NEW YORK — Columbia baseball returns home this weekend to host Dartmouth on Saturday for Alumni Day and Sunday for Senior Day from Robertson Field at Satow Stadium.
First pitch of Saturday's doubleheader is set for 11:30 a.m. Between games, the 1993 and 2013 Columbia baseball teams will be recognized. On Sunday, the series finale is set for 12:15 p.m. Sunday is also Senior Day, and the Lions will honor the Class of 2023 ahead of the game at 11:50 a.m.
Projected Columbia starting pitchers:
Game 1: RHP Andy Leon (8 APP, 8 GS, 5-1 W/L, 3.89 ERA, 41.2 IP)
Game 2: RHP Joe Sheets (8 APP, 8 GS, 3-2 W/L, 3.00 ERA, 45.0 IP)
Game 3: TBD
Projected Dartmouth starting pitchers:
Game 1: RHP Jack Metzger (8 APP, 7 GS, 0-5 W/L, 6.80 ERA, 47.2 IP)
Game 2: LHP Trystan Sarcone (8 APP, 8 GS, 0-5 W/L, 7.82 ERA, 38.0 IP)
Game 3: LHP Devin Milberg (8 APP, 3 GS, 0-1 W/L, 4.30 ERA, 14.2 IP)
Party Like It's 1993 And 2013
Between games of Saturday's doubleheader, the 1993 and 2013 Columbia baseball teams will be recognized as the program celebrates their 30th and 10th-year reunions, respectively.
The 1993 Lions were part of the inaugural Ivy League baseball season, going 19-21 overall and 11-9 in conference play. Led by head coach Paul Fernandes, the Lions won the Gehrig Division, finishing in front of Penn, Princeton, and Cornell. Columbia would meet Red Rolfe Division winners Yale in the 1993 Ivy League Baseball Tournament in Middletown, Connecticut. The Bulldogs went on to take the three-game series in two games and advance to the NCAA Tournament.
The 2013 Lions went 28-21 with a 16-4 Ivy League record. Columbia swept Dartmouth in the Ivy League Championship Series at Robertson Field at Satow Stadium. Led by head coach Brett Boretti, the Lions headed to the Fullerton Regional in California. After dropping their first game of the tournament to Cal State Fullerton and facing elimination, the Lions defeated New Mexico State, 6-5, in 13 innings. It was the first-ever NCAA Tournament win in Columbia baseball history.
Thank You Seniors
Before Sunday's game, seniors John San Jule, Dane Miller, Jafar Vohra, Phil Healy, Hayden Schott, Mike Decker, Justin Tucker, Camron Hubble, Weston Eberly, Andy Blake, and Nate Beimel will be recognized for their contributions and efforts to the Columbia baseball program.
Last Time Out
Columbia (19-13, 8-4) hit a program-record seven home runs at Marist on Wednesday and defeated the Red Foxes 22-4 in seven innings. Six different Lions went yard, including
Andy Blake who had two in the first two innings of the game.
Hayden Schott,
Cole Hage,
Cole Fellows,
Anton Lazits, and
Sam Miller all went deep for Columbia. The previous program-record for home runs in a game was six, set on April 22, 2015 at Fordham and again earlier this year against Monmouth.
Mike Decker got the start at third base and smacked a career-high four hits and added two RBIs.
Offensive Explosion
Columbia has scored 15 or more runs in eight games this season. The team has shattered the single-game record for hits (26) and home runs (seven) this year.
The Lions are all over the national rankings in several stat categories at the plate:
-12th in the country with 9.0 runs scored per game
-14th in the country with a .541 slugging percentage
-Tied for eighth in the country with a .318 team batting average
-Tied for 37th in the country with 379 hits
-Tied for 33rd in the country with 59 home runs
-16th in the country with 1.84 home runs per game
-Tied for 37th in the country with a .409 on-base percentage
Blake's Brilliance
Shortstop Andy Blake has reached base in all 32 games this season and is riding a nine-game hitting streak entering this weekend. The senior is tied for the team-lead with nine multi-RBI games and has recorded multiple hits in half of Columbia's games this season.
Nationally, Blake ranks 69th in batting average (.385), 45th in doubles (14), 37th in hits (57), seventh in hits per game (1.78), 10th in runs per game (1.38), and 40th in total bases (102).
Hage Hot in Ivy Play
Outfielder Cole Hage is batting .462 over 26 at-bats in conference play this season. His conference-only batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage all rank in the top three.
1-2 Punch
Lions starting pitchers Andy Leon and Joe Sheets have made all their starts on the mound this season at the top of Columbia's rotation. Leon is tied for the Ivy League lead with five wins while Sheets ranks fourth in the conference with a 3.00 ERA.
Closing Time
Justin Tucker leads the Ivy League and ranks tied for 51st in the country with five saves this season. Tucker is one save away from setting the program single season save record.
Among The Best of the Nation
Right fielder Hayden Schott ranks No. 81 on D1 Baseball's Top 100 Outfielders List.
Catcher Weston Eberly ranks No. 45 on D1 Baseball's Top 50 Catchers List. Eberly was ranked No. 37 on D1 Baseball's Preseason Top 50 Catchers List.
Outfielder Cole Hage checked in at No. 122 on D1 Baseball's Preseason Top 150 Outfielders List. Last season, Hage led the Lions in batting average (.335) and on-base percentage (.454).
Turning Two
Columbia ranks 19th in the country in double plays turned per game. The Lions have totaled 30, which ranks best in the Ivy League.
Ranked Wins
The Lions won a three-game series at No. 18 Alabama on March 11. The victory in the series finale marked the first time in program history that Columbia won a series against an SEC team. Columbia earned its second and third win over an SEC team in program history when it defeated the Crimson Tide 10-7 in the series opener and then 15-3 in the series finale. The first win over an SEC team in program history came in 1989 at Tennessee. The Lions handed Alabama its first two losses of 2023.
On April 4, Columbia erased a 12-0 deficit against No. 19 UConn and defeated the Huskies, 19-14, in New York. These three victories now give head coach Brett Boretti 13 victories over ranked teams during his tenure at Columbia.
Dartmouth's Status
The Big Green are 1-28 on the season and 0-12 in Ivy League play. Dartmouth's lone win of the season came on March 14 over South Florida. Elliot Krewson leads the team with a .283 batting average and 28 hits. Dartmouth is batting .217 as a team and the pitching staff has tallied an ERA of 9.91.
Series History - Dartmouth
Columbia is 84-112 all-time against the Big Green. Dartmouth took 2-of-3 three from the Lions last season in New Hampshire. The last time the two teams met in New York was 2019, where Columbia won the three-game series.
Preseason Polls
Columbia was tabbed to finish first in the 2023 Ivy League Preseason Poll, as voted on by eight sports information directors and eight media members from around the league. The Lions have been picked to finish first in the preseason poll for the first time since the poll was instituted in 2018. Before this year's first-place rank, Columbia had either been picked to finish second or third in the previous four Ivy League Baseball Preseason Polls. Columbia received 12 out of 16 first-place votes in this year's poll.
D1 Baseball's Eric Sorenson projected the Lions to finish first in the Ivy League standings and be the lone regional team to come out of the conference.
Up Next
The Lions head back on the road Tuesday to face Army West Point. First pitch from Johnson Stadium at Doubleday Field is set for 6 p.m.
Follow The Lions
For the latest on Columbia baseball, follow @CULionsBaseball on Twitter and Instagram, and the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
