Harvard Softball Dominates Doubleheader to Win Penn Series

Returning home to Soldier’s Field after two weeks on the road, Harvard softball extended its series win streak with a statement victory over Penn. The Crimson came out strong, with captain Riley Flynn pitching the team to two wins on Saturday, while junior shortstop Sophie Sun opened the weekend with her eighth homer of the season. Although Harvard almost went undefeated, the team fell just short of rallying for a walk-off victory, losing 9-8 on Sunday to go 2-1 across the series.

Harvard 8, Penn 0

The Crimson (18-17-1, 10-5 Ivy) started the weekend firing on all cylinders, shutting down Penn’s offense before getting on base with a walk from freshman left fielder Sheila Forbes. Although the Quakers (16-21, 7-8) nearly escaped the inning with two early outs, they were no match for Sun, who brought home two runs with a homer to left field to establish an early lead.

Despite Harvard’s early edge, both teams struggled to generate offensive momentum through the second and third, as stellar pitching and defense kept the innings short and scoreless. Nevertheless, the Crimson found a way to break through in the bottom of the fourth.

With the count on her side, freshman third baseman Hannah Ziecik got the bats going with a single to left field. Junior designated player Nicolette Hunter followed suit with a left field single of her own, before a single from junior center fielder Audrey Szollosi brought home Ziecik for a run. Senior second baseman Finley Payne then drove a hit to right field for a two-run RBI, extending the Crimson’s lead to 5-0.

While Flynn shut down the Quakers’ scoring chances, Harvard kept the hits coming. A single from Ziecik, followed by walks on Hunter and senior right fielder Lael Ayala, put the Crimson in prime scoring position with the bases loaded. From there, singles from Szollosi and Forbes brought home three runs, securing Harvard an 8-0 run-rule win in just five innings.

Harvard 11, Penn 6

In the second matchup of the day, it was Penn who got ahead first, opening the second inning with a left field home run to take its first lead of the series. Nevertheless, the Crimson responded quickly, with sophomore first baseman Alexa Muller sending a double to right field. A walk by Hunter and a single from Ayala set Harvard up with bases loaded as a walk on Szollosi brought Muller home. A wild pitch then allowed Hunter to score, flipping the momentum in Harvard’s favor with a score of 2-1.

Flynn continued to perform well on the mound, pitching another scoreless inning. Smart base running from Payne then allowed the senior to convert a walk into a run off a left field line drive from sophomore catcher Quinn Salazar-Stewart, further extending Harvard’s lead.

However, the Quakers fought back, responding with a homer to center field and closing down the gap to one. Despite the pressure, the Crimson didn’t relent, with a hard-fought walk followed by two field errors enabling Hunter, Ayala, and Szollosi to make it on base. While Penn nearly escaped the jam with a strikeout and a lineout, Sun couldn’t be stopped, driving an RBI single to bring home a run.

Even with two outs on the board, Harvard’s next five hitters rose to the occasion, with Muller, Ziecik, Hunter, and Ayala driving in runners to score six more runs and extend its lead to 10-2. Penn again managed to sneak a homer off the Crimson, scoring three more runs, but a triple from Payne gave Harvard another point to stop the bleeding.

The Quakers gave it their best effort to make up the six-run deficit, even capitalizing on a fielding error from Muller and quick base running to score another run in the top of the sixth. However, Harvard contained Penn’s offense, shutting down any other scoring attempts in the seventh to take home the 11-6 victory and clinch the series victory.

Harvard 8, Penn 9

With the game moved up in the day due to incoming inclement weather and a sweep on the line, Szollosi got the action started with a bunt and steal to quickly make her way around the bases. Payne soon backed her up with her eighth home run of the season, tying Sun for the most on the team.

In a similar fashion to Saturday’s second game, Penn responded with a homer of its own, scoring another run off a series of singles and walks to tie up the score at two. However, this time the Quakers maintained their momentum, scoring another RBI single and a bases-loaded double to extend their lead to6-2.

The runs just kept coming as the game continued, with the Crimson going on a rally of its own in the bottom of the third. Szollosi and Forbes each opened the inning with a bunt before Payne loaded the bases with a single up the middle. In prime scoring position, hits from Muller, Sun, and Salazar-Stewart brought home three runs for Harvard, closing up the score to 6-5.

Flynn started the fourth inning strong with two quick outs, but a double and two walks gave the Quakers the chance to extend their lead further. A deep left field single slipped under the glove of Forbes, allowing Penn to bring three runners home.

The Crimson came back in the fifth inning, with Sun and Salazar-Stewart capitalizing on a fielding error and a walk to make it on base. From there, Ziecik smashed a homer to center field for three runs, bringing down Penn’s lead to one run.

With just two runs needed to secure the sweep, Harvard continued to fight for the win, shutting down the Quakers’ offense with clean defensive plays. However, despite making it to scoring position in the sixth and seventh innings, Penn managed to hold off the Crimson from rounding the bases, winning 9-8 to close out the series.

Despite losing out to the Quakers in the final game of the weekend, Harvard’s strong performance solidifies its second-place position in the Ivy League. However, the team still has its toughest competition to come, facing off against first-place Princeton at home this upcoming weekend, before taking on Columbia, which is currently in third, just one win below the Crimson.

Harvard will look to fend off the Lions while chasing down the Tigers in the final weeks of Ivy League play as it strives to return to the top of the standings. The Crimson have a lot to play for. The league’s regular season champions earn hosting rights and preferred seeding for the upcoming conference tournament.

Before resuming its campaign for Ivy glory, Harvard will play Stonehill at home on Tuesday, April 21, at 4 p.m. EDT. in its last non-league game of the year.

—Staff writer Sofia Zhang can be reached at [email protected].