Softball Cruises

It's what they have waited for all year long. It's a culmination of 47 hard-fought games and four long months of training.

The ECAC Tournament begins tomorrow afternoon and after two convincing wins yesterday against Dartmouth, the Harvard softball players appear ready for anyone.

In a doubleheader which had been twice rescheduled due to inclement weather, the Crimson was finally able to play out its remaining two regular season games against the Big Green in Hanover, N.H.

"It was a little bit of a pain," said freshman Deborah Abeles about the rescheduling. "One of the good things is that since we had it this late, it prepped us for this weekend."

After a nine-day layoff, the Crimson definitely needed to get the kinks out.

After squeaking by Dartmouth 2-1 in the first contest, the Crimson exploded with an eight-run offensive barrage in the nightcap.

Harvard 2, Dartmouth 1

It's been said a million times over, but when the offense struggles, a team must look to its pitching.

Fortunately for the Crimson, junior Tasha Cupp is always around.

The Crimson played through four innings without the righty standout, posting the game's first run in the top of the fourth.

Abeles crushed a triple to lead off the inning and was quickly sent home by a Melissa Kreuder single to center field.

Dartmouth immediately took charge and evened the contest up in the bottom half of the inning.

But that's when Harvard coach Jenny Allard called in her ace.

Striking out 10 of the next 11 batters, Cupp decimated the Big Green offense, allowing her team to stay even with Big Green.

"Whenever we need to get the big outs [Cupp] does just that," Kreuder said. "To have such a strong pitcher on the mound, it takes pressure off our defense and off our bats when they're tired."

Finally in the top of the seventh, the Crimson bats would find new life and the team would reward Cupp with the game-winning run.

Junior Jenny Franzese led the attack with a single and was moved to third by a Terri Teller single.

Franzese would eventually cross the plate on a fielder's choice.

With one win firmly secured, the Harvard hitters were able to take a collective sigh of relief knowing that the escaped a first game slump.

"It was mainly that we were a little rusty," Kreuder said. "We hadn't played in nine days and it so took a little while to adjust and feel confident."

Unbeknownst to the players, however, the next game would be nothing like the first.

Harvard 8, Dartmouth 0

In a mammoth five run outburst in the second inning, rust was a thing of the past for the Crimson as it stormed in front of the Big Green and never looked back.

Co-captain Melissa Reyen started the rally with a double which drove home two runners. After that, it seemed like a non-stop hit fest.

And for a team that consistently has had trouble stringing hits together, the second inning explosion was a godsend.

"We have been off for over a week so it was just a matter of time before we got things together," Abeles said.

Dartmouth never had a chance and the game ended in the 8-0 blowout.

The Crimson now looks towards tomorrow's first round matchup against Cornell at Fairfield University.

Just a week ago, Harvard swept the Big Red in a two-game series. The players are looking for a little deja vu.

"We can rely on the fact that we beat them a week ago," Kreuder said. "We know what to expect. We just need to come out and play like we played last weekend and then again [against Dartmouth]. Our bats need to attack."

"We have seen before," Abeles agreed. "We know that we can beat these teams."