PRINCETON, N.J. -- After a dramatic comeback win in Game 1, John Cole knew that his team had to win Game 2 of Monday's doubleheader to have a chance to take the Lou Gehrig Division of the Ivy League.
So the Penn baseball coach chose to start senior Sean Abate on the mound, despite the fact that Abate had pitched 7 1/3 innings the day before.
The risk did not pay off.
Abate got the first Princeton hitter out, but little else went his way. With two outs and a runner on, Zach Wendkos and Sal Iacono bashed back-to-back home runs, and the Quakers were in a hole that they never climbed out of as Princeton won, 14-2, eliminating Penn from title contention.
The Quakers (12-27, 7-13 Ivy League) needed to win at least three games on the rain-delayed Sunday-Monday weekend to stay in contention, but lost a golden opportunity in Game 1 on Sunday and ended up having to sweep Monday's action against the Tigers (12-21-1, 7-9).
"It's very disappointing," Cole said after the blowout loss that ended his first season as Penn coach.
And although the Quakers finished with an identical Ivy record and nearly the same overall record as last season, Cole is convinced that his team has made progress.
"We're getting closer, and hopefully we'll catch them," he said about Princeton, which had won nine straight division titles until losing to Cornell by a game last season.
The Tigers now lead the Big Red by a game going into the four-game, winner-take-all, home-and-home showdown next weekend.
Sophomore infielder Alex Nwaka, who had four hits on the weekend -- including a big three-run homer in Monday's first game -- sees the biggest change in the way Penn has lost this year.
"The way that we are sticking in some games is a lot better," he said.
Cole has already put this season behind him and is ready for season two.
"Next year begins tonight," he said.
Nwaka agreed that the Quakers have some potential.
"We have a pretty solid team," he said.
Princeton 4, Penn 3 (8 inn.)
Abate had only made seven appearances on the mound before this season, but this year he equaled that mark, going 2-2 while having the second-lowest ERA on the team.
He pitched brilliantly, allowing only one run on four hits and two walks in the first seven innings. However, the Quakers also only scored a single run, so the teams went to extra innings.
Penn scored twice in the eighth, on doubles from Nwaka and catcher Josh Corn to take the lead.
But after Abate allowed a one-out single, he was removed for junior closer Doug Brown.
Brown has been the Quakers' best pitcher this season, but he quickly gave up a walk and three singles.
The Tigers stole the game, forcing Penn to have to win the next three in a row to have a shot at the division.
Penn 3, Princeton 2 (10 inn.)
Game 2 on Sunday also went into extras as Penn rallied off Princeton reliever Steven Miller in the 10th.
Corn reached on an error leading off the inning, stole second and scored on a single by Tim May.
Brown redeemed himself in that game by stranding two runners in the bottom half to pick up the save and keep Penn alive.
Starter Brian Cirri (1-5) got his first win of the year by pitching the first nine innings, giving up two runs on just three hits and allowing six walks.
The six runs allowed in Sunday's doubleheader, which went an extra two innings, were the fewest allowed by the Quakers in a doubleheader all year.
Penn 9, Princeton 7
A wild comeback win kept Penn alive until the final game of the season.
Penn scored twice in the fourth and three times in the fifth on a Nwaka three-run bomb to erase a 4-0 deficit.
"I really wasn't thinking much of it at the time," Nwaka said of his third long ball of the season.
But Princeton rallied for three runs off starter Bret Wallace and Brown (5-2) to take the lead back in the bottom half of the fifth.
Then, Penn put together a rally against Miller (0-7), who came in after a leadoff walk. Pinch hitter Tony Moses singled, Nwaka walked, and then Corn and May singled to give Penn its final margin as Brown retired the side in the sixth and seventh to earn the win.
The Quakers did cause four unearned runs in this game; a two-out error by sophomore shortstop Scott Graham led the way to two homers and four runs in the Princeton third.
Princeton 14, Penn 2
"They were definitely reeling from that first game," Cole said.
That is why he chose to use Abate (2-3) in Game 2 Monday against Princeton's ace, Christian Staehely (3-1).
He was hoping to just get a couple innings out of Abate and keep Princeton from seizing the momentum.
But before Abate even took the mound, Corn was picked off at first base for the second out of the first, and Princeton started to get some life back. Staehely settled down after the batter, Kyle Armeny, ended up singling, and a potential Penn rally never occurred.
Princeton never looked back, scoring three runs in each of the first two innings, and at least one run in six of the first seven as Staehely only gave up two hits until Penn rallied for two runs on two hits in the ninth.
"We just didn't play well," Cole said.
"Nothing went our way today in the second game," Nwaka said. "We came out kind of flat."
