Despite last weekend's offensive letdown against Yale University, the Big Green came out with a balanced attack to score in bursts against Brown. The wins put Dartmouth in second place in the Red Rolfe Division and a game behind Yale University in the rankings, but the Big Green hopes to reverse this setup as it plays two more games against Brown on Monday.
"We took the week after the Yale games to refine our offensive approach as a team," Jeffrey Onstott '11 said. "We primarily focused on making solid contact and also wanted to make sure we worked on being more patient at the plate."
The second win marks the 19th straight home victory for the team, tying it with the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill for the longest home winning streak in NCAA baseball.
"We all love playing at home," Shane Ogren '14 said. "Our turf field is unique, and with the support of friends and family in the stands we seem to always be able to put on a show, offensively and defensively."
In the first game against Brown, Dartmouth took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Joe Sclafani '12 scored on a single by Chris O'Dowd '13. The game then saw relatively little offense until a three-run rally in the fourth inning by the Bears.
Brown junior shortstop Graham Tyler hit a three-run home run to give Brown a 3-1 lead. Dartmouth's Jeff Keller '14 responded, however, jacking a homer to left center to bring the score to 3-2.
Dartmouth ran away with the game in the bottom of the fifth, scoring five runs to take a commanding 7-3 lead. Sclafani started the rally with a single to right center, and Sam Bean '11 followed with a triple, scoring Sclafani.
Jason Brooks '11 continued the onslaught with a double, scoring two more runs. Onstott then singled, scoring Brooks, before Onstott scored on a throwing error by Brown. The rally ended when Keller was caught stealing second base.
Brown could not find an answer, and did not get another hit in the game. Kyle Hunter '13 pitched a complete game and only gave up four hits in the 7-3 victory.
The second game saw a strong start from the Big Green, as it scored five runs in the first inning.
"That first game is huge, especially just on that day's doubleheader," Keller said. "We've played 14 Ivy games now and the winner of game one of the seven doubleheaders has won game two every time."
Sclafani started the offense with a double to left field. Bean then followed with another double, scoring Sclafani. O'Dowd walked and Ennis Coble '13 hit another double, scoring Bean.
The attack continued as Onstott walked and Keller singled to left field, scoring O'Dowd. On the following play, David Turnbull '12 reached base on an error, scoring Coble. With the bases loaded, Sclafani walked, scoring Onstott. The inning ended with Bean striking out.
Brown struggled on offense all game, only getting four hits and one run in seven innings against starting pitcher Cole Sulser '12. Brown's one run came in the fourth inning, when a single by senior Ryan Zrenda scored junior Mike DiBiase.
Dartmouth extended its lead to 11-1 after an explosive display of offense in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. Onstott led the charge for the Big Green, going four-for-four and scoring three runs.
"Rather than settling for [a comfortable lead], we pushed harder and scored six more throughout the course of the rest of the game, really supporting our dominant pitching staff," Keller said.
Brown attempted a late comeback in the ninth inning, scoring two runs on a home run by Brown sophomore first baseman Cody Slaughter, but the Big Green easily closed out the game.
The Big Green finishes its four-game series with Brown with games at 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. in Hanover on Monday.
