Softball Rides Youth to the Top

It wasn’t another crushing season-ending Red Sox loss.

But on a slightly smaller diamond in Providence, a different devastating loss prompted comments like “maybe next year.” Harvard softball (22-20-1) had lost all remaining chances at an Ivy Championship in 2004 by squandering a lead in both games of its doubleheader against Brown.

It was a microcosm of the season. Harvard had the chances, but in the end, it could not convert.

The 2004 campaign saw the Crimson take an early lead in the Ivy standings, sweeping the first weekend’s doubleheaders against Penn and Princeton. Harvard had to come back in the bottom of the 20th inning of the first game to beat the Tigers, 2-1.

But the success was short-lived as the Crimson went on the road the following weekend where it split with league-leading Cornell and was swept by Columbia.

Harvard kept itself alive in the Ivy race by dominating Yale in the first doubleheader of the weekend. But crucial losses to Brown the following afternoon sealed the Crimson’s fate, making Harvard’s final games with Dartmouth only about pride.

Harvard’s biggest loss from its 2003 squad was Tiffany Whitton, but the Crimson had six talented freshmen waiting to take her place. The entire pitching staff returned, anchored by senior co-captain ace Kara Brotemarkle. Behind the plate, three women competed for the starting nod, including returning sophomore Erin Halpenny and junior transfer Annie Dell’Aria.

With all the returning talent, it didn’t really look like a recipe for a rebuilding year, but the 2003 season had left deep wounds.

But the Crimson climbed back to the top as a major league contender and a force to be reckoned with. And after being so far from a championship last year, close was good enough for this team.

“We wanted to improve upon last year’s performance and reestablish ourselves as a dominant force in the Ivies,” Brotemarkle said. “I think we certainly did that. We ended the season proud of what we had done.”

And unlike last year, there were no regrets as the 2004 season came to a close.

“This team gave me the great reward of walking away after 12 long years of competitive softball with a sense of accomplishment and closure,” Williamson said. “It was truly such a rewarding year.”

The Crimson’s schedule was frontloaded with several difficult road contests. Harvard headed west to Illinois, where it started off a rough 1-3 in the Brechtelsbauer Classic. The Crimson improved to 4-5 in the Bethune Cookman Tournament in Florida.

Harvard spent the first half of Spring Break in Texas where it went 2-3 in the Wells Fargo Classic. Then it returned home, where it lost by one run and tied powerhouse Providence (38-17).

After competing in the George Mason Invitational in Virginia, the Crimson returned home with an even 10-10-1 record. It came closer than ever to beating state-rival UMass, dropping both ends of a doubleheader at home before Ivy play began.

Rounding out its non-conference schedule, Harvard swept Holy Cross, split with Rhode Island and surrendered two to Boston College to end just above .500 with a 22-20-1 record.

Harvard also landed individual honors for several players, highlighted by Brotemarkle’s recognition as Ivy League Pitcher of the Year, the second in Crimson history. She was also named to the second-team all-Northeast Region. Brotemarkle was joined on the first-team All-Ivy by Fritsch at third base and junior pitcher/utility player Lauren Bettinelli. Freshman outfielder Julia Kidder and junior outfielder Lauren Stefanchik received second-team honors, and co-captain second baseman Sara Williamson earned honorable mention.

In her last year of a standout career, Brotemarkle recorded a 10-11 record and an ERA of 1.93. In 138 innings on the mound, she struck out 134 batters, including a career-high 13 against Rhode Island. Her career strikeout total of 406 was the third-most all-time by a Harvard pitcher. Brotemarkle pitched in 11 of the Crimson’s 14 Ivy games, including the 20-inning marathon against the Tigers.

Fritsch—the only freshman on the Ivy first team—received Ivy Rookie of the Week honors twice this season. Her .306 batting average tied her for second on the team with Kidder. She led the team in home runs (five), RBI (26) and slugging percentage (.519).

Bettinelli made the first-team list as a utility player. She hit .264 with a home run, six RBI and five doubles. On the mound, she went 9-8, held opposing batters to a .232 average, struck out 85 and finished with an ERA of 2.28.

Kidder led off for Harvard’s lineup for most of the season and led the team in walks with 14. She racked up five doubles, a triple, nine RBI and crossed the plate seven times.

Stefanchik led the team in stolen bases for the third year in a row. Her 10 stolen bases placed her fourth in the Ivy League. Her batting average of .302 was good for fourth on the Crimson, and her 35 hits were second-highest.

Williamson was one of two players on this year’s roster to appear in all 43 games. She received first-team honors her freshman year and honorable mention in 2002. This year, she hit eight doubles, one home run and 14 RBI with a batting average of .260.

With the loss of Brotemarkle, Harvard aims to focus on pitching in the offseason.

“Our biggest goal will be the developing of the pitching,” head coach Jenny Allard said. “We have a lot of refining and growing and just gaining experience to do.”

And what are the players expecting next season?

“An Ivy League title,” Williamson said. “They now have the tools and drive to accomplish this goal and will only improve.”

“It might sound conceited,” freshman shortstop Lauren Brown said, “but I have never played with such talented people before, and if we put it all together we can be Ivy Champs.”

This year’s team also developed a cohesiveness that has been missing from Harvard in the past. Internal disputes and communication problems that have affected the program in recent years were few and far between this time around.

“I’ve enjoyed coaching this year much more than I did last year,” Allard said. “This year, I love my team.”

—Staff writer Carrie H. Petri can be reached at cpetri@fas.harvard.edu.