The Verdict is In; Judges Win

After falling behind early, Brandeis scored twice in the top of the ninth inning to defeat the Harvard baseball team, 5-3, in a Greater Boston League (GBL) contest yesterday at Soldiers Field.

The Crimson's record fell to 7-9 overall (3-4 GBL), while the Judges improved their record to 13-9 (2-1 GBL).

After a hit batsman and a single by Mike Wiseman to open the ninth, clean-up hitter Derek Carlson doubled to right-centerfield off Crimson pitcher Zach Hope (2-2), scoring Joe Arena to break the 3-3 tie.

The Judges made the score 5-3 when Wiseman raced home on a ground ball to second base by designated hitter Trevor Bryant.

The two-run ninth for Brandeis capped a five-run comeback in response to the Crimson's three-run second inning.

With the bases loaded and one out in the second frame, Crimson batter Casey Cobb launched a fly ball to centerfield, allowing Co-Captain Frank Morelli to tag up and score.

An errant pick-off attempt allowed Crimson runner Tim Hurley to score the team's second run, and Marcel Durand followed with an RBI single to right to make the score 3-0.

"I was stiff early--my fastball wasn't too good," Brandeis's starting pitcher Mike Elliott said of Harvard's three-run, four-hit inning.

But after the rocky beginning, the junior right-hander settled down, holding Harvard to only three additional hits.

"I went to my other pitches to keep them off balance," Elliott added.

In his complete-game effort, the Brandeis hurler scattered eight hits, struck out eight batters, and walked only two.

Dominance

Meanwhile, Crimson starter Mike Dorrington also pitched impressively, giving up just one run on three hits in his five innings on the mound.

Dorrington also benefitted from some fine defensive support. In the third frame, the Crimson turned an around-the-horn double play, which ended with a good scoop by the first baseman Morelli.

Second baseman Bob Bincarousky also contributed defensively by ranging far to his left a couple of times to throw out runners in the fourth and fifth innings.

Unfortunately for the Crimson, Hope--who relieved Dorrington in the top of the sixth inning--didn't get such fine defensive support.

Facing a 3-1 deficit in the top of the sixth, the Judges scored twice on a hit batter, two consecutive errors, and an infield single.

THE NOTEBOOK: Morelli and Durand collected two hits apiece for the Crimson...Crimson rightfielder Ted Decareau ended a Branders threat in the eighth by throwing out Rick Foresteire, who was trying to score on a basehit by Jon Antopelli...The Crimson hosts Navy and Penn in Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League doubleheaders this weekend.