Crimson Vies for Top Spot in Competitive Ivy League

It's no secret that after winning three consecutive Ivy titles from 1997 to 1999, the Harvard baseball team stumbled last year.

The Crimson finished the year with a lackluster league record of 10-10, which placed Harvard third in the four-team Red Rolfe Division.

"I felt like the league got better and we didn't," said Harvard Coach Joe Walsh at the conclusion of last season. "I'd like to say we had a good season, but there isn't anybody who's going to believe that."

After last year's struggles, the Crimson will have to increase its level of play if it plans on competing with several strong Ivy League opponents.

Red Rolfe Division

The first step in Harvard's return to the top will be a strong showing in the Red Rolfe Division, where the Crimson faces each opponent four times over the course of the season.

Red Rolfe Division

Brown

Brown finished last season ahead of Harvard, capturing second place in the Red Rolfe division. This year, Brown returns seven players from last season's starting lineup, including senior outfielder Todd Iarussi.

Iarussi, who won All-Ivy First Team honors in 2000, is Brown's captain and will anchor the Bears' batting order. He posted very impressive numbers in last year's campaign: a .351 batting average with 35 RBI, 60 hits, 20 doubles and 103 total bases.

While Ivy League pitchers will be looking out for Iarussi, another member of Brown's roster has been known to give the Crimson fits.

Brown returns an average pitcher named Jim Johnson. Last season, Johnson looked like the second coming of Koufax, beating the Crimson twice and hurling two complete games.

While Brown's veterans will make the Bears formidable, they will be hard-pressed to improve on last year's feat of finishing the year with five more wins than Harvard.

Dartmouth

Dartmouth appears to be Harvard's biggest challenge this year and is the likely frontrunner in the Red Rolfe division.

The Big Green won the division last year, posting an Ivy record of 17-3 and an overall record of 29-12. Dartmouth fell 2-0 to Princeton in the Ivy Championship series, but still impressed observers around the Ivy League.

"I would think that Dartmouth is going to be real strong this year," Walsh says.

Four Dartmouth players were First Team All-Ivy selections last year. Both of the pitchers from that elite group, Conor Brooks and Jon Miller, have graduated, which hurts Dartmouth's pitching staff.

However, its potent lineup remains intact with Ivy League Player of the Year Brian Nickerson, Ivy League Rookie of the Year Mike Mileusnic and All-Ivy First Team outfielder James Little all back.

All that offensive talent makes Dartmouth the team to beat in the Red Rolfe Division and sets up the weekend of April 28-29--when the Big Green visits the Crimson for a pair of double-headers--as a must-see match-up.

Yale Bulldogs

Yale struggled last season, posting a 13-31 overall recording to go alongside an abominable 3-17 Ivy mark.

Despite their difficulties from a year ago, the Elis did manage to post three wins--all of which came against the Crimson. Like every other teams in the Red Rolfe division, Yale took three out of four games in its season series with Harvard.

Yale's best hope for success this season rests on its pitching staff, which has a strong mix of young veterans and untested, but talented, freshmen.

"Yale finished at the bottom last year," Walsh says. "They may have, on paper, the best pitching staff. They got a kid that was clocked at 94 [MPH] down in Florida this week."

To overcome Yale, Harvard will need better patience at the plate than it demonstrated last year. If Harvard batters can do their part, the Crimson's pitching should have an easy time against a light-hitting and frequently inconsistent Yale lineup.

Lou Gehrig Division

The other four teams in the Ivy League, which Harvard plays only twice a year, compete in the Lou Gehrig division. Princeton dominated the division last year en route to winning the Ivy crown.

Lou Gehrig Division

Columbia Lions

Columbia finished at the bottom of the Lou Gehrig division last year, posting a 6-14 Ivy rcord along with a 20-21 overall record.

The Lions placed only one player on the All-Ivy First Team, DH Pete Aswad. Aswad, however, is returning for Columbia this year and will anchor the Lions' lineup. Opposing pitchers will have to be careful about how they pitch to him, considering he batted .384 last season.

Early reports from the Lions' games in southern California indicate that their Achilles' heel this season may be their relief pitching. In two games during the weekend of March 11-12, the Lions blew leads in the bottom of the ninth to both San Francisco State and Cal Poly-Tech.

Columbia stands 0-8 on the season after those two setbacks.

Cornell Big Red

The Big Red finished last season's Ivy campaign with a respectable 11-9 record. But that mark went along with a less-than-impressive 13-24 record overall.

A simple lack of talent is the most likely explanation for Cornell's woes last year. They had no players qualify for the league's first team.

This year's squad does look to have a bit more talent, led by outfielder Nick Graham. In the Big Red's first game of the year, Graham went 3-for-3 with a home run, three RBI, a run scored, and two stolen bases.

Graham's performance was not enough to lead Cornell to victory, however, as the Big Red lost its first two games of the 2001 season, 8-7 and 4-1, to Bucknell.

Penn Quakers

Penn's record in the Ivy League last season was 9-11, slightly worse than Cornell's. But the Quakers came to play in their non-conference games, posting a 20-21 overall record.

Penn has improved from last season, when the team had no First Team All-Ivy players. The Quakers have 11 letterwinners returning and have 10 veterans back on their pitching staff. Their rotation looks to be quite solid, with junior Mike Mattern likely slotted for the number one position.

Mattern may well represent the key to the Quakers' Ivy League hopes this year. While he enjoyed a moderately successful sophomore season, a return to his freshman form would prove invaluable. In 1999, Mattern led the Quakers with a 4.02 ERA, six wins, 42 strikeouts, and 53.2 innings pitched. That year, he also placed sixth in the league in ERA.

One interesting note that should have Penn near the top of the Ivy League for the next four years is their freshman recruiting class, which numbers an unheard of 15 men.

"Penn may be the most improved team on paper with the freshman recruiting class they brought in," Walsh says. "I think they brought in about 15 kids."

"I don't know how they do things at Penn," Walsh added, laughing. "If they gave me 15 kids each year in admissions, I'd be scheduling the PAC-10 teams."

Princeton Tigers

Princeton enters this season as the class of the Ivy League after finishing last year with a 13-7 Ivy record and a 21-17 overall mark. The Tigers also defeated Dartmouth in two games in the Ivy League playoffs to win the league title and advance to the College World Series regional playoff.

The Tigers lost starting pitcher Chris Young, an all-Ivy First Team member, to graduation, but return five other first team all-Ivy players.

Those returnees include reliever David Boehle, first baseman Andrew Hanson, shortstop Pat Boran, outfielder Max Krance and utility man Jon Watterson. These veterans should make the Tigers an odds-on favorite to repeat as Ivy League champions.

The Tigers play a double-header in Cambridge on Sunday April 8th.