Yale Needs Two More Wins Sunday At Brown; DH Now To Start At 1 p.m.

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Yale's quest for the Ivy League North Division title will come down to the final day of the regular season. The Bulldogs stayed alive with a doubleheader sweep of Brown on a picture-perfect Senior Day at DeWitt Family Field. Shelby Kennedy and Rachel Paris each knocked in two runs as the Bulldogs won the first game 6-4. Paris and Allison Skinner had three RBI apiece in the second game, a 7-5 Yale victory.

The Bulldogs, though, couldn't rest easy until the final out of the day. Brown had the tying runs on second and third with no out in the top of the seventh of the second game. Catcher Madison Sack made an outstanding diving catch on Grayson Metzger's safety squeeze to record the first out. Francesca Casalino then struck out Sarah Syrop and got Julia Schoenwald to pop out to second base to preserve the must win.

Yale, at 10-8 in Ivy play, enters Sunday's doubleheader at Brown tied for second-place with Dartmouth. Both the Bulldogs and Big Green are one game behind Harvard, who swept two games at Dartmouth on Saturday. Yale must win both games of Sunday's doubleheader at Brown for a chance for its season to continue.

Harvard and Dartmouth also play twice on Sunday. If Harvard sweeps, the Crimson win the North Division and move on to play South Division winner Princeton. If Harvard and Dartmouth split and Yale sweeps, the Bulldogs and Crimson would play a one-game playoff in Cambridge next weekend. If Dartmouth and Yale both sweep, it would be the Bulldogs and Big Green in a one-game playoff at DeWitt Family Field next weekend.

Regardless of the outcomes Sunday, it has already been a memorable season for the Bulldogs, who have won five straight games and are assured of at least a .500 record in Ivy play for the first time since 2009.

Yale had to come from behind in both games Saturday to sweep the Bears. The Bulldogs trailed 4-3 heading to the bottom of the fourth inning of the first game but rallied for three runs. Kennedy walked and Laina Do and Allison Skinner were both hit by pitches to start the rally. Casalino then hit a hard ground ball that went under the glove of third baseman Cat Seitz and scored two runs. After Sack reached on a fielder's choice to re-load the bases, Paris was hit by a pitch, forcing home Yale's sixth run.

That was enough for Lindsay Efflandt, who pitched all seven innings to earn the victory.

The Bulldogs had only four hits in the game but benefitted from five walks, five hit by pitches and two Brown errors.

The Bears scored twice in the top of the first of the second game to take an early lead, but Yale answered with three in the bottom of the inning. Kennedy started the rally with a double, moved to third on Do's sacrifice and scored on Sack's two-out single to left. Paris followed with a long triple to right-centerfield that scored Casalino, who had walked, and Sack.

Skinner's two-run single in the second scored Annie Tarte and Do to make it 5-2.

Brown pulled within two with a run in the third, but sacrifice flies from Paris in the fifth and Skinner in the sixth had Yale seemingly comfortably ahead 7-3 heading to the seventh.

That changed in a hurry when Christina Andrews singled and Annie McGregor followed with a home run to right center. Seitz then singled and Meghan Wimmer doubled and Brown was on the verge of tying the game. Casalino, though, adroitly worked out of the jam with the help of her defense to notch the save.

Sack finished the game 3-for-4 with an RBI and Kennedy was 2-for-3 with a stolen base and run scored.

Terra Jerpbak pitched 6+ innings to earn her seventh win of the season in the circle.

Prior to the start of the game, which was delayed nearly an hour due to Brown's bus breaking down, Yale's five seniors – Do, Efflandt, Sydney Glover, Paris and Camille Weisenbach - were honored.

Sunday's doubleheader at Brown has been pushed back to a 1 p.m. start.

Report filed by Tim Bennett (timothy.bennett@yale.edu), Yale Sports Publicity