Batsmen Become Homer Happy

Facing its second deficit of the day, the Harvard baseball team rallied for five runs in the seventh inning yesterday to overcome Providence College, 7-5, in Providence, R.I.

The Crimson, trailing 4-2, ripped three home runs in the inning--including a two-run shot by right fielder Chris McAndrews--to break a 4-4 tie.

Harvard remains undefeated at 4-0 overall. Providence, a member of the Big East, drops to 10-11 overall.

Perhaps the Crimson need not worry about the absence of Elliott Rivera, Scott Vierra, Jay McNamara and Mickey Maspons, last year's seniors who accounted for half of the squad's home run total. With the three round-trippers off Friar pitching yesterday, Harvard has raised its home run total to five after only four games.

The non-league contest not only answered the question of team power but also the speculation on pitcher Mike Presz, who threw just 8-2/3 innings in 1985 before suffering an arm injury.

Yesterday against Providence, Presz hurled four innings, giving up two runs (only one of them earned) on four hits.

"My arm felt really good today," the junior said.

"Right now, I know I'm better than I was in freshman year," Presz added, referring to a campaign in which he went 7-0. "I have a slider and a change-up now--I'm more developed.

Presz's only big jam yesterday came in the third inning, when, with Providence already ahead 1-0, an error, a walk and a single loaded the bases with just one out.

The Friars subsequently upped their lead to 2-0 when Presz hit P.C. batter Roger Haggerty, allowing Mark lannuccilli to walk home from third base.

Presz experienced more control problems by throwing a wild pitch to Ed Walsh, but when Joe Zanca tried to score on the play, catcher Frank Morelli threw to Presz for the tag in time. Morelli also threw out would-be Friar base-stealers in the second and sixth innings.

"The big play was getting that guy [Zanca] at home," Presz said. "They only got one run out of that inning."

Presz, who hadn't pitched since the team's trip to Florida over spring break, left after four innings. Doug Sutton, who looked impressive in his start last week against Tufts, entered in relief against the Friars.

Sutton surrendered two runs in the sixth, although neither was earned because of two Harvard errors. In the seventh he watched Jerry Carroll take him deep to right field for Providence's second homer of the day, but he shut down the Friars over the next two innings.

Carroll's shot was the fifth and final homer for the day--but the most important dingers came in Harvard's half of the seventh, which it entered down by two runs.

The Crimson had found itself in a hole earlier, though, when it had to score twice in the fourth to tie the contest at two runs apiece.

Morelli and third baseman Paul Rooney cracked RBI singles, scoring Jim DePalo and McAndrews--who had pulled a double steal to get into scoring position.

After Providence's two additional runs in the sixth, the Crimson had to climb out of another pit.

And no better time than the seventh inning, because the Crimson has managed to score in that frame in every game thus far. Yesterday, it shattered Friar pitching with half of its twelve hits in the seventh; 11 of its 39 runs in the four games this season have come in the seventh.

On a 3-2 count, the left-handed Vallone--facing southpaw Jeff Rogers--cut the Friars' lead to one run with a 325-ft. solo shot to right field.

Two batters later, DePalo singled in Bob Kay, who--in keeping with the Crimson's obsession with speed--stole both second and third bases.

McAndrews followed with a two-run homer to left.

"He [Rogers] came in with a high fastball," McAndrews said. "I think he wanted it in on me, but he threw it over the plate."

Shortstop Mike Pakalnis provided the third of three homers with a rip to dead center off new pitcher Tony Noviello, making the score 7-4.

The NOTEBOOK: The Crimson stole five bases yesterday--DePalo (2), Kay (2), and McAndrews (1)...Harvard hit-and-runs kept the Crimson from grounding into two double-plays...Harvard Coach Alex Nahigian coached the Friars from 1960-1978...Harvard hosts Northeastern in a doubleheader today, with starting time at Soldiers Field scheduled for 1 p.m....The squad travels to Yale and Brown