Ivy Champs! Softball Team Wins 21st Ivy Title, Set to Host Ivy Tournament

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For the 21st time, Princeton is an Ivy League softball champion, and for the first time in its current run, the Ivy League Tournament is headed to Princeton.

The Tigers clinched a share of the Ivy League title, the team's second straight, with a 10-9 win over Dartmouth Saturday afternoon, and though Harvard is an Ivy champion as well, as both finished the league season at 16-5, Princeton's series win over the Crimson last weekend gives the Tigers hosting rights for the May 11-13 Ivy League Tournament, which will be for the league's NCAA tournament automatic bid.

The four-team event is in its first edition since league-postseason play returned in 2007, and Princeton will be the top seed. Harvard, Yale and Columbia will be the final three seeds, with Princeton opening the tournament May 11 against Columbia at 12 p.m. with the Harvard-Yale game following. The winners of those two games will meet May 12 at 10 a.m. for Game 3, followed by the losers of the May 11 games for Game 4, with the Game 3 loser and Game 4 winner closing out that day's tripleheader. The May 13 championship final will start at 12 p.m., and if the team that won the first two games loses that one, the winner-take-all game for the NCAA tournament bid will follow.

Princeton never trailed Saturday against Dartmouth, but the Big Green pushed the Tigers until the final out.

Princeton opened the scoring in the top of the first after Serena Starks led off with a double a Grace Jackson-hit ball got away, allowing Starks to score. Julia Dumais then picked up Jackson with a sacrifice fly for a 2-0 lead.

Dartmouth got one back in the second on a walk and three hits, but Princeton struck back with two in the fourth for a 4-1 lead on three straight hits from Lauren Sablone, Ashley McDonald and Starks before Allison Ha had a two-run base hit.

The rains came in the fifth inning, a big frame for both teams. A Sophia Marsalo hit, a Sablone double and a McDonald walk loaded the bases for a Starks hit to pick up Caitlin Bish, who reached after Marsalo was erased on a fielder's choice. Jackson then drew a walk to make it 6-1, and with the bases still loaded, Ha cranked a grand slam to make it 10-1.

Dartmouth got all six back in a soggy last of the fifth on four hits, four walks, a hit batter and a wild pitch as the Big Green pulled back to within 10-7.

Following a quiet top of the sixth for Princeton, Dartmouth made it 10-9 in its half of the inning on three hits and a walk.

The top of the seventh yielded just a Lauren Pappert single for Princeton, giving the Tigers just the one-run lead to protect in the bottom of the seventh. Alexis Laudenslager, who left during the rainy fifth inning, returned for the seventh, returned and allowed just a single in her relief appearance, sealing the win.

Sablone and Starks each finished with a three-hit day while Ha finished with six RBI.

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