| Probable Starting Pitchers |
| Day |
Cornell |
Harvard |
| Sat. 2 p.m. ET |
RHP Carson Mayfield (2-2, 7.86 ERA) |
RHP Will Burns (0-2, 7.20 ERA) |
| Sun. 11:30 a.m. ET |
LHP Noah Keller (0-1, 4.26 ERA) |
RHP Sean Matson (0-2, 3.13 ERA) |
| Sun. 2:30 p.m. ET |
RHP Ethan Hamill (2-1, 4.33 ERA) |
RHP Callan Fang (1-2, 5.94 ERA) |
ITHACA, N.Y. — Riding a four-game win streak, the Cornell baseball team returns to Booth Field this weekend to conclude its six-game homestand as it hosts Harvard in a three-game Ivy League series.
Due to rain and snow in the forecast on Saturday morning, the weekend series will shift to a single-game on Saturday with a 2 p.m. first pitch followed by a doubleheader on Sunday beginning at 11:30 a.m. All games of the series will be broadcast on ESPN+.
PARKING NOTICE
Please be advised that due to limited parking, spectators are asked to carpool to this weekend's baseball contests located at Booth Field. A shuttle van has been arranged to transport fans to and from the East Hill Plaza parking lot (see
map for directions) and will begin running at 1 p.m. on Saturday and at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday and continue to run until all patrons reach their vehicles. Please be advised that parking on Acer Drive or Ellis Hollow Road is not permitted.
KEEP THE STREAK GOING
• The Big Red's four-game win streak is its longest since compiling five straight wins from April 27 to May 4 during the 2019 season.
• Should Cornell win the first two games against Harvard this weekend, it would be the Big Red's first six-game win streak since 2013, when it won seven consecutive games from March 16 to March 24 (two against Appalachian State and Davidson, three against Villanova).
WEEKEND REWIND
• Cornell recorded its first three-game series sweep since 2013 against Villanova (March 22-24) when it defeated Dartmouth in a trio of Ancient Eight contests in the Big Red's home-opening weekend at Booth Field by scores of 7-5, 17-2, and 11-4.
• Junior outfielder
John Quinlan (6-for-12) and sophomore outfielder
Caden Wildman (5-for-10) batted .500 on the weekend, starting in all three victories for the Big Red. Quinlan also posted team highs in runs (7) and hits (6) while serving as Cornell's leadoff hitter. Fellow junior outfielder
Jakobi Davis (.444 — 5-for-11) was the other Big Red starter with a batting average north of .400.
• Freshman catcher
Mark Quatrani batted .444 (4-for-9) over the final two games against Dartmouth with three home runs and nine RBI, leading to being named the Ivy League's Rookie of the Week. Quatrani went 3-for-5 with two home runs and six RBI in his first appearance on the weekend, becoming the first Cornell freshman player since Gary Kaczor to have a multi-home run game. Kaczor did so against Temple on May 28, 1977, in the NCAA Tournament in Middletown, Conn.
• The Rookie of the Week honor was Cornell's first since
Max Jensen on Feb. 28, 2022, and was the program's first weekly award from the Ivy League since former right-handed pitcher Luke Yacinich was named Pitcher of the Week on May 9, 2022.
• Cornell pitching registered a 3.57 team ERA on the weekend, yielding 11 runs (all earned) over its 27 innings pitched. The Big Red hurlers held Dartmouth to a .270 batting average and allowed just four extra-base hits (four doubles) out of the 27 base knocks allowed.
• Sophomore starting pitchers
Carson Mayfield,
Noah Keller, and
Ethan Hamill combined to log a 3.24 weekend ERA after allowing six runs in 17.2 innings.
FINDING HIS GROOVE
• Since allowing seven runs (four earned) against Georgetown on March 10, sophomore left-handed pitcher
Noah Keller has posted a 1.98 ERA in his last three outings (two starts) over 13.2 IP. During the span, Keller has yielded 13 hits and three runs allowed while walking eight batters and striking out 16 (10.54 SO/9).
PUTTING THE 'K' IN KELLER
• Sophomore southpaw
Noah Keller enters this weekend owning the seventh-best strikeout percentage among Ivy League pitchers, fanning 20.8 percent of the batters he has faced this season.
• Keller is one of eight Ancient Eight hurlers to strikeout at least 20 percent of batters faced, joining Harvard's Callan Fang (29.6 percent), Penn's Cole Zaffiro (29.4 percent), Harvard's Sean Matson (26.1 percent), Yale's Reid Easterly (24.6 percent) and Colton Shaw (22.1 percent), Princeton's Sean Episcope (22.1 percent), and Columbia's Derek Yoo (20.0 percent).
TOUGH TO TOUCH
• Sophomore right-handed pitcher
Ethan Hamill has shined over his three starts this season, fashioning a 2.50 ERA (5 ER in 18 IP) while holding opponents to a .188 batting average. Hamill's .226 BABIP (batting average on balls in play) leads the Ivy League and is 24 points better than Harvard's Sean Matson and Columbia's Derek Yoo (.250).
HAVING A GRAND (SLAM) TIME
• Cornell's three grand slams last weekend increased its season total to four, matching the 2017 squad for the most bases-clearing home runs in a season since 2003 (Will Simoneit — twice; Tommy Wagner and Ellis Bitar — once).
• All four of Cornell's grand slams on the year have come over its last four games, as junior center fielder
Jakobi Davis hit the Big Red's first grand slam against Princeton on March 24. Last weekend, the Big Red added three more grand slams, beginning with senior catcher
Nathan Waugh in the opening game of last Saturday's doubleheader. Senior first baseman
Braden Mack (first collegiate home run) and freshman catcher
Mark Quatrani tacked on grand slams in the nightcap.
• The multiple grand slams in a game was the first time since Simoneit and Wagner at Towson on April 5, 2017.
LOOKING TO EXTEND THEIR STREAKS
• Senior catcher
Nathan Waugh (21 games), junior outfielder
Jakobi Davis (20 games), and junior infielder
Max Jensen (13 games) all enter this weekend riding double-digit on-base streaks — the streaks for Waugh and Davis both date back to last season.
• Waugh has a .318/.404/.541 slash line during his 21-game on-base streak, as the senior catcher had his 19-game hit streak snapped last Saturday. During his on-base streak, Waugh has recorded four doubles, five home runs, and driven in 25 runs. Davis has a .854 OPS (.296/.375/.479) during his streak, dating back to the second game of an April 28, 2023 doubleheader against Penn, logging five doubles, a triple, two home runs, and eight RBI. Jensen is slashing .367/.475/.653 with a 1.128 OPS, recording four doubles, two triples, two home runs, and nine RBI while drawing seven walks, three hit by pitches, and only striking out three times.
WHEN IT RUNS, IT POURS
• Cornell has shown a knack for scoring runs in bundles this season, as 88 of its 109 runs have come in multi-run innings (80.7 percent of run production).
• Of the Big Red's 276 runs scored since the beginning of last season, 217 have come in innings that have featured at least two runs crossing home plate (78.6 percent of run production).
• Last weekend alone, Cornell had 31 of its 35 runs come in multi-run innings (88.6 percent of run production), featuring a pair of two-, four-, and five-run innings, along with multi-run innings of three and six runs.
• Cornell has had 25 multi-run innings this season through its first six weekends of play, highlighted by a season-high seven-run first inning against Princeton on March 24.
• Since the beginning of the 2022 season, Cornell has had at least one multi-run inning in 69 of its 88 games (78.4 percent).
IMPROVING IN ALL FACETS
• Since being swept in its doubleheader against Georgetown on March 10, Cornell has improved in numerous statistical categories on both sides of the baseball.
• Over its last nine games, Cornell has improved its batting average by 90 points, batting .316 with 69 runs scored (7.67 runs per game) and 18 home runs (2.00 per game). The Big Red has seen a 228-point increase in slugging percentage (.552) and a 305-point improvement in OPS (.952).
• Cornell has a 5-4 record over its last nine games, including winning its previous four contests. After having an 11.08 ERA over its first eight games, the Big Red has logged a 4.23 ERA over its last nine contests, a 684-point decrease. Cornell's walks-per-9-innings have decreased by 419 points (4.81) while limiting opponents to a .234 batting average, down from its .337 average in the opening eight contests.
IVY LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
• The Ivy League preseason poll was announced on Feb. 19, with Penn pitted as the unanimous favorite following a vote of 16 panelists.
• Columbia was picked second, finishing as the only other program to reach the century mark in points (101). Harvard (97 points) and Princeton (87 points) were the other anticipated programs to round out this year's four-team Ivy League Tournament field.
• Yale was slotted to finish fifth behind its 66 points, while Cornell (37 points) and Brown (35 points) were separated by two points for sixth and seventh places. Dartmouth rounded out the eight-team league with 25 points.
SMOOTH IN THE FIELD
• Cornell enters this weekend with a fielding percentage of .975, which leads the Ivy League by 11 points (Penn — .964) and ranks 59th nationally.
• The Big Red has committed just two errors over its last six games and 61.2 innings of play, dating back to March 17 against Richmond. In its previous 10 games, Cornell has had only six errors to its credit and has not had a single multi-error game.
SCOUTING HARVARD
• Harvard enters this weekend with a 4-17 overall record and a 2-4 mark in Ivy League play. The Crimson has played high-scoring contests over its last two games, getting outscored by a combined total of 37-21 in losses to Brown (20-12) last Sunday and to Boston College (17-9) on Tuesday.
• Ben Rounds paces the Crimson offensively behind his Ivy League-leading .416 batting average, 132 points higher than second-place holder Chris Snopek (.284). Thanks to his seven doubles, one triple, and four home runs, Rounds has an OPS of 1.204 (.516 on-base plus .688 slugging percentage). Snopek has hit a Harvard-leading five home runs on the season.
• Matt Giberti has stolen 11 bases this season, tied with Yale's Alec Atkinson for the most steals by an Ivy League player. Giberti's 0.61 steals-per-game average ranks 24th nationally.
• Sean Matson (0-2, 3.13 ERA) and Callan Fang (1-2, 5.94 ERA) have started all six appearances for the Crimson on the mound this season. Matson has held opponents to a .188 batting average over his 31.2 innings pitched (21 hits allowed). Fang, the reigning Ivy League Pitcher of the Week, struck out a conference-leading 12 batters last weekend against Brown en route to his first win of the year. Over his six outings, Fang has a strikeout-per-9-inning ratio of 11.34, ranking second in the Ivy League behind Penn's Cole Zaffiro (12.00).
136 YEARS, 329 MILES, 170 MEETINGS
• Harvard leads the all-time series with Cornell, 112-58, dating to the first contest between the Ivy League programs on May 19, 1887, in Cambridge, Mass.
• Cornell claimed last year's series at O'Donnell Field behind a doubleheader sweep on April 15, the program's third doubleheader sweep on the Crimson's home turf (May 27, 1933 and April 9, 1995). With a series victory this weekend, it would be the Big Red's fifth time posting consecutive season series victories over Harvard (1939-41, 1949-50, 1975-76 and 1995-96).
• With a win in the series opener, Cornell will notch its first three-game win streak over Harvard since sweeping an April 2, 2016 doubleheader at Hoy Field and winning the first game of an April 8, 2017, doubleheader in Cambridge. The Big Red has not had a four-game win streak against the Crimson since posting five straight victories between April 2, 1994 and April 5, 1996.
CORNELL - HARVARD CONNECTIONS
• Harvard's George Cooper and Jordan Kang, along with Cornell's
Owen Carlson, all attended Harvard-Westlake School in Studio City, Calif. Carlson and Kang were teammates on the 2021 squad that finished with a 29-4 overall record and ranked third in California and 13th nationally, according to MaxPreps.
•
John Quinlan and Nate Baxter are graduates of Menlo-Atherton HS in Menlo Park, Calif., where they played three years together on the Bears' varsity squad.
•
Matt Barnhorst and Porter Jordheim attended Ponte Vedra HS in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., playing four years together on the Sharks' varsity team.
