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Princeton University Athletics
One Family, Two Conference Titles
May 24, 2016 | Baseball
PRINCETON, N.J. - As junior Danny Baer ran across the plate into the waiting arms of senior Andrew Christie to conclude the Ivy League Championship Series, the comeback story of the Princeton baseball team reached its climax.
The Tigers were Ivy League champions.
There were many protagonists in this story, but one of them may have gone unnoticed during the season. Sophomore Asher Lee-Tyson broke out during the Ivy League Championship Series, going 7-of-9 (.778) with five RBI.
A conference title, one would think, would be a great accomplishment to share with families and friends, but it wasn't uncommon for the Lee-Tyson household. Earlier this month, Asher's brother, Ethan, was a member of the Haverford College (Division III) baseball team that won the Centennial Conference and a berth to the NCAA Tournament.
"It's a pretty amazing feeling to be headed to a NCAA Regional and to follow Ethan and the rest of the Haverford team this past season was really exciting," said Asher.
While Asher had an outstanding performance in helping Princeton clinch its first Ivy League crown since 2011, Ethan enjoyed a sparkling postseason as well as he named the Centennial Conference Tournament MVP, going 10-of-15 with eight runs.
"To watch Ethan perform so well in the Centennial Conference tournament was extremely exciting, but at the same time, I wasn't surprised because I've seen him perform well under pressure so many times in different sports growing up," mentioned the Princeton infielder.
The two brothers were heavily influenced by their father, Eric, who rarely passed up an opportunity to hit ground balls to Asher and Ethan when they were younger. "I've been pretty lucky to have been blessed with a brother who's always available to workout with, and a father who's always been willing to throw us batting practice or play catch with us," noted the sophomore.
It was quite a balancing act for Asher and Ethan's parents with two children playing at different schools. His parents switched off games as Eric would attend a Princeton game while Judy, Asher's mom, went to a Haverford contest. For the next conflict, the parents would switch alliances and go to the other sibling's matchup.
The starting shortstop for the Ivy League champions didn't have the counting stats that pop off the screen, but was a main factor in helping the team complete a magnificent turnaround. The sophomore saw a bump in in batting average, runs, extra-base hits, RBI, slugging percentage and on-base percentage from his freshman year. The slick-fielding middle infielder only made eight errors while finishing with 58 putouts and 101 assists.
"I don't think the team's success has caught any of us by surprise," said Asher. "We were able to bring in some freshmen like Joe (Flynn) and Jesper (Horsted), who have been pivotal in our team's success and we have a really strong group of seniors this year."
It was a special season for the Princeton baseball team rallying from a 7-32 record last year to win the program's eighth outright Ivy League crown.
One conference title is nice, but two in one season? That's an extraordinary feat that Lee-Tyson household got to experience and something it won't forget.
Princeton will find out who and where it will play in the NCAA Tournament on Monday's NCAA Selection Show on ESPNU at 12 p.m.
