Softball: Team to host Lions for pair of doubleheaders

Without the opportunity to fine-tune things in its final non-conference games, Princeton (13-21 overall, 4-8 Ivy South) will host Columbia (11-24, 3-9) this weekend in a pair of doubleheaders that will decide the team’s postseason fate.

After being swept by Penn in all four games last weekend, the Tigers currently sit at third place in the Ivy League South Division with four wins. Cornell remains in first at 7-5, barely ahead of second-place Penn which, thanks to its sweep of the Tigers, has an even 6-6 record. Columbia rounds out the division at 3-9.

The top team from each division will advance to the Ivy League Softball Championship Series in May.

A weekend sweep for the Tigers can offset much of the damage caused by last weekend’s four losses and would boost the team back to a .500 record with a divisional record of 8-8. To accomplish that, Princeton will need to escape its second-longest losing streak of the season. The Tigers lost six straight games in the first few weeks of the season between the UMBC Tournament and the Virginia Invitational before going on a four-game win streak. That streak was one of only two times this season the Tigers have recorded multiple wins in a row.

While the Lions’ record seems paltry, they actually rank ahead of the Tigers in most statistical categories. Princeton sits last in the Ivy League in team batting average at .259, while the Lions are slightly better at a .265 clip. Individually, nine Lions hold a .250 batting average or better, compared to seven Tigers. Fortunately for Princeton, sophomore outfielder Lizzy Pierce will be the best batter on the field this weekend. She currently owns a .341 batting average, good for 10th overall in the Ivy League.

When it comes to pitching, the statistical gap is much larger. Columbia is second in the Ivy League in ERA, only allowing 2.54 earned runs per seven innings. Princeton has allowed more than twice that amount, with an ERA of 5.22. The Tigers may survive a pitching duel given sophomore pitcher Alex Peyton’s performance this year, but the Lions’ top two aces, Maggie Johnson and Prophet Gaspard, both have sub-3.00 ERAs with over 100 innings pitched. Peyton’s ERA is at a very respectable 3.76.

If Princeton wants to make a deep postseason run, a successful weekend is an integral first step. The Tigers cannot afford to drop multiple games if they want to reach the championship series. To make things harder, weather forecasts for this weekend call for heavy rain. The Tigers will not only have to battle the Columbia Lions but also, again, the elements.

All four games this weekend will be at the Class of 1895 Field. Both Saturday’s and Sunday’s doubleheaders are scheduled for 12:30 p.m., weather permitting.