The softball team opened Ivy League play last weekend, winning all four of its games. Despite torrential rain and adverse field conditions, the Big Green (14-13, 4-0 Ivy) swept both Cornell University and Princeton University.
Dartmouth overwhelmed Cornell (7-12, 0-2 Ivy) on Saturday, winning 5-1 and 8-2 in the doubleheader. Rain postponed Sunday’s doubleheader in Princeton, N.J., to Monday, but the Big Green still swept Monday’s games against Princeton (7-17, 0-2 Ivy) 1-0 and 4-1. Dartmouth now leads the North Division of the Ivy League and is tied with Columbia University for the overall league lead at 4-0.
“It’s nice to see the players starting to enjoy the fruits of their labor,” head coach Rachel Hanson said. “They’ve been working really hard and coming together.”
In the first half of the doubleheader in Ithaca, N.Y., Kristen Rumley ’15 earned her eighth win of the season and notched her ninth complete game.
Morgan McCalmon ’16 earned her third win in the second half before allowing Ashley Sissel ’17 to make her Ivy pitching debut. Sissel faced five batters, registering one strikeout. Rumley recorded the save.
“It was a different moment,” Sissel said. “It was very exciting, but there was some adversity, especially being on the road. I just try to pitch every time with the goal of playing better.”
The Big Green offense was equally potent, belting four home runs in the 14 innings. McCalmon had two homers, seven RBIs and four hits, while Katie McEachern ’16 and Maddie Damore ’17 added home runs of their own.
“Hats off to my teammates because they were able to not let Cornell score,” McCalmon said. “Sometimes you go up there and you’re feeling it. It was just a good day.”
Cornell’s only run in the first game came off a home run to left field in the fifth. Rumley allowed only three hits and struck out nine batters on the afternoon. The junior also prevented a single walk during her seven innings.
Dartmouth’s dominance continued into game two. Over four innings on the mound, McCalmon allowed two runs and three hits while striking out five Cornell batters.
Dartmouth once again took an early lead in the second when a single by Karen Chaw ’17 to right center scored Damore.
Cornell mounted a comeback in the next half inning, taking its only lead of the day when McCalmon gave up a walk, two hits and two runs.
The lead did not last long, as Damore homered to right field the next inning to propel the Big Green to a 3-2 lead.
McCalmon sealed the win with a sixth-inning home run that extended Dartmouth’s lead to two. She then doubled down the left field line in the seventh with bases loaded, scoring all three baserunners.
“It was an exciting moment, especially for the team, that we were able to get runners on in that situation,” McCalmon said.
Game one against the Tigers was largely a pitchers’ duel between Rumley and sophomore Shanna Christian, who both pitched complete games.
Rumley allowed just three hits to go with six strikeouts, while Christian allowed five hits and struck out five. Both pitchers held their opponents scoreless until the seventh inning when Kelsey Miller ’16 ripped the ball to right field. It glanced off of freshman outfielder Marissa Reynolds’s glove and over the fence.
However, Alyssa Loyless ’17, who was on first at the time, saw the ball hit Reynolds’s glove and thought she made the catch. The freshman returned to first and Miller passed her, meaning that the sophomore was called out. Loyless was granted the run, and the Big Green held a 1-0 lead.
The missed opportunity did not come back to haunt Dartmouth, as Rumley shut down the remaining Princeton batters to end the game and claim the win.
McCalmon started game two and allowed six hits and just one run with five strikeouts in 4.1 innings of work, her third win of the season. Rumley relieved McCalmon in the fifth to pick up her second save.
Princeton went up 1-0 in the third on a solo home run, the only lead the Tigers enjoyed all day. The lead lasted less than an inning, as a Miller single to left field in the fourth plated McEachern, and Kara Curosh ’14 scored on a fielding error, giving Dartmouth a 2-1 lead.
Dartmouth added to its lead when Curosh singled to left to bring home Miller in the sixth and Loyless scored after McCalmon singled down the left field line in the seventh. Rumley continued to shut down Princeton, ending the game 4-1.
The team was scheduled to play Hartford University Tuesday, but its games were canceled due to field conditions. Dartmouth returns to Hanover to play its home-opening series against Columbia on Saturday and the University of Pennsylvania on Sunday.
