1995 IVY LEAGUE BASEBALL STANDINGS: Baseball beats New England nemeses

Penn takes 3 of 4 from Harvard, Dartmouth Not many baseball teams have hit Dan Galles hard. But last season, Dartmouth knocked in six runs in less than two innings against the Penn baseball captain. Galles remembered that April 9 day when he warmed up for yesterday's rematch against the Big Green at Bower Field. He recalled it between innings sitting in the dugout. But after he pitched Penn to a 9-1 victory, Galles only thought of vindication. "Most of the emotion came from years past," Galles said. "None of the seniors had ever beaten them. They've always been our main nemesis because we've played poorly against them. Last year, it almost cost us the season. This year, we have lofty expectations and weren't going to get beat in our league opener." Penn beat Dartmouth for the first time this decade yesterday, sweeping the Big Green, 9-1 and 2-0. After Galles (2-2) cruised through the Dartmouth lineup, Mike Shannon (2-1) shut out the Big Green to give the Quakers (10-9, 3-1 Ivy League) the early lead in the Gehrig division race. The day before, Penn split a doubleheader with Harvard, winning the opener, 4-2, before falling in extra innings, 7-5. The tone yesterday was set early. Galles sat Dartmouth's first seven batters down in order. As Galles (7 innings, 1 run, 4 hits, 8 strikeouts) was in control on the mound, the Quakers sent 10 batters up in the second inning to take a 6-0 lead they would never relinquish. Michael Green led the onslaught with a double, triple and four runs batted in. Mark DeRosa also went 3 for 4. But in yesterday's nightcap, these same explosive bats were practically silenced by Dartmouth's Travis Farrell. The freshman, who was recruited by Penn but was denied admission by the University, pitched a complete game, allowing just two runs on only three hits. But Mike Shannon was just that much better. The junior pitcher (7 innings, 0 runs, 5 hits, 5 strikeouts) shut out the Big Green. He improved upon his team-best 2.25 earned run average with the help of the solid defense and timely hitting of Rob Naddelman (1 for 2, 2 RBI in yesterday's nightcap). "What can you say about Mike? I don't know. Mike is one of the best pitchers on the East Coast," Burt said. "He's nasty. He throws hard. He throw strikes. There's nothing you can say about Mike other than he's a better pitcher than they are hitters." But while Shannon was the beneficiary of solid defense and consistent playmaking, Saturday's second game against Harvard featured none of the same. After staff ace Ed Haughey (7 innings, 2 runs, 5 hits, 5 strikeouts) upped his record to 4-1 with a 4-2 victory in the first half of the doubleheader against the Crimson, Penn literally threw the second half of the twin bill away. With Harvard clinging to a 3-1 lead in the sixth inning, the Quakers began to rally. First Shannon got on base. Then Naddelman knocked him in with a triple. And Allen Fischer tied the game with a pinch-hit single to right field. It was not enough, however, as Harvard scored yet another run in the top of the seventh. But then Armen Simonian's fourth hit of the day started another Penn rally. As a train overhead stopped to watch, Naddelman hit a two-out triple to tie the game at 4. Harvard center fielder Marc Levy dove for a routine base hit and the ball bounced over him and rolled to the wall. While Levy lay on the grass holding his head in his hands and left fielder Brett Vankoski chased down the ball, Naddelman probably could have scored. But Penn coach Bob Seddon held him at third. In the extra inning, the Crimson took advantage of two walks, two errors and a base hit to score three unearned runs. Still, the Quakers had a chance. Penn loaded the bases with just one out -- but there the Quakers stalled, falling 7-5 in eight innings. "It seemed like every time they'd get up, we'd come back and tie it," Burt said. "We were one hit away from putting them away. We just didn't get that hit." Saturday's nightcap was how every game against Harvard and Dartmouth used to be. The Quakers had compiled a paltry 3-13 record against these two New England foes in the '90s before this weekend. After losing eight consecutive games to the Big Green, Penn pitching coach Bill Wagner proclaimed, "I want Galles to pitch. It's time to shut them down." And after yesterday's sweep, Wagner gloated, "Did I tell you? Did I tell you he was pissed off? He was fired up. That's why we set the rotation that way." With those pitching changes came an early tie for first place in the Gehrig Division.

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