GAME INFORMATION
Game 1: Siena vs. Cornell
First Pitch: Friday, February 29, 2008, at 12 p.m.
Site: Davenport Field (1,500) - Charlottesville, Va.
Records: Siena (0-3); Cornell (0-0)
Projected Starters: Craig Chaput (RHP, 0-0, 5.40 ERA, 5.0 IP) vs. Corey Pappel (RHP, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP)
Series Record: Siena leads, 11-8-1
Last Meeting: Siena won, 14-3, on April 25, 2006
Live Video: none
Live Stats: none
Game 2: Cornell at No. 16 Virginia
First Pitch: Saturday, March 1, 2008, at 12 p.m.
Site: Davenport Field (1,500) - Charlottesville, Va.
Records: Cornell (0-0); Virginia (5-0)
Projected Starters: Walker Toma (RHP, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP) vs. Pat McAnaney (LHP, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 6.0 IP)
Series Record: Virginia leads, 22-12-1
Last Meeting: Cornell won, 10-8, in 1941
Live Video: none
Live Stats: VirginiaSports.com
Game 3: Siena vs. Cornell
First Pitch: Sunday, March 2, 2008, at 11 a.m.
Site: Davenport Field (1,500) - Charlottesville, Va.
Projected Starters: TBA vs. Dan Lea (RHP, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP)
Live Video: none
Live Stats: none
Game 4: Cornell at No. 16 Virginia
First Pitch: Sunday, March 2, 2008, at 3 p.m.
Site: Davenport Field (1,500) - Charlottesville, Va.
Projected Starters: David Rochefort (RHP, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP) vs. Jeff Lorick (LHP, 0-0, 2.25 ERA, 4.0 IP)
Live Video: none
Live Stats: VirginiaSports.com
The Cornell baseball team opens the 2008 season with a trip to Charlottesville, Va., taking on Siena and No. 16 Virginia in a pair of non-league contests. The Big Red will play a single game Friday against the Saints, then a single game on Saturday against the host Cavaliers before facing the two teams in a doubleheader on Sunday. Live stats for Cornell's two games against Virginia will be available though links posted on www.CornellBigRed.com.
About The Big Red
Cornell returns 11 lettermen and seven starting position players from last year's team that went 15-23 overall and 8-12 in the Ivy League Gehrig Division. The Big Red also returns three starting pitchers from a year ago to go along with a talented group of 10 newcomers to the roster. The Big Red also welcomes back five players who have earned All-Ivy League honors over the past two seasons, including 2007 second-team honorees Jimmy Heinz (2B), Scott Hardinger (SS) and Nathan Ford (3B). In the outfield, Brian Kaufman was a second-team honoree in 2006, while Domenic Di Ricco earned honorable mention accolades last season.
Head Coach Tom Ford
In his 18th season at the helm of the Big Red, Tom Ford is the first Ted Thoren Head Coach of Baseball. Ford has guided the Big Red to a 252-413-2 mark over his first 17 seasons and has had eight former players go on to either be drafted or sign as free agents with Major League Baseball clubs. Ford, who won his 200th career game on March 13, 2004, against St. Joseph's (Pa.), is assisted by Scott Marsh, in his 13th season, Bill Kerry, in his fourth season, and Ryan Horning, in his first year.
About Siena
The Saints opened the 2008 season a week ago, dropping three straight contests at Florida. Siena jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the season opener, but the Gators rallied for a 10-7 win on Feb. 22. The following day, the Saints were blanked, 4-0, before falling in the series finale on Sunday, 13-6. Senior designated hitter Chris Klepps led the Saints with a .400 average, collecting four hits in 10 at-bats including a home run and three runs scored against the Gators. Shortstop Moises Rivera and third baseman Jacob Willis both added four hits on the weekend for Siena. On the mound for the Saints, Matt Moberg posted a 2.25 earned run average in four innings of starting work, while Ryan King pitched 2.2 innings of scoreless relief action. Siena as a team is batting .257 and has collected a 7.50 earned run average.
About Virginia
The Cavaliers entered the week ranked 16th in the nation in the latest Baseball America poll and carries a 5-0 mark into a Thursday contest against Coppin State. Virginia is hitting .329 as a team and has held its opposition to just a .169 batting average over the first five games of the season. The Cavaliers are paced offensively by Jeremy Farrell, David Adams and John Barr, each of whom is hitting better than .400 for the season. Adams also has a pair of home runs on the early season. The Cavalier pitching staff has a sparkling 0.66 earned run average, as five players have a 0.00 earned run average in better than 5.0 innings of work.
Long Time, No See
Cornell's game against the Cavaliers will be the first meeting between the two schools since the 1941 season. The Big Red won that last contest, 10-8, but Virginia has a 22-12-1 lead in the all-time series that dates back to 1891.
Triple Your Pleasure
Entering this season, Cornell senior outfielder Brian Kaufman ranks tied for third nationally in career triples among active players with 14. Kaufman is tied with two other players at 14, and trails the national leader, UNC-Asheville's Kevin Mattison's total of 19. Kaufman's 14 triples also ranks him third all-time at Cornell, trailing Eric Rico's 18 from 1999-2002.
Walk This Way
Last season, junior outfielder Domenic Di Ricco was the only Cornell player to record more walks than strikeouts. Di Ricco earned 25 free passes in the leadoff spot in the order and struck out 19 times. For the Portola Valley, Calif., native, the numbers were a turnaround from his first season at Cornell, when he struck out 22 times and drew just nine bases on balls.
No Running
Opposing baserunners found life difficult against Big Red catchers a year ago, as the combination of senior Adam Jacobs and junior Nathan Ford combined to throw out 17-of-37 stolen base attempts. Jacobs threw out 11-of-23 attempts against him, while Ford caught six runners stealing in 14 attempts. The 37 stolen base attempts against the Big Red were half as many as all but one other Ivy League team, with the 60 attempts against Harvard being the next fewest allowed.
Glove Work
The new playing surface on Hoy Field paid immediate benefits to the Big Red baseball team in 2007, as the Big Red set a new Cornell record for team fielding percentage. Cornell posted a .970 fielding percentage last season, besting the previous mark of .968 set in 1991, Tom Ford's first season as head coach.
Up Next
The Big Red returns to action on Friday, March 7, traveling to the Philadelphia area for the Villanova Classic. Cornell opens play on March 7 against La Salle, then faces Temple the following day and Villanova to close out the tournament on March 9.