Final league weekend brings hope for Softball

This weekend will mark the end of a long Ivy League season for the Penn softball team.

The Quakers will welcome Harvard and Dartmouth to Warren Field for a pair of games tomorrow and Sunday.

Penn has claimed just one win in Ancient Eight play so far this season -- a 3-1 win over Columbia in the second game of a doubleheader on April 18 in New York.

Entering this weekend's matchups, the Red and Blue are a disappointing 7-25-1 in non-league action and 1-9 in Ivy League play.

Despite their poor play so far this season, the Quakers remain confident about their chances this weekend.

"It has been a rocky season, but I think that we've learned how to work through difficult times and come together as a team," junior pitcher Nicki Borgstadt said. "Record-wise, we're doing worse than last year, but our spirits are still up and it's nice to have our last weekend games at home."

While this weekend's games mark the last for the Quakers in Ivy play, they will end their non-league schedule Monday in a game against city-rival Drexel.

As the season is winding down, Penn is still optimistic about its chances to win.

"We expect to do really well this weekend," Borgstadt said. "Harvard and Dartmouth have been struggling, so we expect wins."

The Red and Blue will face a tough Harvard team (12-22, 4-4) Saturday.

The Crimson enter this weekend after splitting a doubleheader with Rhode Island yesterday.

At .500 in the Ancient Eight, Harvard is tied for fourth place with Columbia and Yale.

Rachel Murray and Lauren Stefanchik lead the Crimson from the batter's box, with batting averages of .439 and .420, respectively.

In addition, Murray, a freshman, was awarded with Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors for her play.

Murray helped lead the Crimson to six wins in seven games last week, including 10 runs batted in.

The Crimson should prove to be a more formidable opponent than Dartmouth.

At 2-6 in Ivy action, the Big Green sit just one spot above the Quakers in the Ancient Eight standings.

Dartmouth will make the trip to Warren Field on Sunday after playing Princeton tomorrow.

The Big Green (5-17, 2-6) haven't played in almost a week -- they dropped both games in a doubleheader at Yale last Saturday -- as their midweek game against Providence scheduled for Tuesday was canceled.

The Quakers will enter this weekend's games well-rested. The Red and Blue last played in a doubleheader Tuesday against Villanova.

"We've had the last couple days off, which has been nice because we've been able to take care of things," Borgstadt said.

While the Quakers are expecting big things from their last weekend of games, they don't seem to know all that much about their competition.

"I don't really know what to expect," Borgstadt said. "I haven't been told much about Harvard or Dartmouth, but we're going to focus on ourselves and play up to our potential and hopefully end the season on a high note."

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