SEASON RECAP: Crimson Splits Every Ivy Weekend, Misses ILCS

Harvard baseball took its season down to the wire with its last day of conference competition determining final positioning, but crucial losses ultimately kept it out of postseason play.

“Any time you get a chance on that last day, you’ve got to feel good about that,” Crimson coach Joe Walsh said. “I wish we could have had more games to see how it would have ended up.”

The squad ended the season with a 17-26 record, going 10-10 in Ivy League play. Harvard’s overall winning percentage was an improvement from last year’s mark of .317, while its conference record remained the same.

“As a whole, I think the season was an improvement from the last few years,” junior captain Tyler Albright said. “Baseball is all about progress, so this season was good for us.”

The Crimson’s pitchers, touted as one of the team’s biggest strengths at the beginning of the season, proved their skill early and produced strong, if not consistent, defensive numbers.

“Our pitching was better than the ERAs show, but we struggled with inconsistency,” Walsh said. “Sometimes you go out there and you’ve got it, and then the next day you don’t.”

Harvard’s hurlers were led by sophomore southpaw Brent Suter, who posted an Ivy-best 4-0 record and 33 strikeouts in 33.0 innings, allowed only seven walks, and was nearly flawless against left-handed batters.

“Brent really left it all out on the field,” Albright said. “We’re excited to have him returning, because we know he’ll be solid for us in the future.”

Junior Eric Eadington also contributed to the Crimson’s efforts on the mound with four wins after returning from an arm injury that put an early end to his season last year.

Underclassman pitchers such as freshmen Andrew Ferreira and Joey Novak and sophomores Connor Hulse, Will Keuper, Jonah Klees, and Marcus Way all had strong appearances on the mound as well.

“Many of the young guys did great, but they have to learn to hold on a little better,” Walsh said. “They kept getting behind in the count, and we just can’t do that in close games.”

Harvard’s young pitching staff was able to gain important experience throughout the season, and it provides promise for future years.

“A lot of them got to see a lot of game time this year and were able to really see how important every single game is,” Albright said.

Despite recording its best start in three years, the Crimson struggled early on the road, at one point dropping eight games in a row.

As Harvard returned to the Northeast, it picked up some close wins before opening conference play against Princeton.

The Crimson went 1-1 in its doubleheader against the Tigers and continued the trend, splitting matchups against five of its seven Ancient Eight opponents.

Despite the constant splits, Harvard’s contention for a spot in the Ivy League Championship series came down to its final four-game series against Dartmouth. The Crimson swept the Big Green at O’Donnell Field in the first twinbill with strong pitching by Eadington and Suter and powerful hitting by the majority of the lineup.

But despite continued success at bat, Harvard failed to put all of the pieces together the next day in Hanover, N.H., and its opponent clinched the division title again.

“We took the Ivy League down to that last day against Dartmouth, and if we gotten those two more wins we would have won our side,” Albright said. “We had really started to hit well at the end.”

Sophomores Jeff Reynolds and Way and freshman Kyle Larrow emerged as offensive powerhouses for the Crimson, while juniors Albright, Dillon O’Neill, and Sean O’Hara maintained consistent excellence at the plate.

“O’Hara had a solid season as always, and a lot of our success is a tribute to Albright and his leadership,” Walsh said.

One of only three seniors on the team, Dan Zailskas also provided steady hitting all season along with a solid presence at first base throughout his career.

“He’s one of those guys that likes to go all out, and even with an injured hamstring he had a great season offensively and defensively,” Walsh said.

Fellow fourth-years were also limited by injuries, but returned to help Harvard late in the season.

Chris Rouches overcame a broken hand to contribute an .833 average with runners in scoring position, while Jonathan Strangio battled what could have been a career-ending injury to throw over three innings of one-run relief in the last game of the season.

“We of course wanted to be able to use them more, and we’ll miss all of them,” Albright said of the seniors.

But with most of the Crimson’s lineup returning next year, the team’s outlook is optimistic.

“I wish it were next season already,” Walsh said.

—Staff writer Madeleine Smith can be reached at smith21@college.harvard.edu.