Baseball Set for Ivy Tournament Matchup with Penn

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Brown baseball team is set to open up the postseason on Friday when the Bears will face off against Penn in the Ivy League Tournament. First pitch of the double elimination tournament is set for 4 p.m. at Yale's George H.W. Bush '48 Field.

GAME INFORMATION
Friday, May 15 | 4:00 p.m. | Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+ | Tickets
Bush '48 Field | New Haven, Conn.
Brown Game Notes

TOURNEY TIME!
Brown is making its first appearance in the Ivy League Tournament under its current format (first implemented in 2018). Friday's contest marks the first postseason game for the Bears since defeating Penn in the 2007 Ivy League Championship Series.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior center fielder Mika Petersen was selected as the Ivy League Player of the Year. He is just the third player in program history to be the league's most outstanding player, and the first since Devin Thomas in 2007.

He also won the Charles H. Blair Bat Award, presented to the player who leads the league in batting average during Ivy League games after hitting .443 in 21 Ivy games this season. Petersen previously won the award by leading the league in hitting as a freshman in 2023 (.424).

COACHING STAFF OF THE YEAR
Brown's first-year coaching staff has been named the Ivy League's Coaching Staff of the Year. It marks the first time Brown's staff has earned the honor (the award was first presented in 2015).

Head coach Frank Holbrook, Eric Podbelski, Andrew McKeon, Mike Maher and Pete Kelich have overseen a tremendous turnaround in their first season, taking a team that finished eighth in the league the last two years, and was the preseason No. 8 in 2026. Brown has earned the No. 3 seed in the Ivy Tournament, and its 21 wins are the most since the 2009 season.

POSTSEASON AWARDS SPECTACULAR
Brown had eight players earn All-Ivy awards this season, including three first teamers. The eight accolades tie the 2002 team for the second-most in any season in program history. The 1999 squad had nine all-league honorees.

First Team
Mika Petersen (Sr./OF) - unanimous, DJ Dillehay (Sr./INF), Dylan Reid (Sr./P)

Second Team
Drew Nelson (Fr./P), Mark Henshon (Sr./INF), Luigs (Fr./INF), Alex Benevento (So./OF)

Honorable Mention
Christian Keel (Sr./P)

Academic All-Ivy
Peter Dubie (Sr./P)

LEADING IN ERA
Brown's pitching staff leads the Ivy League during league play with a 3.92 ERA, the only team with a sub-4.00 ERA.

Overall on the season, the Bears rank second in the league with a 4.73 ERA, trailing only Dartmouth (4.32).

All-Ivy selections Dylan Reid and Drew Nelson both rank in the top seven overall this season in ERA, with Reid ranking fifth at 3.48, and Nelson sitting seventh at 4.43.

RACKING UP THE K'S
Over 60.1 IP, Peter Dubie's 61 strikeouts rank fourth overall in the Ivy League.

SAVING THE DAY
Senior closer Christian Keel leads the league with six saves this season, all of which have come in league contests.

LONG STREAKS
Mike Petersen carries a 20-game on-base streak into the tournament, the second-longest of his career. He had a 28-game on-base streak spanning the 2023 and 2024 seasons.

Petersen had his 18-game hitting streak snapped on May 2 at Penn. He enters the tournament with a hit in 19 of his last 20 games.

His 18-game hitting streak was the second longest of his career, trailing his 21-game hitting streak that spanned the 2023 and 2024 seasons.

PETERSEN LEADING THE WAY
In Ivy League contests, Petersen led the league in average (.443), on-base (.531), slugging (.785), OPS (1.316) and hits (35). He also ranked tied for third in doubles (8), fourth in runs scored (22), and was tied for second with two triples.

LUIGS IN THE LEADOFF SPOT
Freshman shortstop Matt Luigs hit .330 in league games this season while tying for third with 22 runs scored out of the leadoff spot.

He added a league-leading three triples and ranked in the league's top 10 with 12 walks. He has led off for the Bears in all 39 games this season.

BENNY'S BREAKOUT SEASON
Sophomore outfielder Alex Benevento is hitting .317 overall this season, good for eighth in the league. He ranks sixth with a .428 overall on-base percentage and is fourth with 41 runs scored.

He led the team with six home runs during the regular season.

DRIVING THE HOME
Senior third baseman DJ Dillehay leads the Ivy League with 26 RBIs in 21 league games while also ranking second overall in the league with 40 total RBIs.

A TOUGH OUT
Senior second baseman Mark Henshon has reached base in 30 of his last 34 games.

Having only struck out a team-low 17 times this season, he enters the postseason hitting .299 with 27 RBIs, five doubles, and 18 walks.

CLOSING IN ON 200
Mika Petersen enters the tournament with 198 career hits. He is vying to become just the fifth player in program history to accumulate 200 career hits.

Click here to read Brown's full game notes

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