Softball Drops Two; Ivy Opener Saturday

The doubleheader sweep. Not exactly what a team wants when it's on the wrong end of the broom, especially when that team is Harvard and it is preparing for its Ivy opener against League-leading Princeton.

But against the stiff competition of nationally-ranked Boston University, yesterday's 6-3 and 3-1 losses might be an exception.

"We've played really well," senior captain Nancy Johnson said. "Our record doesn't reflect how well we've played. We've played really strong competition."

Junior Jana Meader started on the mound for the Crimson (8-14 overall, 0-0 Ivy) in the first game and allowed four runs in 3 1/3 innings. Freshman Rachel Salzman came on in relief and gave up two runs in 2 2/3 innings.

The Crimson mustered only three hits, although two were home runs. Sophomore shortstop Amy Reinhard (1-for-3) got Harvard on the board with a solo shot leading off the top of the fifth.

Freshman third baseman Katie Lee provided the rest of the Crimson's offense in the sixth. After junior outfielder Cheryl Sadow singled, Lee drove her in with Harvard's second blast of the game--a drive to left centerfield.

"It was either a home run or a single today," Johnson said. "We're hitting and we never have before--not consistently and well. Our weakness is that our top three pitchers have all been converted from other positions. Liz [Walker] only pitched five games for us last year and she has already pitched 100 innings [this year]."

In the second game, Walker started for the Crimson and went the distance, yielding three runs in six innings.

Lee continued her power surge with her second home run of the afternoon, this time a solo shot. Freshman catcher Sara Cushman also contributed, going 2-for-3.

"We just have to keep playing together," Johnson said. "We have flashes of brilliance. We just have to get ready to play mentally this weekend against Princeton and Cornell."

The New Murderer's Row: That's what Ivy opponents may be wondering as Harvard heads into its Ivy opener with three of the six leaders in overall batting average. Senior infielder Nicole Desharnais is on top, hitting. 500 through 18 games.

Lee holds fourth place with a .404 average. She has 23 hits and 16 runs to place fifth overall in each category.

Reinhard is sixth in batting, hitting at a .373 clip. Reinhard places third in doubles with six, second in stolen bases with nine and first in RBI's with 22.

The Ivy League in Review: Princeton is first out of the gate with a 4-0 start and is currently in the midst of an 8-2 run with a five-game winning streak, Its 21-9 overall mark, helped considerably by a 7-1 week, also leads the Ivies.

Pennsylvania is on the way up. After two losses to start the season, the Quakers have won two straight to even their Ivy record. Despite a 7-3 streak, the Quakers are still looking to even their overall record.

And Yale is on the way down. After two quick wins, the Elis are in the midst of the first mini-slump of their season with straight two losses. With a 7-3 run of their own, Yale is keeping just above .500 overall with an 11-10 mark.

Brown has yet to play in Ivy competition, but the Bears are struggling with one win in their last 10 tries in non-league action.

Cornell hasn't fared much better with a 0-4 Ivy record and 5-14 overall mark. The Big Red is fighting a nine-game losing streak.

Individual Ivy Marks: The Tigers won all the raves this week with their strong start.

Junior shortstop Jen Babik was named Player of the Week. She went 12-for-25 for the week with a .480 batting average.

Senior pitcher Karen Drill was named Pitcher of the Week for the second time in three weeks. She had four of the Tigers' seven wins this week, highlighted by her first no-hitter against Yale.

Drill had a 0.52 ERA, allowing two earned runs in 27 innings while striking out 25. With three straight shutouts, Drill moved her season total to six, to go along with 14 complete games in 15 starts.

Freshman Mandy Pfeiffer was named Rookie of the Week. She went 11-for-24 with five doubles and seven RBI's in eight games.