ITHACA, N.Y. — With midweek games all finished up, Columbia Baseball (23-13, 13-2 IVY) now turns its attention on the final two Ivy League weekends of the 2022 season, starting with a visit to Cornell (9-20, 4-11 IVY) set to get going on Saturday, Apr. 30 with that doubleheader scheduled for 11:30 A.M. and a Sunday, May 1 single game, with first pitch set for 12 p.m. at Hoy Field.
 
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS:
GM1: Joe Sheets: 2-1 5.26 ERA (R­­HP/COL) – Luke Yacinich: 2-3 6.50 ERA (RHP/COR)
GM2: Andy Leon: 2-0 3.31 ERA (RHP/COL) – Spencer Edwards: 2-5 7.13 ERA (LHP/COR)
GM3: TBA (COL) – TBA (COR)
 
COLUMBIA'S STATUS: Following its record setting 16th straight win over Army (Apr. 27), Columbia returns to Ivy League play with a three-game series with the Big Red.  Currently sitting first in the Ivy League, Columbia has won 12 consecutive Ivy League games entering the weekend.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES: Columbia and Cornell go back to 1889 and have met 253 times over both program's long history.  All-time Cornell holds a 141-112 advantage over the Lions, but the Lions took the last series (2019).  Over the last five games in the series, Columbia has won four.
 
WHAT THE BIG RED BRING: Cornell enters the weekend at 9-20 (4-11 IVY), having lost their last two games at Dartmouth in the previous weekend.  The Big Red have one Ivy series win under their belts, taking two-of-three from Yale.
 
RECORD SETTING WIN: With its 9-4 win in the final midweek game of the season at Army, Columbia won its 16th consecutive game, setting a program record for consecutive wins.
 
The Lions enters the weekend with the longest current winning streak in the country.
 
BLAKE HAS FIVE: In a dominating show at the dish, Andy Blake had a career-day against Army (Apr. 27), going 5-for-5 with three doubles and three RBIs.  Blake became the first Lion to get at least five hits since Liam McGill at North Florida in 2019.
 
BUYING ALL THE BROOMS: For the fourth straight weekend, Columbia swept its Ivy League opponent, taking all three games from Yale in a dominating performance.  The only close game was the first, a comeback win for the Lions that saw them score four runs in the seventh to take the opening game of the doubleheader.
 
TOP OF THE LEAGUE: Columbia's 13-2 record in the Ivy League has them sitting first in the league with six league games remaining.  They sit a game ahead of Penn in the win column and have three games over Dartmouth in the loss column.  Columbia's 22-13 overall record is also second best in the league.
 
ROOKIE KREUTZ: Becoming the second Lion this season to earn the honor, EJ Kreutzmann was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week following his stellar week.  Over the week, Kreutzmann hit .538, and against Yale he smashed a .556 average.  He also added a pair of stolen bases and a pinch-hit two-run home run over the weekend's games.
 
ROARING COMEBACKS: Columbia once again completed a comeback with its 5-4 win over Yale in the opening game of the doubleheader.  It was Columbia's sixth comeback of the season, a program record, and fifth comeback in Ivy League play.
 
NUMBERS ARE IVY: Columbia's individual numbers in the Ivy League have been solid putting the Lions in first place in the league.
 
· Anton Lazits: 25-58 .431 BA 2 HR 4 2B 15 RBIs
· Hayden Schott: 25-62 .403 BA 7 HR 8 2B 23 RBIs
· Tyler MacGregor: 24-61 .393 BA 12 2B 1 3B 17 RBIs
· Weston Eberly: 20-52 .377 BA 3 HR 2 3B 6 2B 19 RBIs
· Cole Hage: 23-61 .377 BA 3 HR 5 2B 16 RBIs
· Andy Blake: 21-61 .344 BA 4 HR 4 2B 2 3B 13 RBIs
· Austin Mowrey: 19-59 .322 BA 1 HR 2 2B 1 3B 5 RBIs
 
HITTING NATIONALLY: The Lions' hitting has put them in the top 50 nationally in several offensive categories, sitting 15th in slugging percentage, 23rd in batting average, 18th in scoring, 53rd in home runs and 30th in home runs per game.
 
NATIONALLY FAST: Nationally ranked 34th in stolen bases per game and 42nd in total stolen bases, Columbia sits first in stolen bases and second in stolen bases per game in the Ivy League.
 
SCORING IVY RUNS ... LOTS OF IVY RUNS: Over the 12 game Ivy League winning streak the Lions have been outscoring their opponents by 86 runs, scoring 143 runs, while allowing only 57 over the last 12 league games.
 
THIS CATCHER CAN SCOOT: Weston Eberly has shown some power and speed during Columbia's 36 games, smacking four triples over that stretch.  He ranks third nationally in total triples and his triples per game average puts him 19th in the nation.  Eberly is also tied for the second most triples by a catcher in the country.
 
WERESKI IS ROYAL: Former Lion pitcher, Ben Wereski '20CC was signed by the Kansas City Royals organization on Apr. 14.  Wereski will pitch for the Lincoln Saltdogs of the American Association of Professional Baseball.
 
THE BIG 300: Brett Boretti reached the 400-win plateau last season and during Columbia's home opening win over Manhattan on Mar. 23, he got his 300th win with the Lions.  He sits second all-time, with Boretti making the move up from third in Columbia's weekend at Davidson.  Boretti became only the second coach in program history to ever reach the 300-win milestone.
 
Boretti's 181 Ivy League wins and .609­­ winning percentage in conference play are both program benchmarks.
 
PRESEASON PICKS: Columbia was picked to finish second in the Ivy League preseason poll. The Lions, who tied with Yale for the most first-place votes at five, finished six points ahead of Penn, who were picked to finish third.
 
2022 Ivy League Baseball Preseason Poll (First Place Votes)
1. Yale – 107 (5)
2. Columbia – 102 (5)
3. Penn – 96 (4)
4. Harvard – 92 (2)
5. Dartmouth – 72
6. Princeton – 47
7. Brown – 35
8. Cornell –25
 
DID YOU KNOW: Every student-athlete that has played for head coach Brett Boretti's in his 17-year tenure, and remained on Columbia's roster for at least three years, has either won a conference title or competed in an Ivy League Playoff Series.
 
LIONS IN THE PROS: Columbia currently has two players in the professional ranks as Josh Simpson '19CC, a left-handed pitcher who was drafted by the Miami Marlins in 2019, remains in their system having spent time pitching as high as Single-A ball and Ben Wereski '20CC, who joined the Kansas City Royals organization during the week of April 12, 2022.
 
FOLLOWING THE LIONS: Stay up to date on all things Columbia Baseball by following the Lions on Twitter (@CULionsBaseball), Instagram (@culionsbaseball) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).