ITHACA, N.Y. — Concluding its 14-game season-opening road trip, the Cornell baseball team (5-6) begins Ivy League play this weekend against Yale (12-3) from George H.W. Bush '48 Field in West Haven, Conn.
The three-game weekend series begins on Saturday with a doubleheader at 11:30 a.m. before the series finale takes place at noon on Sunday. JJ Duke and Jacob Munch will have the call on ESPN+.
| Probable Starting Pitchers |
| Day |
Cornell |
Yale |
| Sat. 11:30 a.m. ET |
RHP Carson Mayfield (1-0, 2.61 ERA) |
TBA |
| Sat. 2:30 p.m. ET |
LHP Huxley Holcombe (0-0, 11.57 ERA) |
TBA |
| Sun. 12 p.m. ET |
RHP Chris Ellison (0-2, 8.74 ERA) |
TBA |
LAST TIME OUT
Cornell avenged losing the first game of its doubleheader last Saturday against Towson in walk-off fashion by posting victories of 18-7 and 8-5 to claim the series victory over the Tigers.
Senior two-way player Ryan Porter is coming off being named the Ivy League's Player of the Week after posting a .636 batting average (7-for-11) with a double, three home runs, and nine RBI in the Big Red's series victory over Towson. Highlighting Porter's impressive weekend, he logged his first career multi-home run game and drove in eight RBI, which matched Cornell's single-game record (Caden Wildman — eight RBI — last April 13).
Sophomore catcher Mark Quatrani (double, home run, five RBI) and sophomore infielder Kevin Hager (five runs, double, home run, two RBI) and each went 6-for-12 at the plate on the weekend while hitting a also having a double and home run. Senior outfielders Jakobi Davis and John Quinlan and senior infielder Max Jensen also hit long-balls in the weekend victory.
STAYING STRONG IN THE FIELD
Coming off its program-record .975 fielding percentage (35 errors in 1,407 fielding chances) last season, Cornell has carried its fielding success into 2025, committing just nine errors in 395 fielding opportunities.
The Big Red's .977 fielding percentage this season ranks 49th in Division I baseball after the conclusion of Wednesday's contests, and has the best fielding percentage in the Ivy League by six points (Yale — .972).
Cornell's nine errors committed are tied with Ball State and Charlotte for the fewest miscues in Division I baseball this season.
Since last season, Cornell has a cumulative .976 fielding percentage (44 errors in 1,802 fielding chances), ranking as the 47th-best percentage in Division I baseball. The 44 errors committed by Cornell since last season ranks only behind Notre Dame (45) for the fewest miscues in Division I baseball.
IVY OPENERS
Cornell is beginning its 31st season of Ivy League baseball this weekend (excluding the 2020 and 2021 seasons) since the Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League (EIBL) folded after the 1992 season.
The Big Red is seeking for its second series win to begin Ivy League play in the last three years as Cornell took two of three games from Yale to begin the 2023 conference slate. Last year, the Big Red dropped two out of three in a road series against Princeton.
This weekend marks the 17th time Cornell is opening conference play against Yale with the previous instances coming in 1938, 1954, 1956, 1971, 1972, 1982, 1992, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2015, and 2023. Of the 16 previous league-opening encourters, only five have occurred in West Haven (1954, 1956, 2001, 2023).
IVY PRESEASON POLL
The Ivy League preseason poll was announced Feb. 18 with Columbia pitted as the unanimous favorite following a vote of two representatives from each of the eight Ivy League programs (16 total voters).
Penn was picked to finish second, serving as the lone other Ancient Eight program to recveive over 100 points. Cornell was tabbed third while Princeton was selected to finish fourth, rounding out the projected second annual Ivy League Tournament, which will be held at the No. 1 seed. Rounding out the poll was Yale (69 points), Harvard (59 points), Dartmouth (30 points), and Brown (21 points).
Cornell's third-place projection is the program's highest preseason ranking in the annual Ivy League's preseason poll since its inception in 2018.
LEADING THE WAY
Through the completion of Wednesday's games, Cornell owns the Ivy League lead in numerous offensive categories: on-base percentage (.398), slugging percentage (.477), OPS (.875), runs per game (7.91), hits per game (10.18), home runs per game (1.64), and walks per game (5.64).
Cornell is one of five Division I programs (Austin Peay — ASUN; High Point — Big South; Northern Kentucky — Horizon; New Mexico — Mountain West) to lead their respective conferences in at least six out of eight offensive statistical categories (batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, runs per game, hits per game, home runs per game, and walks per game). The only category Cornell does not lead in among the eight Ivy League programs is batting average.
PROGRAMS WITH LEADS IN SIX OF EIGHT BATTING CATEGORIES
This Season (as of 3/20/25)
• Austin Peay (Atlantic Sun) — 8
• High Point (Big South) — 7
• Northern Kentucky (Horizon) — 7
• Cornell (Ivy League) — 7
• New Mexico (Mountain West) — 7
• UC Irvine (Big West) — 6
• Western Kentucky (Conference USA) — 6
• Rider (MAAC) — 6
• Central Connecticut State (Northeast) — 6
• Northern Colorado (Summit League) — 6
QUATRANI HONORED BY D1BASEBALL
Sophomore catcher Mark Quatrani was honored by D1Baseball.com with preseason honors, being selected as one of the top 50 catchers in Division I baseball on Jan. 28.
Quatrani, fresh off being named the Ivy League's Rookie of the Year last year, came in ranked at No. 39 on the list after posting a .362 batting average in his first year with the Big Red. Paired with his batting average, Quatrani registered a 1.206 OPS (.492 on-base percentage and .714 slugging percentage) after blasting 11 home runs and driving in 43 runs, both figures serving as team-highs.
Among the 50 players named to the preseason list, Quatrani was the lone representative from the Ivy League and one of 12 sophomores honored, three of which were redshirt sophomores. Quatrani was one of 18 non-Power Four catchers named to the list
Of the 49 players that played college baseball last season, Quatrani had the highest OPS (1.206) of any player named to the list, with his figure being 31 points higher than Virginia's Jacob Ference (1.175). Quatrani also had the third-highest batting average of those named, trailing Bowling Green sophomore Garrett Wright (.380) and Oklahoma junior Easton Carmichael (.366).
STARTING OFF STRONG
Sophomore catcher Mark Quatrani had one of the highest batting averages by a freshman in Cornell program history last season.
Since freshmen were first eligible to play for the Big Red beginning with the 1976 season, Quatrani became one of five players to have at least a .360 batting average in their first year with Cornell, joining Brian Billigen (.404 in 2009), Terry Birrer (.379 in 1982), former Big Red infielder and head coach Bill Walkenbach (.363 in 1995), and infielder Andrew Luria (.363 in 1999).
TOP BATTING AVERAGES BY FRESHMEN (MIN. 80 ABs)
Cornell Program History
• .404, Brian Billigen (2009) — 46-of-114
• .379, Terry Birrer (1982) — 44-of-116
• .366, Mark Quatrani (2024) — 38-of-105
• .3630, Bill Walkenbach (1995) — 53-of-146
• .3628, Andrew Luria (1999) — 41-of-113
ALL-IVY AWARDS
Last season, current seniors Max Jensen and John Quinlan were unanimously voted First Team All-Ivy last season, while current sophomore catcher Mark Quatrani was also voted a first-team selection along with being tabbed the conference's Rookie of the Year.
Quatrani's Rookie of the Year award signified just the third time in program history that a Cornell player was honored with been tabbed the conference's top newcomer. Only infielder Bill Walkenbach (1995) and pitcher Kellon Urbon (2012) were the previous Big Red players to receive the honor.
The trio of First Team All-Ivy selections signified the fifth time (1969, 1971, 1977, 1982, 2024) Cornell has had at least three first-team all-league players since 1960. Mike Branca (first base), Marlin McPhail (second base), John DeMayo (outfield), and Greg Myers (pitcher) all received First Team All-EIBL honors in 1982, the last time Cornell had three first-team selections.
TRIO OF FIRST TEAM ALL-LEAGUE HONOREES
Program History (Since 1960)
• 1969 — Ed Cott (C), Chris Ritter (OF), Pete Watzka (3B), Bob Witkoski (SS)
• 1971 — Tom Boettcher (3B), Pete Watzka (OF), Bob Witkoski (2B)
• 1977 — Gary Gronowski (P), Dave Johnson (OF), Ken Veenema (2B)
• 1982 — Mike Branca (1B), John DeMayo (OF), Marlin McPhail (2B), Greg Myers (P)
• 2024 — Max Jensen (1B), Mark Quatrani (C), John Quinlan (OF)
DIGGING THE LONG BALL
Cornell hit 52 home runs last season, marking the most by the Big Red in a single season in the program's 153-year history, besting the previous mark of 38 set during the 2009 season.
Freshman catcher Mark Quatrani led the Big Red in home runs last season with 11, tying Eric Kirby (1995) and Erik Rico (2002) for the second-most blasts in a season. The 11 home runs by a freshman broke a 29-year record held by former infielder Bill Walkenbach — who later became the Big Red's head coach from 2009-15 — after he hit six home runs in 1996.
Quatrani is three home runs shy of matching Kirby, Raul Gomez (1998-01), and Andrew Luria (1999-02) for the ninth-most home runs in program history. Chris Cruz assumes the program record for home runs (25 from 2011-14).
Cornell currently ranks 24th nationally in home runs per game (1.64), which leads all eight Ivy League programs by 31 points (Columbia — 1.33).
Senior infielder Max Jensen (0.38) and senior two-way player Ryan Porter (0.30) both rank within the top 140 in home runs per game, making Cornell one of 35 programs with multiple players to rank in the top 140 nationally. The Big Red are the lone Ivy League program among the 35 teams.
WHEN IT RUNS, IT POURS
Cornell scored 270 runs across its 38 games last season, computing to a 7.11 runs per game average, ranking 117th nationally.
The Big Red's 7.11 runs per game average was its highest clip in a single season since 1901, when Cornell scored 180 runs in 24 games (7.50 runs per game). Last year's average also ranked as the fourth-highest scoring year in Cornell history with at least 20 games played.
Last season's 270 runs scored was the 31st time in Cornell's 153-year history of the baseball program that it scored at least 200 runs in a season. The 270 runs were the third-most by the Big Red in a single season and was its highest run total since scoring a program-record 279 times in 2012, Cornell's last time it appeared in the NCAA Tournament.
Last year, Cornell displayed a knack for scoring runs in bundles, as 225 of its 270 runs came in multi-run innings (83.3 percent of its run production). The Big Red had 66 multi-run innings in 2024 and had registered at least one inning with two-plus runs in 33 of its 38 games played (86.8 percent).
Since the beginning of the 2022 season, Cornell has had at least one multi-run inning in 97 of its 120 games (80.8 percent). The Big Red has had a multi-run inning in 17 of its last 19 contests, dating back to last season, with the lone contests in which it did not register a multi-run inning coming against No. 17-ranked Duke (Feb. 23) and last Friday against Michigan State (March 7).
RAREFIED COMPANY
Senior outfielder John Quinlan and senior infielder Max Jensen were two of Cornell's most reliable hitters in Ivy League play last season.
Quinlan mustered 42 hits in conference games, assuming Cornell's program record for hits in conference play in a single season. He also became just the second player in EIBL / Ivy League history with 40-plus hits in conference games in a single season, joining former Dartmouth shortstop Tyler Cox, who had 45 hits in Ancient Eight play in 2022.
Jensen also excelled against Ivy League opposition last season, amassing 37 base knocks to place him in a five-way tie with Yale's Dan Thompson (1995), Brown's Joe Lomuscio (2019), Columbia's Joe Engel (2019), and Harvard's Jake Suddleson (2019) for the sixth-most hits in conference play in EIBL / Ivy League history.
The Cornell duo became the first pair of teammates in the history of the EIBL and Ivy League to record at least 37 hits within the same season.
Quinlan (54) and Jensen (51) also became the third set of Big Red teammates with 50-plus hits in a season, joining Ken Veenema (56) and Dave Johnson (50) in 1977 and Brian Billigen (57) and Frank Hager (52) in 2012.
MOST HITS IN CONFERENCE PLAY
EIBL / Ivy League History
• 45, Tyler Cox, Dartmouth (2022)
• 42, John Quinlan, Cornell (2024)
• 39, Matt Kutler, Brown (2005)
• 38, Tom Grandieri, Penn (2010)
• 38, Peter Matt, Penn (2019)
• 37, Dan Thompson, Yale (1995)
• 37, Joe Lomuscio, Brown (2019)
• 37, Joe Engel, Columbia (2019)
• 37, Jake Suddleson, Harvard (2019)
• 37, Max Jensen, Cornell (2024)
HOT HITTERS
Cornell's trio of First Team All-Ivy selections last year in senior outfielder John Quinlan (.378), sophomore catcher Mark Quatrani (.362), and senior infielder Max Jensen (.358) made Cornell one of 11 Division I programs last season to have at least three players with .350 batting averages. Players eligible must have had a minimum of three plate appearances per game and played in at least 75 percent of their team's games.
Austin Peay led the nation with five players that had batting averages north of .350 last season. Wofford assumed second place with four representatives, while Cornell was tied with Arizona State, East Tennessee State, Jackson State, Northern Kentucky, Samford, UC Irvine, Virginia, and Western Michigan for the third-most batters with at least .350 averages last season.
The Big Red was one of two Division I programs (Austin Peay — four) that had at least three batters register a batting average equal or better than Jensen's .358 clip. Austin Peay had four batters meet the criteria, powered by Jon Jon Gazdar (.405), Lyle Miller-Green (.393), Clayton Gray (.380), and John Bay (.365).
SCOUTING YALE
Concluding its eight-game homestand this weekend, Yale is opening Ivy League play with the conference's best overall record (12-3) while riding an nine-game win streak, tied with Arizona and Utah Valley for the nation's sixth-longest overall win streak.
Having defeated Sacred Heart and Quinnipiac in midweek contests between a three-game series sweep of VMI at Bush Field, Yale has won in its last seven home games, tied with Cincinnati, UCLA, Wake Forest, and Wright State for the 17th-longest active home win streak. Western Kentucky (20 games) has the nation's longest home streak.
Powered offensively by Jake Williams (.386) and Alec Atkinson (.385), Yale enters the weekend boasting five players with at least a .300 batting average, joined by Kaiden Dossa (.356), Max Imhoff (.333), and Garrett Larsen (.300).
Relying on its pitching and defense, Yale has the 15th-best earned-run average through the completion of Wednesday's games (3.34) while also ranking 31st in WHIP (1.27), 36th in hits per nine innings (7.77), 37th in walks per nine innings (3.68), and 57th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.41). The Bulldogs also average a double play per game, which ranks ninth nationally.
Freshman Jack Ohman has shined across his four outings, three of which have been starts, posting a 1-0 record over 19.1 innings, allowing three unearned runs and striking out 21 batters and walking just six. He is holding opponents to a .190 batting average.
LAST SERIES AGAINST YALE
Cornell posted its third consecutive series victory over Yale last year at Booth Field, marking the Big Red's first instance registering three successive series victories over Yale since doing so in four straight years from 1969-72 (1-0 in 1969, 2-0 in 1970, 1-0 in 1971, and 1-0 in 1972).
The series began with Cornell avenging an 8-0 eighth-inning deficit by posting a 10-9 victory in 10 innings. Then-junior outfielder John Quinlan lofted a wind-aided, two-RBI walk-off bloop double into right field to give the Big Red its second come-from-behind victory in as many games. Cornell followed with an 8-2 victory in the nightcap of the doubleheader before dropping the series finale, 6-3, the next day.
138 YEARS, 255 MILES, 192 MEETINGS
Yale owns the lead in the series over Cornell, 112-80, dating back to the first meeting between the Ivy League rivals on May 17, 1887, in West Haven, Conn., where Bulldogs pitcher Amos Alonzo Stagg — the unofficial inventor of the batting cage — pitched a five-hit complete game in Yale's 9-1 triumph.
The Big Red has claimed the season series in each of the last three seasons, posting victories in six of the last nine games against the Bulldogs. It is the first time Cornell has won three consecutive season series against Yale since doing so in four consecutive years from 1969-72 (1-0 in 1969, 2-0 in 1970, 1-0 in 1971, 1-0 in 1972), as part of the program's six-game win streak over the Bulldogs, the longest win streak ever against Yale.
