HIT PARADE: Princeton University baseball player Billy Arendt takes a swing in a game earlier this season. Last weekend, senior infielder Arendt starred as Princeton took three of four games from Penn in a critical Ivy League Gehrig Division series. Arendt went 4-for-4 with three runs, four RBIs and two homers on the day in a 7-2  and 3-1 sweep on Saturday. A day later, he went 3-for-6 overall with a run and an RBI as the Tigers won 5-1 before losing the nightcap 5-2.  Arendt was later named the Ivy Co-Player of the Week along with Cornell’s Cole Rutherford for his performance against Penn. Princeton, now 17-14 overall and 9-3 Ivy, leads Cornell (12-14 overall, 5-5 Ivy) and Penn (14-18 overall, 6-6 Ivy) in the Gehrig Division standings. The Tigers play at Rider on April 20 before heading up to New York City for doubleheaders at Columbia (10-21 overall, 4-8 Ivy) on April 23 and 24. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

Entering the homestretch of his career with the Princeton University baseball team, Billy Arendt was looking to shine as the Tigers hosted Penn for a four-game set starting last Saturday.

“It was a big weekend, we were one and they were two,” said Princeton senior third baseman Arendt, referring to the Ivy League Gehrig Division standings which saw the Tigers at 6-2 Ivy with the Quaker one game behind at 5-3 coming into the twinbills.

Princeton got off to a big start on Saturday, winning 7-2 in the opener and 3-1 in the nightcap.

“We were nervous before game one and it was really important to win that game,” said Arendt. “We really let loose.”

Entering the weekend hitting .267,  Arendt let loose, hitting 3-for-3 with a three-run homer, two runs and three RBIs in the opener and then going 1-for-1 with a homer and three walks in the second game.

“It is a day I am always going to remember,” said the bearded Arendt, a 5’11, 180-pound native of Houston, Texas. “It was great to get those hits.”

A day later, Arendt went 3-for-6 overall with a run and an RBI as the Tigers won 5-1 before losing the nightcap 5-2. The split left Princeton at 17-14 overall and 9-3 Ivy, leading Cornell (12-14 overall, 5-5 Ivy) and Penn (14-18 overall, 6-6 Ivy) in the Gehrig Division standings, a vast improvement over 2015 when the Tigers posted a 4-16 Ivy mark to end up in the cellar of the division.

“It has been phenomenal, we talk to our parents every once in a while and they are just like it is great to win,” said Arendt, who is now hitting .281 and is tied with classmate Danny Hoy for the team lead in homers with four.

“It just makes everything better, even losing the last game, we still had a 3-1 weekend.”

Arendt, who was later named the Ivy Co-Player of the Week along with Cornell’s Cole Rutherford for his performance against Penn, is determined to make the most out of his remaining weekends in a Princeton uniform.

“It is a sense of urgency; Dan Hoy and I have been playing every year since the beginning and a few other of the starters have been important throughout our careers,” said Arendt, an All-Ivy selection last spring. “We really want to send ourselves off well.”

Princeton head coach Scott Bradley liked the way his team came through in the clutch as it put itself in the driver’s seat in the Gehrig Division race.

“It comes down to big hits; we had big hits in the first three games and they had one big swing today in the second game,” said Bradley.

Bradley was happy to see the gritty Arendt rise to the occasion with a number of big hits against Penn. “Billy always has the toughest at bats so I am not surprised at what he did,” said Bradley.

In order for Princeton to continue its turnaround from last year, the players need to maintain their mental toughness.

“Compared to where we were last year at the is time, I really like where we are right now,” said a grinning Bradley, noting that strong pitching has been a constant this spring for the Tigers with junior right-hander Chad Powers getting named the Ivy Pitcher of the Week for his stellar 8-inning effort in Princeton’s 3-1 win over Penn in the nightcap on Saturday.

“It is hard to sweep a weekend against teams this good. We have to keep having 3-1 weekends. If we do that, we will be in control of things here.”

With Princeton playing at Rider on April 20 before heading up to New York City for doubleheaders at Columbia (10-21 overall, 4-8 Ivy) on April 23 and 24, Arendt and his teammates are primed to stay in control of their fate.

“Columbia is always a big time foe,” said Arendt. “In past years, we have had trouble with them so we want to bring out our best mentality, no matter where we are in the standings. We have just got to play our baseball and the rest will come.”