Athlete of the Week: Sarah Koppel `02

Harvard softball turned heads at Georgia's Buzz Classic over spring break, surging to a second place finish in a field stacked with nationally ranked

talent.

Junior right fielder Sarah Koppel was the power behind the Crimson's surge.

Koppel whacked five home runs on the trip and knocked in eight runs, earning her Harvard Crimson Athlete of the Week honors.

The Winthrop resident put four out of the park in the Buzz Classic alone. Her first tater was also her most clutch.

The Crimson had lost two in a row to start the competition and was trailing No. 23 Wisconsin, 3-1.Harvard needed a win to stay alive in the tournament.

Koppel hit a sixth-inning, game-tying two-run homer against the Badgers.

Tri-captain Mairead McKendry knocked in the game winner in the extra frame.

"I had watched the Wisconsin pitcher the day before," Koppel said. "She was very good, so I was up there just trying to make contact."

After contact came lift off.

She sent a rocket to centerfield, and knew it was gone from the crack of the bat.

She would hit three more in the tournament, to go along with a double and an RBI single.

Her 6-for-20 performance against stiff national competition paced the Crimson's explosive offense.

"Everyone hit great on the trip," Koppel said. "Tiffany [Whitton] played amazing and hit a few. The freshmen stepped up as well."

Most of Koppel's blasts landed past the left-center field wall. She likes to get ahead in the count and sit on inside pitches that she knows she can drive.

"I'm not up there to hit home runs," Koppel said. "I want to hit the ball hard somewhere."

She struck out only 14 times in 11 at-bats last year, and hit 6 HR.

Koppel's discipline at the plate allows her to work deep into counts. Her 36-inch, 26-ounce bat stays ready to drive inside pitches.

"I don't think I'm just a homerun hitter," Koppel said. "I'd like to think I'm a contact hitter, too."

She has a .324 lifetime average to back up that claim, and her numbers have gotten better every year.

Koppel's production mirrors the strong play of the team as a whole, as the Crimson look forward to Ivy Play with the confidence that the offense can score

runs.

As long as Koppel is in the line-up, those runs seem to come in bunches.