After Harvard pitcher Todd Forman struck out Holy Cross designated hitter Dave Markham in the top of the ninth yesterday at Soldiers Field, everyone was ready to go home.

Except for the Crusaders.

With the Crimson leading 2-1 with two outs and no one on base, Holy Cross exploded for a six-hit, five-run rally to take a 6-2 lead.

Harvard closed the gap to two runs in the bottom of the inning, but Crusader hurler Dave Leonard got Aron Allen to pop up with the bases loaded, and Holy Cross (4-10) held on for a 6-4 victory.

By striking out pinch-hitter Gerry Bochese in the top of the ninth, Forman--who had pitched scoreless ball since entering the game in the fifth inning--brought Harvard (4-6-1) one out away from victory.

But the roof caved in, as the Crusaders tallied four singles, a double and a triple en route to a 6-2 lead.

After singles by Stefvan Drezek and Todd Dextradeur, Brian McMillin ripped a Forman pitch past the shortstop and into left field, driving in Drezek to tie the score at two runs apiece.

In the next at-bat Doug Demeo broke the tie by lofting a Texas Leaguer into no-man's land between Harvard second baseman Casey Cobb and rightfielder Ted Decareau. Both Dextradeur and McMillin came around to score on the bloop hit, making it 4-2, Holy Cross.

Last Hope

Harvard Coach Alex Nahigian called on righthander Zach Hope to nail the third out, but a Tim Rogers single followed by a Tom Dutzer three-base hit cushioned the Crusader lead.

"It's frustrating because it wasn't as if [the Crusaders] were hitting line drives," said Harvard centerfielder and Captain Dan McConaghy, referring in part to Demeo's fly ball which broke the tie.

"We've lost a couple of games like this," said Holy Cross Coach Jack Whalen, pointing out several one-run losses this season. "We're pleased that our people can come through like they did today. It was a good win for us."

In the bottom of the ninth the Crimson responded with a rally of its own, but the four-run deficit turned out to be too great to overcome.

"They scored five runs in the top of the ninth," McConaghy said, "so there's no reason why we couldn't do the same".

Harvard loaded the bases against Crusader pitcher Kevin Ryan with a walk to Rich Renninger and singles by designated hitter Tom Konjoyan and pinch-hitter Pat Sullivan.

After Leonard's entrance, Crimson batter Dave O'Connell hit into a fielder's choice--good for one run.

Marcel Durand, who already had tallied two hits on the day, followed by doubling in Konjoyan to make it 6-4.

Brick Wall

The rally went no further, though, as Leonard struck out Tim Hurley, issued an intentional walk to McConaghy to load the bases, and retired Allen to end the game.

Greg Ubert started on the mound for the Crimson, but went only four innings because he is due to pitch on Sunday in Harvard's first weekend of league competition. In his stint he gave up only two hits and one run, which was unearned.

Ubert was replaced by the freshman Forman, who managed to keep the Crusader bats quiet until the ninth inning.

"[Forman] has good control and good poise," Nahigian said. "He's strong inside, and challenges the hitters."

No Gaps

Meanwhile, Crusader starter Dan Sweeney didn't allow a Harvard runner to reach second base until the sixth inning.

Harvard batters hit the ball well, but couldn't find the gaps in the Crusader defense.

In the sixth frame the Crimson finally reached Sweeney for two runs to take a 2-1 lead. Durand opened with a single, stole second, and scored on a single by McConaghy.

Allen followed with a double to deep left field, scoring McConaghy.

"What gets to me is that their first pitcher [Sweeney] had nothing, and we only scored two runs [off Sweeney]," McConaghy said.

THE NOTEBOOK: Durand went 3-for-5 and McConaghy collected two hits in four at-bats...The Crusaders put their lead-off hitter on base in four of the first six innings...After Dutzer's sacrifice fly for the first out of the game, Harvard pitching held Holy Cross scoreless for eight and one-third innings...Both the Crimson and the Crusaders collected 11 hits...Ninth-inning action included seven runs and nine hits between the two teams...The Crimson will open its Eastern Intercollegiate Baseball League season this weekend at Soldiers Field, with a doubleheader against Brown at noon Saturday and another twin bill at noon Sunday versus Yale.