Young Hurlers Shut Down Penn

In its home opener, the Harvard baseball team split a doubleheader with Penn (8-20, 3-7 Ivy), losing the first game 1-0 in the final inning and winning the second by a 7-0 margin. The Crimson offense struggled to complement the efforts of the team’s two top pitchers, sophomore Shawn Haviland and freshman Adam Cole, who impressed by allowing only one run over 15 innings.

Junior Brendan Byrne and senior Josh Klimkiewicz had solid days at the plate. Byrne went 3-6 during the day, including a eighth-inning double that broke the second game open for the Crimson, and Klimkiewicz tallied three hits and two RBI’s.

HARVARD 7, PENN 0

After being stymied by the Quaker’s Sean Abate in the first game, Harvard’s (10-10-1, 5-1 Ivy) bats thawed in time for Game Two. The Crimson sent eight men to the plate in the first without landing a hit, but scored one run with the help of two hit batsmen, an error, a walk, and a fielder’s choice. Fortunately for the Harvard team, the three men left on base would did not come back to haunt it.

“We had [Penn starter Michael Gibbons] on the ropes,” Harvard coach Joe Walsh said. “I wanted to get into the pen in the first inning, since with two games teams want to stick with their starters longer.”

The Crimson gained some breathing room in the sixth after Klimkiewicz led off the inning with a single. Senior Matt Brunnig—the ambidextrous pitcher-turned designated hitter—moved him to third with a single, and Klimkiewicz scored when Chris Mackey laced a single up the middle.

Byrne’s sacrifice fly helped Harvard grab a 4-0 lead.

Throughout the game, Cole kept the Quaker hitters off balance with a strong fastball, slider, and off-speed pitches. In eight innings of shutout ball, the freshman allowed only four hits while striking out five, solidifying his spot among Harvard’s best hurlers.

“If we can do that every day, I think Coach Walsh will be happy,” Haviland said. “We get to Sunday and we haven’t had to use any of our bullpen, and it gives us a huge advantage.”

The Crimson broke the game open with a three-run eighth. Gibbons left the game after issuing his fifth walk of the day, which put second baseman Taylor Meehan on first. Reliever Kenneth Yoo failed to do much better, in issuing a walk to Mackey. Freshman catcher Andrew Casey dropped a bunt down the first base line that advanced both runners, who came around to score on Byrne’s double down the first base line. Sophomore Matt Vance, playing with an injured shoulder, nailed a triple to right field that brought Byrne home. The seven runs were more than enough support for Cole.

PENN 1, HARVARD 0

In the first game, Haviland and Abate engaged in a pitchers’ duel, quickly mowing down batters and withstanding potential threats. Although the Crimson mounted attacks in the fourth and fifth innings, it could not find the hit it needed to take the lead, and the Quakers ultimately seized their opportunity and the game with one run in the seventh.

With two outs, Penn DH Tony Moses reached base on a single to center and narrowly stole second. Right fielder Michael Gatti walked, putting men on first and second with two outs. Shortstop Scott Graham plated the only run of the game with a single that allowed Moses to score. Gatti rounded second on the play and slid safely into third, only to be tagged out as his hand momentarily left the bag.

“Shawn was amazing,” Cole said. “Tough last inning, and we didn’t do it for him with the at-bats. He pitched awesome though. There’s nothing you can do about it. It’s tough. But next time, we’ll bounce back and get the hits for him. “

The Crimson staged a comeback attempt in the bottom half of the inning, as Byrne lifted a one-out single to left center. Matt Rogers, pinch-hitting for Mackey, bounced a grounder back to Abate, who bobbled the potential double play ball. Abate recovered in time to get Rogers at first, but not before Byrne safely advanced to second and into scoring position. Reliever Doug Brown, one of the Quakers’ mound workhorses, relieved Abate and came in to face Casey. After working a full count, Casey checked his swing on a pitch in the dirt, but did not hold back enough, and was called out to end the game.

“You come out of 15 innings giving up one run, and you feel like you’re going to get two wins out there,” Walsh said. “So it was disappointing. But at the same time, I’ll give the kid [Abate] credit...we might have needed a little help, and they didn’t give us much.”

Abate confused the Crimson hitters all day with his slow-moving fastball and off-speed pitches. Harvard managed only five hits and two walks against the Quaker hurler, leaving six men on base.

—Staff writer Julie R. S. Fogarty can be reached at fogarty2@fas.harvard.edu.