Brown Clips Stahlers 1-0 in Pitchers' Battle

An infield error in a tight situation meant the run that gave Brown a 1-0 decision over hard-luck Warren "Moe" Berg in last Wednesday's tilt at Soldiers Field. It was a blazing pitchers' duel all the way, with the Bruins' veteran right hander Nichols allowing the Crimson only five hits, while Berg let the Brown team down with seven singles. Although the Crimson mounds man racked up seven strikeouts, Nichols' superior support from a hustling Bruin aggregation that made only one error, gave him the edge.

Brown's unearned marker came in the third, the inning which saw the beginning and end of pitcher Berg's troubles. With one man out and runners on first and second by way of successive singles, McKone, Bruin centerfielder, slashed a hot grounder to Jim Gallagher's left. The Crimson third-sacker went over in a hurry but missed contact as the ball went through into left field.

Plate Throws Late

Vince Leahy, patrolling the left garden, recovered cleanly, but his throw in to the plate failed to cut down the Bruin base runner, who was running with the pitch. Floyd Stahl's infield quickly recovered its composure and slammed the gate on further scoring as Berg coaxed the next batter to bang into a lightning-like Harvey-to-Drake-to-Fitz double play. But the stallion had fled the stall, as subsequent happenings proved.

That solitary score, so lightly donated and accepted when the game was young, loomed larger and larger as the opposing hurlers proceeded to flaunt their wares to the grief of the timber wielders of both lineups. Neither before nor after the fatal third was either team able to put together two hits. During the remaining six frames Berg, displaying his customary good control, set the Brown men down with three unspectacular hits. But his teammates, over-anxious and inclined to fish for bad balls, could do nothing with Nichols' crafty spot-pitching.

Fidler Prevents Score

The Crimson's biggest threat was squelched by the nimble antics of Brown's gargantuan catcher, Fidler, who added this insult to the injury already done when he carried the game-winning tally over the plate in the third round.

With two away in the seventh, Brooks Heath, Crimson centerfielder who had replaced Ned Fitzgibbons in the fifth, clouted a long drive to left which escaped the Bruin fielder for a triple. Heath hesitated rounding third, allowing the outfielder to relay the ball in to the third baseman, whose hurried throw to the plate was wild. Fidler, on his knees a quarter of the way down the third base line lunged at the ball, and in one motion grabbed it and put it on Heath, who was attempting to hook-slide around him, for the out that proved to be the crusher.

This afternoon the team will go against the Boston Hellenics, with Sophomore Irv Rudman as Coach Stahl's mound choice. Ned Fitzgibbons will return to his centerfield post, in the hope that he will snap out of the slump which has affected his game so noticeably of late. Also scheduled are games with Fort Banks next Wednesday, and tentative dates with the Camp Devens team and the Lincoln Mohawks on Friday and Saturday. Either Joe Phelan or Moe Berg will hurl against the Fort Banks team.

The Harvard summary:

  ab  r  h  po  a  eLeahy, lf  4  0  0  1  0  0Fitz, 1b  3  0  1  9  1  0Harvey, 2b  4  0  1  2  2  0Fitzgibbons, cf  2  0  0  1  0  0Heath  1  0  1  0  0  1Barnes, rf  3  0  0  1  0  0Gallagher, 3b  3  0  1  2  5  1Drake, ss  3  0  1  3  3  1Hamlen, c  2  0  0  7  0  0Berg, p  3  0  0  1  3  0Totals  28  0  5  27  14