Baseball's split leaves destiny with Princeton

Penn's hopes are resting on this weekend's games with the Tigers. Today, the Penn baseball team hosts Lehigh at 3:30 p.m., but that's not really important. The Engineers are merely a final tune-up before the Quakers have to do the same thing to Princeton that the Tigers did to them one year ago. Backing up a bit, the Red and Blue failed to capitalize on this weekend's trip to Cornell (8-20, 3-9 Ivy League), home of the Gehrig Division cellar dwellers. After splitting two games on Sunday, Penn did the same thing yesterday, losing the first contest 11-8 before emerging victorious, 7-4, in the nightcap. But it was the Quakers' bats which came alive this weekend, and although the defense was not always there, they put up some big numbers, including shortstop Joe Carlon's two-game line of 4-for-7 at the plate with two RBIs and rightfielder Armen Simonian's 4-for-8, one RBI, two runs scored effort. "[The Cornell pitchers] were very hittable," Nagata said. "It wasn't a one-person affair, so it had to be the pitching." But those two were overshadowed by Quakers first baseman Russ Farscht and designated hitter Mark Nagata's two homers each. "I think our problem is trying to put everything together," Carlon said. "We're not getting our hitting when we're getting our pitching, or we're not getting our pitching when we're hitting." In game one, nothing could have been more true. While the Quakers were hitting the hide off the ball, the Big Red bats were ready to counterstrike each attack. When Penn scored three runs to start the game, including a solo homer by Farscht, Cornell responded with three of its own, sparked by a triple, single and a double to start their half of the inning. When the Quakers chalked up four runs in the fourth, the Big Red did the exact same in the second half of the frame. While Cornell was busy coming back, Penn pulled starting pitcher Alex Hayden for demoted Mike Greenwood, who pitched just one out over four batters, allowing one earned run and two hits. But it was freshman pitcher Kevin Johnson who got the loss after replacing Greenwood and allowing four runs in just 2 1/3 innings. In the final game of the weekend, the Quakers again jumped out in the first inning, this time scoring two runs on Nagata's second homer of the day, scoring Simonian. Cornell, however, would match those runs in the bottom of the third. But Penn fired up a five-run fifth -- and refused to let it slip this time. Farscht also hit his second round-tripper of the day, adding three more RBIs to his two-game total of five. For the first time all weekend, Penn closer Travis Arbogast saw his only weekend action on the mound -- one inning and one unearned run allowed. Nagata's overall 3-for-5 performance at the plate brings his Ivy batting average to .528, which leads the the rest of the Blair Bat competition. "With a team like Cornell, who is not the same caliber as we are, winning 3-of-4 would have been our goal," he said. Disappointed with the split, however, the Quakers now have more pressing matters -- a Princeton sweep. The Red and Blue (15-18-1) are currently 7-8 in Ancient Eight play, three losses behind the 7-5 Tigers. This weekend, Penn hosts Princeton for four games, and a sweep will virtually ensure a Gehrig championship. After the Tigers play four games in West Philadelphia, they take one extra week to play four games with the Big Red in a home and away series. One other conceivable finish is that Penn sweeps Princeton, who then sweeps Cornell. That would leave Princeton 1/2 game ahead of the Quakers, who would complete a suspended game against Columbia earlier this season to take care of the extra 1/2 game.