Baseball Team Begins Crucial Weekend, Must Beat Cornell Today in First Test

Three games out of first place in the Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League. the Crimson begins an all-important weekend this afternoon with a 3 p.m. game against Cornell on Soldiers Field, Saturday, the Cadets of Army will be here for a doubleheader with the Crimson.

"We have to win the rest." coach Loyal Park said. "That's what we simply have to do."

Navy leads the league but the Midshipmen still must play Princeton, Dartmouth, and Harvard away from home. Dartmouth only one game off the leading pace, seems to have the easiest schedule and will play all of its games in Hanover.

Navy Doubleheader

Harvard can conceivably pass Princeton. Penn, and Brown this weekend if it sweeps its three-game series, and with a doubleheader with Navy just one week away. the Crimson has an excellent chance of dumping the Midshipmen. But in order to catch Dartmouth. Harvard cannot afford to drop another contest.

Since coming north, the varsity nine has won only 5 of 11 games, dropping four one-run decisions. The team's major failing has been its inability to fuse strong pitching and hitting performances.

Inconsistent

"Our team hasn't had any major problems in the lineup." Park said "We've just been inconsistent in our attack. If we can combine strong pitching and our good hitting we'll be right back in the league race."

Righthander Tom Kidwell will pitch against the Big Red today. Kidwell lasted only two innings against Brown in his last start, but the Crimson delivered eight runs for an 8-7 triumph. Former starters J. C. Nickens and Tom Dashiell are scheduled for relief assignments should Kidwell tire.

Cornell picked to battle Dartmouth for the league title has had a frustrating 8-11-2 season. It's only league victories came last weekend in a doubleheader sweep against Columbia.

The Big Red's major problem has been inconsistent hitting. As coach Ed Thoren said after his team's first four losses in the league. "You can't win when you don't score runs."

Proof of Theory

Leading pitcher Tom MacLeod is proof of that theory, winning only one of five games despite a 1.94 ERA. The only other accomplished hurler on the Big Red staff is junior John Gerse. who has a 2-4 record and a creditable 2.70 ERA.

Cornell has eight returning lettermen in the lineup recreating a squad that lost only two games in the Eastern League last season.