Jenkins advanced to second on a slow grounderto short, which sophomore Deborah Abeles convertedinto a 6-3 fielder's choice. Cupp issued a walk tosenior Allison Egbert and, with two out and twoon, sophomore Sara Thomas barely caught a piece ofa pitch and blooped it over second and intocenterfield. As Jenkins was waved around third,Franzese came charging in and fired a strike tothe plate ahead of Jenkins. But Teller wasoff-balance and could not bring the tag around intime; Thomas took second base on the throw.

Holy Cross sophomore Briana Crane was the nextbatter, and she dropped another Texas Leaguer intoshallow right-field past LaSovage's outstretchedglove. Egbert scored easily from third, and Thomasslid into third just ahead of junior Karen Rice'sthrow, which allowed Crane to take second.

The damage might have been worse, but with thescore 3-2 and runners at second and third, Cuppblew a pitch past senior Amy Falite to end theinning.

Harvard wasted no time in regaining itsthree-run advantage. In the bottom half of theframe, sophomore Jessie Amberg drew a leadoff walkand moved to second on a sacrifice bunt byLaSovage.

Two batters later, Abeles stepped up to theplate and added some more excitement to thecontest. The sophomore shortstop sent a toweringhome run soaring over the leftfield fence for herIvy League-best 10th round-tripper of the year.The ball landed approximately 50 feet beyond thefence.

"[The pitch] was pretty meaty, so I guess if Ididn't [hit it out] it would be a disappointment,"Abeles said. "I just saw the ball well and took acut."

Still, Holy Cross would not go down without afight. In the top of the sixth inning, theCrusaders once again pulled to within one when,with runners at the corners, first baseman GhiaGodfree's throw to the plate bounced by Teller androlled into the Holy Cross dugout. Two runs camein on the play to make the score 5-4.

But Harvard added some insurance in the bottomof the inning, courtesy of Read. With the basesloaded, Read calmly stroked a single into center,plating Cupp and Franzese. Cupp then retired theside in the top of the seventh to give Harvard itsfirst-ever NCAA postseason victory.

"The first game was a little closer than wewould have liked," Abeles said. "The second gamewas better momentum for Regionals."

Harvard 6, Holy Cross 0

If hitting won the opener for the Crimson,pitching was the key to completing the two-gamesweep. Freshman Chelsea Thoke was dominant on thehill, baffling Holy Cross hitters throughout theday.

Thoke (14-9) struck out seven batters en routeto a complete game, two-hit shutout. She retiredthe first seven batters she faced and allowed theball to leave the infield just three times, twicefor fly ball outs.

"I was going at the batters," Thoke said. "Iwas pitching my three favorite pitches: my change,my screwball and my curve. I was mixing it up, andthey couldn't touch me that way. I just have tocontinue that into Regionals."

"Chelsea was just dominant," Allard said. "Shehad a lot of confidence against [Holy Cross]. Shebeat them before, they weren't strong against herand she knew it. Chelsea's amazing when she'son--that's her typical pitching."

With Thoke stupefying the Crusaders,Harvard--the visiting team in the secondgame--earned the only run it needed in the firstinning, and Franzese nearly manufactured it alone.After singling into left, Franzese stole secondand took third on a passed ball. She scored easilywhen Teller singled into left, and Harvard took a1-0 lead.