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Harvard lost the fourth game with Princeton yesterday on Holmes Field, after as exciting a contest as is ever seen on the ball field. From start to finish the game was closely contested and abounded with brilliant plays, although the playing was very uncertain and errors were numerous among the Harvard men. The game in many respects was a repetition of the famous sixteeninning game which Princeton won here a few weeks ago, but it differed from the fact that yesterday Princeton held the lead from the start until Harvard tied the score in the sixth inning. Harvard played a magnificent uphill game after Princeton had scored two runs in the first inning, and for eight innings prevented another man from crossing the plate. In the meantime Harvard secured a run in the first inning, and in the sixth earned another run by excellent batting. This was Harvard's opportunity to win the game. Scannell led off with a two-base hit and Burgess advanced him by a sacrifice. Clarkson had two strikes called, but then hit a sharp single to right field and Scannell scored. Haughton followed with another good hit and both runners advanced a base on Rand's sacrifice. A hit would then have won the game, but Stevenson could only hit a grounder to Smith. Again in the seventh inning another excellent chance was lost. Paine and Chandler both hit safely and Dean sacrificed, but neither Scannell nor Burgess could bring them in.
In the tenth inning Princeton won the game through a most remarkable piece of luck. Kelley the first batter hit a grounder to Haughton, and was out. Titus made a hit, but Altman knocked a high fly to Rand. Wilson then hit a swift bounding ball just to one side of Paine and above his head. Paine reached out his hand and partially stopped the ball, but unfortunately it grazed the arm of the umpire, who was standing near. Chandler, who picked up the ball, had plenty of time to put out Titus at second base, but under the rules any ball which strikes the umpire is a safe hit. This play would have ended the inning without a run having been made, and certainly the ball was not deflected in the least or made any more easy to handle. After this Paine made a wild pitch and Smith followed with a very timely single, which brought in two runs.
The chief reason for Harvard's defeat was the ragged fielding which was noticeable throughout the game, and which was plainly caused by nervousness. Most of the errors were made on difficult plays, but several were quite inexcusable and proved very costly. In batting Harvard was distinctly superior to Princeton, but was unfortunate in not bunching hits at the right time. Clarkson deserves a great deal of credit for his excellent work with the stick. Twice he came to bat with a man on third base, and each time he brought in a run, beside making a third hit, which did not affect the score.
The two opposing pitchers are probably the strongest college players who have occupied the box this year, and the contest between them was very close. Paine was more effective than his rival, but did not have particularly good control and was rather erratic in his fielding during the early part of the game. In the first inning he gave two bases on balls and made a wild pitch and a wild throw to first. These errors, with two sacrifice hits, gave Princeton a lead which Harvard could not overcome. From this point until the tenth inning Paine's pitching was faultless. Not a hit was made off him until the eighth inning.
All the infielders played a steady gme, and behind the bat Scannell gave Paine the best of support. His error was a wild throw of a bunt near the plate. The finest play of the game was a running catch by Burgess in deep left field of a long hit by Altman, which looked good for three bases. Rand made an almost equally good catch of a fly which dropped through the branches of the willows. Burgess, however, misjudged, and then muffed another fly, and both he and Clarkson fumbled badly on Smith's hit in the tenth inning.
For Princeton, the playing of the whole team was almost perfect. All the infielders played strongly and made three double plays. Gunster made a brilliant running catch of a foul near the seats.
The weather was perfect and the crowd was exceptionally large. Every seat was filled and a number of people watched the game from the centre field. Princeton scored twice in the first inning on Paine's wildness. For Harvard, Dean was given a base on balls and stole second. Scannell struck out, but Burgess sacrificed and Clarkson's hit gave a run. For the next four innings the playing was uneventful and no one got beyond second base. In the sixth Harvard scored her second run, as has already been described, and should have made some more runs in the seventh. After this only one man reached first base.
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