Frosh Now Home Run Queen

With her 17th home run in the Harvard softball team’s 2-0 victory over Dartmouth on Saturday, freshman Lauren Murphy quickly established her place in Ivy League lore by breaking the conference home run record.

Playing primarily in the designated player slot and batting third in the line-up, the rookie’s impact in the Crimson lineup has run deep.

“She’s just stellar at the plate,” head coach Jenny Allard said. “This past week she’s really been focusing on her consistency, especially with her timing and her swing.”

Whatever she’s been doing, it paid off.

Last week Murphy posted unparalleled numbers—.727 batting average, 1.818 slugging percentage, four home runs, and 10 RBIs—in three games.

After a 2-for-3 day at the plate in last Tuesday’s win over Providence, Murphy came out swinging in Thursday’s game against Boston College, to lead Harvard in the 12-9 come-from-behind victory over the Eagles.

Murphy went 5-for-5 on the day with three home runs, eight RBIs, and 15 total bases. Her 15 total bases set a new Ivy League single-game record and the three homers tied the single-game lead—both records falling just one short of the NCAA single-game leaders.

“She got it done by herself,” senior captain Julia Kidder said, about the comeback victory over BC. “It was amazing to watch and it kept us in the game. We knew we had to do everything we could to hold them on their offense.”

Murphy continued her offensive onslaught in the first game in the Dartmouth double-header on Saturday. With senior Lauren Brown on second in the bottom of the fourth, Murphy’s round-tripper put the only runs on the board in the Crimson’s 2-0 triumph over the Big Green.

“Her ability to hit the long ball is really inspiring,” Allard said. “We play and draw a lot of confidence off of that.”

“She goes out there and gets things done,” Kidder added. “If you see someone go out there and get things done, you’re going to want go out there and get things done also. It really motivates our team in a way we’ve never seen before.”

In the second of the twinbill, Murphy came up three times and walked twice—including one intentional walk. Even while getting intentionally walked, Murphy made an indirect contribution, as two pitches got past Dartmouth catcher, Leigha Clarkson, allowing Brown to advance from first around to third—ultimately tagging up on a sacrifice fly from junior Danielle Kerper and tying the game 3-3 in the third.

“A lot of teams have tried to pitch around her,” Allard said. “The hitters behind her are really stepping up. It’s making everybody better.”

The rest of the team combined to go 6-for-15—rallying for the three tying runs in the third—against the Big Green before the game was halted in the bottom of the fifth with the game tied 4-4.

Murphy and the rest of the Harvard squad look to continue their winning streak—currently at nine games—with their last two regular season games, another double-header against Dartmouth this afternoon at Sachem Field in Hanover, NH.

With one win, the Crimson will lock up the Ivy League North Division championship.

“[Murphy’s] impact has affected the team in a number of ways,” Kidder said. “For one, it’s increased our winning percentage.”