Whitton, making her first start for the Crimson in weeks, was struggling in the first inning. With one run already in and the bases loaded with one out, Princeton could have opened the game with a back-breaking rally.

But Whitton settled down and pitched out of the jam. Princeton's Kim Veenstra lined a shallow fly to left, and freshman Grace Bloodwell made a great diving catch. Then, in a crucial at-bat, Tiger Sarah Jane White fouled off four straight 1-2 pitches before Whitton finally got her with a called third strike.

"I was really nervous," Whitton said. "It was my first start in a while."

Although Princeton wasted the opportunity to put Harvard away, the 1-0 deficit looked unbeatable with Princeton's Brie Galicinao on the mound. She pitched three perfect innings with four strikeouts to start the game.

"Their pitcher was a little faster than what we've seen so far," Allard said. "We just needed some time to get adjusted. But we came through."

In the fourth, Whitton finally proved that Galicinao could be beaten. She led off the inning with a deep left-field double. That started the Harvard bats.

"She was quick," Whitton said. "I just jammed her, waited for an outside pitch, and just went with it."