Nine Bombs Indians, 15-0 To Clinch League Crown

The old pros on Harvard's baseball team came through in style yesterday. Paul Del Rossi pitched a six hitter, captain Tommy Stephenson picked up five hits and the Crimson annihilated Dartmouth, 15-0, to clinch the Eastern League championship.

The Crimson has won games by big margins before, but never one like this. Dartmouth, a respected Eastern power, went into the game with a 4-2 record and a chance to beat Harvard out of the league title.

The win sealed the Crimson's first championship since 1958 and left only Saturday's Yale game between the team and an undefeated Eastern League season. Only two clubs in the league's 35-year history have gone through a full season without a defeat.

Harvard is a good bet to join them, since Del Rossi will pitch again Saturday. Today's win made him 7-1 on the season, 5-0 in league play. In Del's three years at Harvard, Crimson baseball teams have won 54 baseball games; he has accounted for 27 of those wins, against just three losses.

The lefthander had lots of help yesterday. It started in the second inning when Stephenson singled for the first hit off Indian ace Ted Friel, who went into the game with a 1.39 earned run avarage. Gary Miller sacrificed Stephenson to second and John Dockery scored him with a single. Dockery promptly stole second, his 15th theft this year.

Three Mere

Bob St. George singled him in for the second run. Del Rossi got a single, Skip Falcone walked and George Neville doubled in two more to make it 4-0.

Pete Barber came in to pitch for Dartmouth in the fifth, Neville greated him with a triple and Stephenson smashed the longest home run of the season, a line job that landed well back of the 360-foot sign in deep right.

Neville got his second triple and third hit in the seventh off Bob McArthur, whom Dartmouth press releases call a "control artist" (that means he doesn't have a fast ball). Mike Patrick's fly to right scored Neville, but the sophomore centerfielder wrenched his knee sliding home and had to leave the game.

Creelman Yields Eight

McArthur departed in favor of Scott Creelman as the eighth started; Creelman stayed around while eight runs trooped in. After Dockery and St. George singled, Del Rossi whacked a triple to right, bringing in runs nine and ten. Al Liebgott walked, and Stephenson, Miller, and Tom Bilodleau all singled. Dockery, up for the second time in the inning, got his second hit, a double that scored Milter and moved Bilodeau to third.

St. George singled in two more, making it 14-0; Del Rossi walked and Falcone reached on an infield error, as the fifteenth run crossed the plate.

Del Rossi never was in serious trouble until it was too late to matter. He breezed through the first six innings, giving up just one hit, and wound up with a six-hitter. He fanned six and walked two.

In the ninth, the Indians rose up long enough to load the bases with two outs, but the 15 run deficit looked just a bit too big to overcome. It was.