SPORTS BRIEF: Softball’s Double-Header Against Quinnipiac Postponed

After dropping three of its first five games, the Harvard softball team clicked during its spring break trip, winning eight of nine matchups.

But the Crimson (10-4) will have to wait a few more days to continue that run, as a double-header scheduled for Thursday against Quinnipiac was postponed indefinitely. The contest would have been Harvard’s first of the year at Soldiers Field.

Thanks to the prospect of rough weather conditions over the weekend, the Bobcats were forced to adjust their conference schedule. Now, Quinnipiac will face Mount St. Mary’s on Friday, a day earlier than previously planned, which precluded the team from traveling to Cambridge for the two-game set against the Crimson.

The postponement moves Harvard’s home opener back to March 27, when the squad will take on Bryant at 4 p.m. But first, the Crimson will travel to Bethlehem, Penn., this weekend for four games at the Lehigh Tournament.

After taking the Ivy League title in dominant fashion a year ago, Harvard has looked sharp in its opening 14 contests. Three starters boast batting averages above .400, including sophomore third baseman Kasey Lange. The defending Ivy League Rookie of the Year, Lange has all three Crimson home runs in addition to tallying a team-best 12 RBIs. Her .711 slugging percentage paces Harvard as well.

In the circle, senior ace Rachel Brown has picked hitters apart in the early goings. Averaging 8.45 strikeouts per game, Brown has a miniscule 0.64 ERA to go along with a 6-1 record and seven complete games. Overall, Harvard has a 1.67 team ERA, tops in the Ivy League by 0.79.

The team begins its quest to recapture the Ancient Eight crown on March 30, when it opens Ivy League play against Cornell in a double-header in Ithaca, N.Y.

—Staff writer Robert S. Samuels can be reached at robertsamuels@college.harvard.edu.