D-I DROPPINGS
It’s suddenly a race for the Lou Gehrig Division title as the Ivy League regular-season enters the final weekend. With Princeton dropping three of four to Columbia and Penn taking three of four off Cornell, the Quakers (9-7) have moved to within one game of the front-running Tigers (10-6).
Princeton (19-17 overall) still controls its own fate. The Tigers play a doubleheader at Cornell Friday and host the Big Red for two on Sunday. Penn hosts Columbia for two on Friday and visits the Lions for a pair on Saturday. The Gehrig winner plays the Red Rolfe division champ for an NCAA berth.
Rider kept itself alive for the sixth and final berth in the MAAC tournament by taking two of three at Niagra last weekend. The Broncs (13-25) are 5-7 and in eighth place, one game behind sixth-place Quinnipiac (6-6) with Niagra (7-8) in between.
The Broncs have a ton of time and plenty of opportunity to move up, even past sixth place, with 12 MAAC games remaining, but they have to start playing more consistently. Rider appeared to be getting on a roll when it won seven of eight from March 29 to Apr. 10, but has gone 3-7 since then including a loss to St. Joe’s Wednesday at Citizens Bank Park in the Liberty Bell Classic final.
The Broncs can make a serious move this weekend when they host Siena for three games. The Saints (7-5) are in fifth place, two games ahead of the Broncs.
Rutgers (21-20, 5-7 Big Ten) got over .500 for the first time last Thursday with a win over Penn State, and climbed back over that mark again by beating Villanova Wednesday. The Knights will try and move up from the 11th in B1G play as they host Nebraska (tied for sixth at 7-5) for three games at Bainton Field this weekend.