Non-Conference Finale Goes Awry

In a blustery battle of cross-town rivals, the Harvard softball team (22-21, 13-3 Ivy) fell to Boston University (27-18, 10-2 America East) yesterday, 4-1, at Soldiers Field in the Crimson’s final non-conference matchup of the regular season.

The Terriers came out strong against Harvard, scoring all four of their runs in first three innings.

The Crimson experienced a game-long scoring drought, which, though interrupted briefly by a homer from sophomore first baseman Whitney Shaw in the fourth inning, made it impossible for Harvard to recover from the early deficit.

“Their pitchers really silenced our bats,” Crimson coach Jenny Allard said. “We didn’t start battling at the plate until the fourth inning, and we gave some at-bats away.”

In the fourth inning, an impressive at-bat by co-captain Melissa Schellberg, who is also a Crimson editor, helped the team gain momentum.

After Schellberg was tagged out at first on a nice play by the Terriers’ shortstop, Shaw slammed one over the fence for the only score on the day.

Freshman Jess Ferri singled to get on base immediately following Shaw’s home run. Senior outfielder Jen Francis hit a double, putting runners on second and third for the Crimson, but Harvard was unable to capitalize further.

“We really started to come together and battle harder [in the fourth],” Allard said. “We need to do that from the first inning.”

Unfortunately for the Crimson, the scoring did not continue, as Shaw’s home run was the last run scored by either team in the seven-inning matchup.

Harvard had few scoring chances in the last portion of the game, as BU’s pitching staff held the Crimson to no hits and only 10 batters in the last three innings.

Despite the loss, pitching was a strong point for Harvard.

Sophomore pitcher Julia Moore got the Crimson off to a good start, allowing no hits in the first inning.

Co-captain Margaux Black entered the game for Harvard in the fourth inning and shut down the Terrier offense, allowing just two hits and no runs in the remainder of the game.

“I’m a ground-ball pitcher, and they hit a lot of ground balls today,” Black said. “I had our defense backing me up…[It would be nice] to see a little more offense, but I think our defense played great.”

The Terriers scored their first run in the second inning, as sophomore shortstop Emily Roesch crossed home plate on a single from freshman pitcher Whitney Tuthill.

Trouble for the Crimson came in the third inning, as a big hit by Roesch sent home BU sophomore second baseman Erica Casacci and senior first baseman Rachel Hebert.

The Terriers stretched their lead to 4-0 due to a fielding error on a Tuthill pop-up that sent senior third baseman Rachel Moeller home.

“BU’s a good hitting team,” Allard said. “They scored a couple of runs, and we had some missed plays in the third inning that gave them a couple of runs too.”

The rivalry between BU and Harvard is a longstanding tradition, with the squads meeting twice a season each year.

“We have a great rapport with [BU],” Allard said. “They’re a good hitting ballclub; they’ve always had great pitching and good defense.”

Both the Terriers and the Crimson sit atop the standings in their respective conferences.

Harvard will take on Dartmouth this weekend in a doubleheader to decide the winner of the Ivy League North Division, and the team that will advance to the Ivy League Championship Series.

The Terriers lead the America East Conference, one game ahead of their next opponent, Maine.

“I think they’re a really solid club,” Allard said. “I’m glad that they’re our neighbors and we get to play them a lot, because they make us better.”