Batsmen Bedevil Holy Cross

"No," head Harvard baseball coach Alex Nahigian said after yesterday's rock 'em, sock 'em 12-11 victory at Holy Cross. "I wouldn't say we were lucky."

Maybe it wasn't luck, then, but merely profound good fortune that helped the Crimson overcome an 8-2 deficit and eight unearned Crusader runs.

And maybe it was just Nahigian's coaching intuition that made him go to senior reliever John Sorich for the first time since the Florida trip, and then watch the veteran turn in his finest performance in a long time.

Sorich took over for Greg Brown (who had relieved starter Cecil Coxwith one out in the top of the first) with nobody out and two on in the second. He proceeded to allow just three hits and no earned runs over the next eight innings.

"It's been a long time coming," an obviously ecstatic Sorich said after the final out. "That was the first time I've pitched in over three weeks, and my arm felt so live out there I didn't think I could get it over the plate."

Sorich's solid performance couldn't have come at a better time, with the Crimson struggling after a 1-3 Eastern League weekend and having to play catch-up ball all afternoon. Trailing 11-9 in the top of the ninth, the Crimson needed some offensive fireworks as well, and got them from Ed Farrell and Bruce Weller. The Harvard first baseman powered a solo homer over the right field fence to lead off the inning, and Weller drove the Crimson ahead with a one-out, two-run double into the gap in left center.

If Sorich had a problem yesterday afternoon, it was control. The southpaw gave up six walks in his eight-inning stint but managed to keep any of them from scorng. In the eighth, with one out and a man on first. Sorich used a nitty pick-off move to catch Crusader John Gross leaning toward second.

The Crimson hurler shared his control problems with a quarter of Crusader pitchers--Ric Burgess, Bill Pflum, Jeff Goddard, and Jim O'Connor--who combined for a total of 12 walks. When they managed to get the ball over the plate, Crimson batters teed off, with Vinnie Martelli and Farrell belting home runs.

Martelli's shot came in the first, with lead-off hitter Paul Scheper on second, and boosted the Crimson to an early 2-0 advantage. The lead didn't last long as the Crusaders wasted Cox in his first Harvard start. The freshman gave up a walk and three straight singles before leaving the game and was charged with the first five Holy Cross runs.

Holy Cross added three more in the second, and took advantage of Harvard fielding errors to notch a run in the fourth and two more in the sixth. The Harvard comeback started in the third, as a two-run Gaylord Lyman single paced a five-run rally.

In the top of the sixth, with the Crusaders leading 9-7, freshman shortstop Tony DiCesare rapped a single to center, scoring Martelli and Brad Bauer, both of whom had connected for solid base hits. DiCesare just about made up for a horrendous three-error day in the field with a two-for-four performance at the plate.

Two more Holy Cross runs in the bottom of the sixth erased the Crimson recovery and set up Weller's ninth-inning heroics. at Worceester Mass. Harvard 12  ab  r  h  bi Schaper 11  3  2  1  1 Weller cf  5  1  2  2 Bauer 3b  5  1  1  0 Maetellic c  6  2  2  2 DiCesere ss  3  1  2  2 Chicarello dh  2  1  1  0 Farrell 1b  4  2  1  2 Schindler rf  2  2  1  1 Lyman 2b  4  0  1  2 Totals  34  12  12  12 Holy Cross 11  ab  r  h  bl Daigneeuit rf  6  1  0  0 Quinaian cl  4  2  0  0 Vest 1f  5  3  0  1 Stenhouse c  4  2  1  0 Scannell 3b  4  2  3  1 Casagrande dh  4  1  1  3 Cox 1b  5  0  0  1 Gross ss    3  0  1  1 Irzyk 2b  4  0  2  1 Totals  30  11  6  8

E-DiCesare (3), Bauer. LOB-Harvard, Holy Cross 10. 2B-Weller, Martall, DiCesare HR-Martell, Farrell.   1P  H  R  ER  BB  SO Cox  1/2  3  5  1  1  0 Brown  1/2  2  2  2  2  0 Sonch(W)  8  3  4  0  6  3 Burgees  21/2  7  7  6  5  1 Plum  21/2  2  2  2  2  1 Goddard  3  1  2  2  3  0 O Connor (L)  1  2  1  1  2  0 Wp-Brown, Serich, PS-Mortolli (2)

E-DiCesare (3), Bauer. LOB-Harvard, Holy Cross 10. 2B-Weller, Martall, DiCesare HR-Martell, Farrell.   1P  H  R  ER  BB  SO Cox  1/2  3  5  1  1  0 Brown  1/2  2  2  2  2  0 Sonch(W)  8  3  4  0  6  3 Burgees  21/2  7  7  6  5  1 Plum  21/2  2  2  2  2  1 Goddard  3  1  2  2  3  0 O Connor (L)  1  2  1  1  2  0 Wp-Brown, Serich, PS-Mortolli (2)