Brown

The Bears, who were the league’s most consistent program after Princeton in the ’90s, hit rock bottom last season. This year Pam McCreesh takes over the head coaching duties, but so far not much has improved as the Bears are off to a 3-10 start. Brown hasn’t beaten Harvard since 1997.

Cornell

The defending co-champion Big Red boasts impressive bats in 2001 Ivy Rookie of the Year Kate Verde and rookie Lauren May, but First Team All-Ivy outfielder Erin Sweeney is off to a slow start. The pitching staff returns Nicole LePera, who topped the Crimson in the Ivy playoff last year, but loses longtime ace Nicole Zitarelli.

Penn

Penn hasn’t had a .500 Ivy record since 1984 and hasn’t beaten Harvard since 1994, and this year is showing few signs of improvement for the Quakers, who are off to an 11-17 start. Penn was the one team in the league last year not to have a single player earn All-Ivy Honors at any level.

Princeton

The Tigers, the team with the proudest Ivy tradition, have been absent from the league pinnacle since 1996. 2001 Ivy Player of the Year Brie Galicinao is capable of single-handedly beating any team with her arm and her bat.

Yale

The Bulldogs return all three of their starting pitchers from a team that went .500 in the Ivies last season. While the team lost three of its top offensive producers, it still returns All-Ivy third baseman Jesseka Bartholomew who is hitting .384 with four home runs and 20 RBI already this season.

Dartmouth

The Big Green’s pitching staff is one of the deepest in the league. Is the real Chris Quattrochi back? The Big Green junior was the league’s top pitcher as a freshman, but wasn’t even the best pitcher on her staff last season. She’s 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA this year. Freshman Karin Edwardon starts the year 6-0 with a 1.43 ERA.

Columbia

The Lions, coached by Harvard alum Christine Vogt ’94, turned heads last year when pitcher Allison Buehler outdueled the Crimson’s Tiffany Whitton for a win at Harvard. This season, Buehler is back, and Columbia already has wins over Yale and Cornell in nonconference play.