THE SERIES: Penn (11-19-1, 5-6-1 Ivy) vs. Cornell (6-16-1, 2-7 Ivy) | Apr. 21-22 | Philadelphia, Pa.

Projected Starters (Penn vs. Cornell)
Game One: Saturday, Apr. 21 at 11:30 a.m. - Vs. Cancer Day
LHP Gabe Kleiman (1-5, 3.38 ERA) vs. RHP Tim Willittes (2-4, 4.98 ERA)

Game Two: Saturday, Apr. 21 at ~2:30 p.m. - Vs. Cancer Day
RHP Christian Scafidi (2-3, 4.56 ERA) vs. RHP Seth Urbon (1-2, 5.53 ERA)

Game Three: Sunday, Apr. 22 at 1:00 p.m. - Youth Day
Mitchell Holcomb (0-4, 5.05 ERA) vs. RHP Tommy Morris (0-1, 5.14 ERA)


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LIVE STREAM - Saturday (DH) | Sunday

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PHILADELPHIA - For the first time this season, Penn baseball looks to have established some momentum. The Quakers' offensive production has skyrocketed over the course of the past week, locking up three crucial victories (in four attempts) by an average margin of 8.67 runs. Further, the pitching staff continues to positively evolve following the bullpen's recent confidence boost, as starters maintain extended stays on the mound while multiple relievers have seemingly found their niche in the general rotation. The combined offensive explosion and defensive discovery serves as the perfect storm for the Quakers moving forward into their final three series of Ivy play, hosting last-place Cornell this weekend before closing out the year with trips to both Columbia and Yale, the conference's current top two seeds.

The recent surge at the plate certainly hasn't been to the credit of the single individual, as the entire line-up has shown dramatic improvement since the beginning of the Princeton series last Friday. However, overlooking the contribution of outfielders Peter Matt and Andrew Murnane would be to forget the spark the ignited the flame, as the pair has combined for 16 hits (on a .533 aggregate BA), nine RBIs and an an average.563 on-base percentage in the last four games. And while Penn consistently works a majority of its scoring into a single inning, those last few stretches have been devastating to opposing defenses. In the opener at Princeton, the Quakers notched six of their seven runs during the sixth frame; two games later in the finale, Penn scored half of its 10 runs in the first inning; finally, the batting order put together its best day of the season thus far Tuesday against La Salle, compiling 12 of the team's 17 total runs in a magnificent second frame.

Meanwhile, the bullpen's role continues to expand as recent performances of nearly the entire group propelled the Quakers to three victories. Special praise must go to junior John Alan Kendrick, who secured his second win of the season on five and two-thirds innings pitched in the past four games. Flying under the radar has been freshman phenom Brendan Bean, as his strong outings in the Quakers' two most recent losses (at Monmouth, at Princeton) kept Penn within striking distance, surrendering just three hits and two walks while striking out 11 through seven and one-third frames on the mound. Senior LHP Gabe Kleiman and sophomore RHP Christian Scafidi are set to start in Saturday's doubleheader, as they put together victory-worthy performances in this past weekend's two wins over the Tigers, while the Sunday starter remains undecided.


SCOUTING CORNELL
The Big Red batting order has been nothing if not a group effort this season, as each of the nine players has notched double-digit RBI totals thus far into the year. At the top, the duo of Will Simoneit (.267 BA) and Kyle Gallagher (.301 BA)  has served as Cornell's primary threats to opposing pitchers, combining for 48 hits, 26 RBIs and 11 doubles on the season, while both Ellis Bitar (.253 BA) and Ryan Krainz (.260 BA) have reached base most consistently, boasting an average .376 on-base percentage.

The pitching bullpen, though, has been much more individualistic, with just a few major players serving as relievers for the three starters. The combined efforts of Andrew Ellison (17.1 IP, 2.08 ERA), Wyatt Colby (18.2 IP, 3.37 ERA) and Jeb Bemiss (24.1 IP, 7.03 ERA) have constituted a heavy majority of the Big Red relief, containing Cornell to fewer options when faced with tough situations.