No Offense=No Win For Baseball at UNH

Baseball is a game of inches. Unfortunately, the Harvard baseball team was on the wrong side of the ruler Wednesday afternoon, as it fell to the University of New Hampshire, 3-1.

It was a game that Harvard (5-8 overall, 1-3 Ivies) really could have won, but it was the little things that put the Crimson on the wrong end of the scoreboard at Durham, N.H.

For starters, Harvard jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning when junior Bryan Brissette doubled home a run.

Mark Levy drew a walk from the New Hampshire hurler Pete McHugh, giving the Crimson runners on first and second with no outs, but Brissette was picked off. End of big inning.

"We came out looking like we would roll over them," captain Mike Giardi said. "But there were a lot of little things we did wrong."

In the bottom of the first, UNH tied the game, and the Wildcats proceeded to score once in both the second and third innings to provide the final score of 3-1.

Junior Tim Vanesh took the loss as he gave up all three runs in four innings, but he pitched well in bad circumstances.

A constant rain created less than ideal playing conditions up North, and it certainly didn't look like the teams would finish the game when it started.

However, the weather cleared after the sixth inning, and juniors Ben Allen and Lee Mancini and freshman Frank Hogan shut down the Wildcat offense the rest of the way, pitching out of several jams with runners in scoring position and less than two outs.

"Hogan's pitched well for us in some important relief positions," Head Coach Leigh Hogan said. "He and several of our relievers could even become effective as starters."

Only problem was the offense never could restart itself.

"We didn't really hit the ball very well," sophomore Mark Levy said. "They made all the little plays--their pitcher threw strikes, and they made a couple of pick-off plays."

Despite its hitting problems, the Crimson did have opportunities to drive in runs, but there was always a UNH player in the way.

"We haven't scored many runs the last couple of times out," Coach Hogan said. "But I'm not looking at that as being a season-long problem."

Brissette, who was the offensive star for Harvard with all three of the Crimson's hits on the afternoon, lined into a double play in the eighth inning, just one more frustrating play for Harvard.

"Later in the game we started hitting the ball harder," Coach Hogan said. "Unfortunately it was always right at someone."

Jumpstarting its anemic offense will certainly be the Crimson's top priority this weekend as Harvard plays back-to-back double-headers at home against Columbia and Pennsylvania tomorrow and Sunday.

"We need to continue pitching well or even better," Coach Hogan said. "And we need to produce runs."

A simple formula for success which could help the Crimson end its current three-game losing streak and give it the winning inches.