ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell baseball team opens Ivy League play this weekend with a three-game series against Yale at George H.W. Bush '48 Field in West Haven, Conn.

Series Information

FRIDAY, MARCH 24 - 2 P.M.
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: YaleBulldogs.com

SUNDAY, MARCH 26 - GAME ONE - 11:30 A.M.
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: YaleBulldogs.com

SUNDAY, MARCH 26 - GAME TWO - APPROX: 2:30 P.M.
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: YaleBulldogs.com

Last Weekend Rewind

In its final trip to the Commonwealth of Virginia for the 2023 season, Cornell was swept by George Mason as the Patriots posted 10-5, 4-3, and 15-4 victories at Spuhler Field in Fairfax, Va.

Sophomore John Quinlan recorded his first career three-hit game in last Sunday's setback to George Mason, going 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Senior infielder Joe Hollerbach and senior outfielder Wils Guy both recorded their first home runs of the season in last Saturday's doubleheader.

Ivy League Openers

Cornell is seeking its first Ivy League series win since sweeping Harvard in a doubleheader, 5-1 and 6-4, on April 2, 2016, at Hoy Field in Ithaca, N.Y.

This is the first time Cornell and Yale are opening Ancient Eight play since March 29, 2015 when the Big Red posted 10-1 and 7-5 victories in a twinbill at Hoy Field.

Tough to Touch

Over seven relief outings so far this season, senior left-handed pitcher Spencer Edwards has been tough to touch so far this season.

Edwards enters this weekend with opponents batting just .196 off of him (11 hits in 56 at-bats), which ranks second in the Ivy League, through games completed through Tuesday.

After allowing five hits in his first appearance of the season on Feb. 25 at James Madison, Edwards has conceded six hits over his last 12.2 innings pitched.

137 Years | 257 Miles | 186 Meetings

Cornell and Yale have met 186 times prior to this weekend's three-game series. The Bulldogs own a 110-76 advantage over the Big Red.

The Big Red took two of three games last year against Yale at Hoy Field, marking the first time Cornell won a series over its Ivy League rival since posting a doubleheader sweep on March 29, 2015.

Matt Barnhorst hit a walk-off sacrifice fly in the opening game of Cornell's doubleheader sweep of Yale last season. In the nightcap, Cornell responded to Yale's six-run seventh inning with an eight-run seventh, punctuated by a three-run home run by Nathan Waugh to give the Big Red a 12-9 win to take both games of the twin bill.

No Cornell team has won a series at George H.W. Bush '48 Field, formerly known as Yale Field, since sweeping a doubleheader on April 8, 2012.

Waugh(tch) List

Junior catcher Nathan Waugh was one of 65 players named to the watch list for the 2023 Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award, it was announced by the Wichita Sports Commission last Friday (March 3).

Waugh, the lone Ivy League catcher named to the list, is coming off a sophomore campaign in which he batted .310 with five doubles, two triples, five home runs, and 18 RBI. He also registered an OPS of .973 in his first true collegiate season after the 2021 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The watch list will be narrowed down to semifinalists that will be announced May 22. The national voting committee will vote on three finalists that will be announced June 6. Following a final vote among the national committee members, the 2023 Buster Posey Award winner will be announced June 29.

Mayfield Shining Early

Freshman right-handed pitcher Carson Mayfield been a bright spot for the Cornell bullpen so far this season through his five relief outings.

Even though his ERA is north of 6.00, Mayfield struck out a season-high five batters in 5.1 innings of work in the opening game of last Saturday's doubleheader against George Mason.

Mayfield is currently sporting a 7.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a 1.17 walks-per-9-inning ratio, with both ranking second in the Ivy League behind Dartmouth's Jack Metzger.

The 7.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio is the fourth-best by a first-year player this season, while his walks-per-9-inning figure is the fifth best by a freshman.

Mayfield is tied with senior left-hander Spencer Edwards, junior right-hander Von Baker, and fellow freshman Noah Keller for the team lead in strikeouts this season (14). Ethan Hamill, another first-year pitcher, also has 10-plus strikeouts (10) early on.

When It Runs, It Pours

When Cornell strikes in the scoring column, it tends to come in bunches. Of the Big Red's 49 runs scored this season, 38 have come in multi-run innings (77.6 percent of its run production).

Cornell has had seven two-run innings so far this season, while also recording a trio of three-run innings, a pair of four-run frames, and also a five-run stanza.

Of the Big Red's 49 runs scored to open the 2023 campaign, 22 have come over the first three innings, comprising 44.9 percent of its scoring output this year.

The Big Red has scored the game's first run in seven of its 12 contests, and has scored in the first inning in six of the those games.

Need for Speed

Cornell has been shown a tendancy for stealing recently, as the Big Red has recorded at least two steals in five of its last six games. No Big Red team has recorded multiple steals in four straight games since at least 2014.

Junior infielder Matt Barnhorst has a team-leading four steals this season, which is tied for the fifth-most by an Ivy League player this season.