Batswomen Bow Twice to Holy Cross

What is to be done?

For Lenin, it was the violent overthrow of the bourgeois capitalist system.

For the Harvard women's softball team, the addition of a little defense and hitting would probably do the trick. And some experience wouldn't hurt either.

The Crimson had another tough day yesterday, dropping a twin bill to Holy Cross in Worcester, 5-4 and 2-0. With the two defeats, the Crimson's overall record now stands at a painful 1-14 (1-3 Ivy League).

Sparrow Hits a Fly

However, the day was not without its bright moments. The Crimson quickly jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning when freshman Nancy Sparrow clubbed a two-run homer.

"Nancy hit exceptionally well today," junior Rachel Donaldson said of the Junior Olympian.

Donaldson was also a key offensive figure in the first game. After the Crusaders had tied the game at 2-2, Donaldson roped a hit to left field with a runner on base. The ball managed to find its way between the legs of the Holy Cross leftfielder, and the Crimson suddenly found itself in a very unfamiliar position--holding a 4-2 lead.

"We normally haven't been ahead," Donaldson said.

It showed.

In the sixth inning, Holy Cross scraped across a run on a walk and a hit off Harvard sophomore starter Julie Fromholz. And in a nightmarish seventh inning, the Crusaders parlayed two hits and two errors into a come-from-behind win.

It was a win the Crimson thought was in the bag. And that seemed to make it all the more frustrating for the young squad.

"We started out strong. We were so psyched to be ahead," Fromholz said. "I think we just lost our concentration."

Losing It

After losing its concentration, the Crimson went out and lost the night-cap. Sparrow pitched a stellar game for the Crimson, holding the Crusaders without any earned runs. But as has been the case in recent games, the team had difficulty at the plate in support of its staff.

"The [second] loss was really demoralizing," Fromholz said. "We were trying to stay in it, but it was tough.

With the disappointing season almost halfway completed, the team has still been able to maintain a positive attitude. And pretty soon, Coach Barry Haskell's squad's game may begin to click. But first, the Crimson's inexperienced players must stop beating themselves.

"It's not that we're bad," said freshman Nancy Johnson, who caught the second game. "We just seem to have one or two bad innings."

THE NOTEBOOK: The Crimson looks to rebound Thursday at Soldiers Field against Hofstra. The defending second-place Ivy team will then face league rival Cornell on Saturday.