BEARING DOWN: Princeton University softball Jessica Phelps makes a play at first base in recent action. Last Friday, sophomore first baseman Phelps went 2 for 4 with three RBIs to help Princeton defeat Brown 6-2 in the opener of a three-game set. The Tigers went on to sweep the Bears in a doubleheader on Saturday, prevailing 2-1 and 12-4. Phelps ended up with six RBIs on the weekend. The Tigers, now 19-10 overall and 9-0 Ivy League, return to league action when they host Penn this week with a doubleheader on April 11 and a single game on April 12. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
As the Princeton University softball team hosted Brown last Friday in the opener of a three-game set, Jessica Phelps got things off to a good start for the Tigers.
With three runners on and two out in the bottom of the first inning, Phelps shot a single up the middle to drive in two runs as Princeton jumped out to a 2-0 lead.
“For me especially going in there with two outs and bases loaded, it is just knowing that I have been there before and not making too much of the situation,” said sophomore first baseman Phelps. “It is trusting myself, doing the best that I can.”
Having lost to Brown in the final round of the Ivy League Tournament last spring to end its season, the Tigers were psyched for the regular season rematch with the Bears.
“We just wanted to go into this series attacking it but obviously staying within ourselves and not doing too much,” said Phelps. “But there was a little fire there.”
In the bottom of the third, Phelps struck again as she hit another run-scoring single to put the Tigers up 3-2.
“I was in a similar situation where it is like deep in the count and just knowing that you can do it and trusting myself,” said Phelps. “I am really just doing anything I can sell out for the team.”
Princeton went on to win 6-2 to set the tone for the weekend. On Saturday, the Tigers swept a doubleheader, prevailing 2-1 and 12-4, as they improved to 19-10 overall and 9-0 Ivy League.
Phelps, for her part, picked up three more RBIs in the sweep of the twin bill.
“I think honestly the hits are just falling, I have been seeing the ball well for a while,” said Phelps, a 5’7 native of San Diego, Calif., who is now hitting .234 with 15 RBIs. “They have just been right to people. I squared up some balls and they have been caught. Now it is just staying consistent with that and not getting too in my head or anything. I am seeing the ball well, I know I can do it and I have been doing it. It is just staying consistent with that.”
With Princeton having won 10 of its last 11 games, the Tigers are playing very well.
“This team is just awesome, I am so blessed to play with everybody,” said Phelps, whose started last week with a big game against Lehigh in a 2-1 loss on Wednesday as she went 2 for 2 with a homer. “I think what separates us from other teams is that we are actually like sisters. We can trust each other with anything, there is an unspoken connection there. We don’t even have to necessarily be talking all of the time. We know where we are going to be, we know where each other are.”
Princeton head coach Lisa Van Ackeren sensed that her team was bringing some extra fire into the Brown series.
“I think we felt like last season we left something on the table and when you have to sit with that for a full year, it is tough,” said Van Ackeren. “I think the upperclassmen definitely wanted to get our field back to us. With the way that it ended, I think they have had this circled on the calendar.”
Van Ackeren wanted to see her players put together good at-bats in order to get to make the Brown pitchers work.
“We had one hit for three innings and I was I can’t believe it is 2-0,” said Van Ackeren. “We were putting pressure on her in the zone. It is definitely part of the discipline. I think coming in was going to be really important in facing this pitching staff.”
Phelps showed her discipline with her two RBI hits. “Jess came up big for us, she has been working so hard at practice,” said Van Ackeren, noting that Phelps was slowed early in the season by a leg injury. “It took her a little bit to get back. The Lehigh game, that is what we expect from her. She had one of the best preseasons we have seen, this is back to normal Jess. She is super clutch.”
Junior Karis Ford broke open the game on Friday with a two-run triple in the bottom of the fourth.
“Karis has been great, she has been good because I think people are very careful with how they pitch to her,” said Van Ackeren. “She has been walked quite a bit. I think sometimes in that mentality you can sit back. She was taking strikes more because she has been taking more pitches in general. It was good to see her barrel that one up.”
In the circle, junior Cassidy Shaw went five innings with two strikes, yielding three hits and two runs and then freshman Reece Uehara closed the deal with two scoreless innings.
“That is who Cassie is, she will work herself out,” said Van Ackeren. “She just finds a way to compete no matter what. I think the cool part about Cass is that the play at home (in the third inning) should have been an out call but she just bounced right back. She is just OK, we have to move on and go on to the next. To have that quality in a pitcher is really good. Reece is so efficient. She settled into herself
and knows what she is good at now. She is a steady presence, she is always the same.”
Reflecting on the team’s recent surge, Van Ackeren believes the team’s chemistry has been a key factor in its success.
“This team plays together, they are very connected,” said Van Ackeren. “They are very in synch, teams compete better when you have that culture in your dugout.”
With Princeton returning to league action when it hosts Penn this week with a doubleheader on April 11 and a single game on April 12, Van Ackeren believes the team is on track to keep competing as a high level.
“It is a super special group, the freshmen (Mia Valenzuela, Maddie Ratcheson, and Uehara) have been an awesome addition,” said Van Ackeren. “They are playing a really big role for us right now and then we have some seasoned vets. We have phenomenal captains in Brielle [Wright], Julia [Dumais], and Sonia [Zhang]. They have been awesome.”
In the view of Phelps, the Tigers have what it takes to produce an awesome season.
“Not only is there a hunger after last year but just within ourselves, there is a fire there,” said Phelps. “There is a standard that we uphold at Princeton softball. This team just wants to do great things, you can tell.”