The Red softball team dominated both of its Ivy League opponents this weekend, picking up four wins and taking sole possession of the top spot in the Ivy South Division. This weekend’s hitting proficiency and pitching prowess improved the Red’s record to an impressive 21-8. Additionally, Coach Dick Blood now stands one game away from coaching his 500th win.After rain pushed the Red’s contests a day back from Friday to Saturay, the Red took to the field to play the hosting Yale Bulldogs in its first set of doubleheaders for the weekend.In the first contest, junior pitcher Elizabeth Dalrymple pitched seven shutout innings, surrendering a measly three hits over seven innings, while striking out 13. After pitching three perfect innings, she finally allowed a hit in the fourth. By then, freshman Kristen Towne had already delivered the only run the Red would need to win by scoring home sophomore Shannon Crane from third. The Red tacked on two more runs in the fifth for good measure.The Saturday nightcap saw many more runs scored. Towne came up big once more, picking up two hits and collecting an RBI. Still, the bulk of the damage was done courtesy of Crane and senior Ashley Garvey, who contributed two RBIs and one run apiece. The Red offense was able to not only muster seven runs out of 11 hits but also to facilitate sophomore Lauren Marx in picking up win number six.Sunday proved to be even more successful for Cornell; the team only needed 11 innings to pick up two wins in Providence, R.I. against Brown. Dalrymple continued her Ivy League dominance, picking up the fourth win against her fellow Elite Eight players. Another day, another complete game shutout for the star pitcher. She cracked double-digit strikeouts again, in just six innings. The Red bats came to life in the sixth inning, pounding out Brown’s Kristi Chin for five runs. Led by Towne’s three hits, the Red amassed 15 hits in the game. Leaving only six runners on base, the Red scored a notable eight runs, and posted a collective .469 batting average.Cornell capped the weekend of play with an annihilation of Brown. Brown’s pitcher Li DiMascio succumbed 10 runs in a mere one and two-third innings of pitching. Again, the Red batted 15 for 32, but in this game, the six errors committed by Brown, allowed the Red to put up 15 runs. Senior Devon March had a fortunate game, scoring four runs after getting on base twice thanks to errors. The Red defense on the other hand, committed no errors on the day, and Marx yielded four runs.The Red looks to continue its dominance on Thursday, when the team hosts Syracuse for a two-game set. Coach Blood will be going for milestone win number 500 … and 501, too.
Original Author: Jonathan Shtaynberger