Big Green Teams

When the baseball season began, Tony Lupien considered his team a likely candidate for fourth place in the Eastern League standings. "We have a good number of sophomores (eleven)," he said. "They have a good attitude but it's a young team."

And young teams make mistakes. As far as the Eastern League race is concerned, Dartmouth made two mistakes. As a result, the Green missed its third crown in four years by the narrowest of margins and had to settle for third place in a remarkably close race which produced co-champions (Cornell and Harvard).

The co-leaders produced 10-4 records. Dartmouth finished 9-4-1. It was that close and as the race developed in early May, it became apparent that Lupien's prediction that a team might lose four times and win the championship would be fact.

Dartmouth's team was a gang of opportunists who made the most of a limited number of hits and entered the final weekend of league activity in, of all places, first place. The Green was on top despite a tie game (8-8 with Penn), a contest which belonged to Dartmouth until three unearned runs in the eighth inning pulled Penn even. Darkness forced a halt after nine innings.

The tie might have helped the Green as easily as it hurt them. The final three games were at Yale and Brown (the latter a doubleheader). Dartmouth needed two wins and the title would come to Hanover again. It didn't happen. At Yale, it was a nightmarish afternoon that saw the Elis use six hits, eight Green errors, and eleven walks to take a 13-10 win. Dartmouth left 16 men on base.

The next afternoon at Providence it was a similar problem as Jim Metzler, the junior righthander, dropped his first varsity decision at Dartmouth (he is 6-1 this spring and 9-1 over two years) in the opener. The score was 4-1 and again the Green couldn't produce the timely hit, leaving 13 men on base.

The second game belonged to Dartmouth, 3-0, as sophomore Dave Highmark got the win with help from Metzler. But, as Harvard swept past Yale and Cornell roared through five wins in three days, it was for naught.

As a 10-game home stand began, the Green had just beaten Harvard in the second half of a doubleheader. It was the first of eight wins in nine games (remember the tie?) that catapulted Dartmouth into contention.

The opportunist moniker was never more appropriate than against Navy in a doubleheader at Rolfe Field. The Middies led Dartmouth in the sixth inning of both games and twice the Green came up with rallies (all the runs were unearned) and stole decisions, 4-3 and 2-1.

The next weekend was much the same as Cornell and Army came to town. Against Cornell, Dartmouth rallied again for a 4-3 win as Charlie Janes took the decision with help in the ninth from Metzler. The next afternoon Army was blanked by Metzler, 3-0, and then senior Fred Grossman (one of the better surprises of the season) pitched a two-hitter and stopped the Cadets, 3-1.

With two games to play, Dartmouth had a 17-15-1 record. "We've done what I felt we'd do," said Lupien, looking for the Green's 13th straight winning season.

Looking at the personnel, outfielder Frank Mannarino, the captain from New Jersey, has set a season record for runs batted in (37 with two games to play). His .333 batting average was equaled by sophomore centerfielder Rick Klupchak entering the last week, and not far behind was sophomore rightfielder Bob Whelan (.310). Whelan, who didn't make the spring trip, broke into the lineup at Harvard and has persisted in producing clutch hits and a couple of superb catches that quelled rallies.

Metzler is the standout pitcher while Janes (4-4), Crossman (2-0), and Highmark (4-2) have had good performances. Crossman, who missed the southern trip with an ankle injury, has been a big help after two lackluster campaigns.

Southpaw Lloyd Ucko '72, Dartmouth'sNo. 1 player, won the 1972 New Englandintercollegiate singles title.