GAME 22 - Penn at Cornell
FIRST PITCH: Saturday, April 11 - 12 p.m.
SITE: Hoy Field (1,000) - Ithaca, N.Y.

GAME 23 - Penn at Cornell
FIRST PITCH: Saturday, April 11 - approx. 2:30 p.m.
SITE: Hoy Field (1,000) - Ithaca, N.Y.

GAME 24 - Penn at Cornell
FIRST PITCH: Sunday, April 12 - 12 p.m.
SITE: Hoy Field (1,000) - Ithaca, N.Y.

GAME 25 - Penn at Cornell
FIRST PITCH: Sunday, April 12 - approx. 2:30 p.m.
SITE: Hoy Field (1,000) - Ithaca, N.Y.
LIVE STATS - www.CornellBigRed.com
LIVE VIDEO - www.CornellBigRed.com

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell baseball team opens Gehrig Division play this weekend, playing host to Penn in a four-game set at Hoy Field in Ithaca. The Big Red and Quakers will play a pair of doubleheaders, beginning at noon on both Saturday and Sunday.

LAST TIME OUT
Sophomore Taylor Wood pitched seven strong innings as Cornell picked up a 3-1 victory over Binghamton in a non-league game at Hoy Field on Wednesday. Scott Hardinger and Nathan Ford both went 2-for-4 at the plate to lead the offense, while Jadd Schmeltzer hit a solo home run, his fourth of the year. Wood worked seven innings, striking out five and allowing one run, while Mike Carroll worked a strong eighth and David Rochefort picked up the save, pitching a perfect ninth inning.

ABOUT THE BIG RED
Cornell enters the game with a 5-16 record on the season and 2-6 in Ivy League play, trailing division-leading Columbia by two games. The Big Red is batting .279 as a team, paced by Nathan Ford's .375 average, with Scott Hardinger right behind at .370. Ford has a team-best five home runs and 18 runs batted in, while Hardinger leads the team with 17 runs scored. On the mound, the Big Red pitchers have combined for a 7.19 earned-run average in 165.1 innings of work. Matt Hill has a team-best 23 strikeouts, while Jadd Schmeltzer has a 2.37 earned-run average to pace the staff.

ABOUT THE QUAKERS
Penn enters the weekend series winless in eight Ivy League games and with a 10-16 mark overall. The Quakers haven't had any problems offensively, batting .322 as a team, with seven regulars over .300 for the year. Jeremy Maas leads the team with a .457 average, while William Gordon has a team-best six home runs. Tom Grandieri and Dan Williams share team-high honors with 27 RBI each, while Williams has scored a team-high 24 times. Penn pitchers have combined for a 7.13 earned-run average in 202 innings, with Trey Jennings holding a 2.70 ERA to lead the staff. Paul Cusick leads all Penn pitchers with 40 strikeouts on the year.

GOING STREAKING
Both Scott Hardinger and Nathan Ford are nearing the double-digit mark on their current hitting streak, as Hardinger reached nine games on Wednesday and Ford hit eight games against Binghamton. Both streaks are the longest streaks of the season for the Big Red. The previous long was a seven-game hitting streak by Mickey Brodsky.

HITTING THE IVY
Cornell's had no issue with Ivy League pitching this season, as the Big Red is hitting .325 in league play. Scott Hardinger leads the way with a .516 average, collecting 16 hits in 31 at-bats, while Brian Billigen is batting .481 against league pitchers (13-for-27).

LOVING THE LONG BALL
Cornell batters have hit at least one home run in each of the last five games, with both Nathan Ford and Jadd Schmeltzer hitting a pair over that span. Adam Jacobs and Domenic Di Ricco both have a single home run over that same period.

ALL OR NOTHING
Jadd Schmeltzer is mired in a 2-for-18 slump over the last five games, but both of his hits have been home runs. Schmeltzer has also walked twice and been hit by a pitch over that period.

THOU SHALT NOT STEAL
Opposing baserunners have learned on quick lesson from Cornell's defense: do not try to steal a base. Opposing runners have been gunned down 10 times in 28 chances this season, with that number moving to just one successful stolen base in six chances in Ivy League play. Binghamton certainly heeded that warning, as the Bearcats did not attempt a stolen base on Wednesday at Hoy Field.

CLOSING THE DOOR
While Cornell has just five wins on the young season, junior David Rochefort has settled into his role as the team's closer. Rochefort has three saves this year, picking up his second on March 31 against Yale and his third on Wednesday against Binghamton. Rochefort had a pair of rough outings at Harvard on April 4, surrendering a walk-off home run in both ends of the doubleheader for his first two blown saves. Still, Rochefort has struck out 17 batters without allowing a walk this season.

RECORD WATCH
Senior Nathan Ford is threatening the school's all-time career batting average record of .362, held by Erik Rico. Ford entered the season second at .358, and has moved up to .361 this season on the strength of his .375 average this year.

UP NEXT
Cornell travels north to Syracuse for a non-league game against LeMoyne on Wednesday. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m.