne Penna is the younger sister of Stanford pitcher Missy Penna. The Tigers faced Stanford this year and fell to Penna in its 2006 visit to California. The younger Penna, however, is an outfielder. Princeton outfielder Brianna Moreno also has a Stanford softball sibling in sister Erikka.
Happy birthday!: Princeton sophomore Jamie Lettire and assistant coach Alexis Alcantara celebrated a birthday Wednesday. Lettire marked the occasion with a three-run home run in game one of Princeton's midweek doubleheader against Rutgers.
Good start: Princeton has started the Ivy season 8-0 eight times including 2008. All seven previous times, the start has helped Princeton to an Ivy League title. That includes 5 of 5 on NCAA berths since 1994 when the Ivy began sending its winner to the postseason.
More good start: With a sweep of Columbia, Princeton would tie its best ever Ivy start of 12-0, achieved in 1995. That was during a 33-game Ivy League winning streak from 1993-96. The first two wins would also achieve the best-since-'95 honor, topping a 9-0 start in 1996 and 2006.