Batsmen Split Twinbill Against Boston College

When the Harvard baseball team halved its twin bill with Boston College yesterday at Soldiers Field, the Crimson had plenty of mixed results to go around.

Ask Crimson Captain Dan McConaghy for the bad news first. In the opener, with two outs in the bottom of the seventh and the Eagles ahead, 5-3, the Harvard centerfielder strode to the plate, representing the tying run. He struck out on a Doug MacNeil breaking ball, stranding Pat Sullivan on second base to end the game.

McConaghy's good news came in extra innings of the second game. Hitting over 400 coming into the doubleheader, he had managed only 1-for-6 for the day. With one out in the eighth and the bases empty, the Crimson outfielder had a chance to shed his unaccustomed goat role.

McConaghy worked the count to 3-and-2 against Eagle reliever Brian Decelles. Decelles then challenged him with a fastball, and he smacked it over the rightfield fence to give the Crimson (3-5-1) a 1-0 victory.

"I was looking to go up the middle or into the alleys," McConaghy said. "If I hadn't done it, somebody else would have come through."

Crimson starter Mike Dorrington can relate to McConaghy's sudden reversal of fortune, losing his no-hitter and chalking up the loss in the space of four batters.

Dorrington breezed through the first four innings, facing the minimum 12 batters without allowing a hit. But after walking the leadoff hitter in the fifth, the junior right-hander dished up a mammoth home run to Eagle first baseman Lance Wallin, spoiling his shutout and knotting the score at 2-2.

B.C. catcher Kevin Connelly (who formed an all-Connelly battery with unrelated Eagle starter Dan Connelly) then flied deep to right. When Dorrington walked Lance Giroux, Crimson Coach Alex Nahigian decided to replace him with freshman righty Todd Forman. One out later, Bryan McGourthy topped a routine ground ball to second, and it appeared as though Forman was out of the inning.

But Crimson second sacker Casey Cobb threw the ball away, and Giroux came around to score. Since Giroux was Dorrington's responsibility, and Harvard never again tied the score, the Crimson starter was saddled with the loss.

Forman's day had its ups and downs as well, and Greg Ubert was in the same boat. In the very next inning, Forman walked two of three batters, prompting Nahigian to yank him in favor of Ubert. The senior righthander struck out Kevin Connelly, but then served up a triple to Giroux, scoring both of Forman's walk recipients for a 5-2 Crimson deficit.

But in the second game, Forman and Ubert hit their stride. Ubert opened for Harvard, matching Eagle starter Dave Dawson's goose eggs for four innings of one-hit ball. John Biotti followed suit in the fifth, but after allowing a leadoff single, Nahigian called on Forman once more.

After an infield error and a single to left, Forman found himself with the bases loaded, nobody out and Wallin, the Eagles' top slugger, up at bat.

"I really wanted to redeem myself for those walks in the first game," Forman said. "They really turned the game around. I didn't want to walk anyone, so I tried to bear down, get them to hit some ground balls and just throw strikes."

He bore down, forcing Wallin to pop up to third. He got Connelly to hit a ground ball for an out at the plate. And then he threw strikes--three of them past Eagle outfielder Mike Kopfler to escape from the jam.

Forman and Dawson battled through a scoreless seventh, aided by circus catches by centerfielders McConaghy for the Crimson and Eddie Looney for Boston College. But after Forman set the side down in order, Eagle Coach Moe Maloney was forced to turn to his bullpen, setting the stage for McConaghy's game-breaking round-tripper, his second of the season.

After the game, Nahigian chimed in with some more mixed emotions.

"I'm happy with the win," Nahigian said. "That was a well-played, extra-inning college game. Of course, we had hoped to win both."

McConaghy predicted a strong EIBL finish for his Crimson squad.

"We've been getting the good pitching and defense," the senior captain said. "We couldn't get the one key hit in the first game, but we know our offense will take care of itself."