Softball Senior Day Slated For Saturday Against Penn
4/23/2015 5:09:00 PM | Softball
Season Stats | Live Stats Saturday | Live Stats Sunday | Penn Season Stats
NEW YORK - The final home weekend for the Columbia softball team will get under way on Saturday, when the Lions host a Senior Day doubleheader at 12:30 p.m. with Penn. On Sunday, Columbia will travel to Penn Park for the final pair of the season, which will also start at 12:30 p.m.
Senior Day
Prior to the start of the first home game of the weekend, the Columbia softball program will recognize seniors Liz Caggiano, Alix Cook, Mackensy Lakian and Kayla Shimoda for their contributions throughout their four years on the diamond.
Last Time Out
Columbia battled to a split at Rider in its final non-conference series of the season on Tuesday, April 21. An extra-inning home run by Tonia Wu helped secure a game one victory by a 3-2 score, before the Broncs took the second game, 9-3.
The Ivy League
The series with Penn will be the final one for the Lions, who are still not mathematically eliminated from an Ivy League South title. Penn leads the South Division at 10-6, while Princeton is in second at 8-7 after the second half of a make-up doubleheader with Yale was cancelled due to poor weather. The Tigers will battle 6-10 Cornell over four games this weekend. Columbia has to sweep the Quakers and hope for a couple of other scenarios to play out for a chance to advance.
Ivy League Standings
Historically
Columbia and Penn have met on the softball diamond 45 times coming into the weekend, with the Quakers holding a 31-14 advantage in the series. Penn went 3-1 against Columbia a season ago, but the Lions went out on a high note, winning the last game of the season over the Quakers, 6-5.
Hot Bats
Alix Cook has been one of the hottest hitters in the country as of late, batting .474 in her last 10 games with 18 hits in 38 at-bats. Cook has four doubles, six runs, and two RBI in those contests.
Since starting her first game against Saint Peter's on April 16, Olivia Parker has come on strong. In a seven-game stretch, the first-year is batting .364 with a .440 on base percentage while tallying two outfield assists.
Wu has also provided Columbia with a strong bat as of late, going 7-for-17 in her last five games with three RBI and three runs.
Columbia vs. Penn – Saturday at Columbia Live Stats | Sunday at Penn Live Stats
The Quakers enter the weekend having taken three-of-four from Princeton last weekend. Penn is 19-17 on the season, and the leaders of the Ivy League South at 10-6.
Jurie Joyner has led Penn at the plate in her rookie season, posting a .424 batting average with 42 hits and six homeruns. Not far behind is junior Lauren Li who has hit at a .406 clip, and Vanessa Weaver, who is batting .385.
In the circle, Alexis Borden has spearheaded a four-pitcher attack, starting 18 of 36 games this season. The senior has a 9-10 record with a 3.26 ERA in 124.2 innings. Li has been the second most used pitcher with a 6-2 record and 4.23 ERA. Mason Spichiger (2-2) has the low ERA for the Quakers at 2.57 with Alexis Sargent (2-1) right behind her at 2.77.
Weekend Travel
On Saturday, the uptown Van Cortlandt Park bound 1-train will skip stops at 103, 110, 116, 125 and 137. Shuttle busses between the Columbia campus to Baker Athletics Complex will be running.
