The Big Green (14-10, 11-1 Ivy) swept Brown (12-14-1, 8-4 Ivy) in a doubleheader on Saturday, putting away the Bears 5-2 in both games. Facing Brown again on Sunday, Dartmouth rallied for a 14-9 victory in the first game, but gave up a five-run lead to lose 12-9 and snap the streak in the second.
"These are very hard-fought games," head coach Bob Whalen said. "[The Brown players] have earned their record. They have also beaten some ranked opponents in California on their spring trip. "
Closer Ryan Smith '11 finished off both games on Saturday for the Big Green, with two strikeouts in the last inning of each game to secure the wins. He now has nine saves this season and a career total of 16, setting a new Dartmouth team record.
"It's really exciting for me, but us winning today was more exciting," Smith said. "We played the two biggest games today that we play all year."
The Big Green's starting pitchers, Robert Young '10 and Ben Murray '10, both held the Bears to only two runs, as Young gave up six hits and Murray gave up eight.
Young, who started the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, almost pitched a complete game but was taken out in the seventh inning after two Brown players reached base on errors. He walked five batters during the game, but also was able to pick off two Brown base runners.
Designated hitter Ray Allen '09 had the winning blast in Saturday's first game. He belted a home run to left field during the fourth inning to put Dartmouth up 3-1.
In the second game, Murray kept the Bears off the scoreboard until the fifth inning, preventing 13 of the first 14 batters he faced to reach base.
Johnathon Santopadre '09 ignited the Big Green in the fourth inning of the second game Saturday with a two-run triple down the right field line with two outs. Dartmouth scored the rest of its runs during two-out opportunities.
Joe Sclafani '12, who bats first in the lineup, and Nick Santomauro '10 each had two hits during the second game Saturday. They are currently leading the team in batting.
"I've been seeing the ball really well lately," Sclafani said. "I've been getting good pitches to hit because I hit in front of some great hitters that have proven themselves in the Ivy League."
During the second game, eight different Big Green sluggers contributed to Dartmouth's 11 hits, while in the first game, only three Big Green players produced Dartmouth's five hits.
The Bears actually had six hits in the first game, but couldn't convert them as efficiently as Dartmouth, and only crossed home plate twice.
"[Brown is] a very explosive offensive team," Whalen said. "They can hurt you at any point in the lineup, and we didn't feel like the games were even close to over until they were over."
Sclafani, the Ivy League Rookie of the Week, also stood out in the field with four putouts, one of which involved him tripping over left fielder Jim Wren '10 to catch a fly ball in the third inning of the second game. Somehow able to hold onto the ball, Sclafani said he was not injured from the play.
"The ball hung up there for a while and Jim was in left center, so I figured I had a pretty good shot at it since he was kind of far away," Sclafani said after the game. "I just went after it hard. I didn't see him and he didn't see me."
In Sunday's first game, the Big Green, down 9-6 , exploded for eight runs in the sixth inning to take the lead for good. Santomauro started the scoring with a one-run single to left field, and Sclafani ended it by ripping a bases-loaded, three-run triple then scoring on a double by Jeff Onstott '11.
However, Dartmouth could not complete the weekend sweep. Despite jumping out to an early 5-0 lead in Sunday's second game, the Big Green gave up seven runs in the third inning to the Bears, and were unable to recover the lead.
Dartmouth returns to the diamond hoping to continue its winning streak against the University of Vermont at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Hanover.
The Big Green will then face Holy Cross at 4 p.m. Wednesday in Worcester, Mass.