Morgalis was instead rewarded by being hand-picked by Walsh to step into the abyss that was Goodwin Field—home of defending national champion Cal State Fullerton.

In front of a record 3,604 people and a national ESPNU audience, the veteran opened with two scoreless innings, all in all pitching far better than the 19-0 box score would eventually indicate.

He would give up five earned against the best team in the nation, but used his characteristic pitching guile to fan five Titans in as many innings, holding Fullerton’s best hitter, Sergio Pedroza, hitless on the night.

“I thought Morgalis pitched really good,” Walsh said after the game. “I thought he was out there battling and kept his cool when we didn’t play real well.”

In the end, although his final outing didn’t turn out the way Crimson hopefuls dreamt it would, there’s still plenty for the veteran to hang his hat on. Given an Ivy championship and his leading role on the team, Morgalis surely got what he had hoped for from this season, if not more.

It’s just a shame that in 2006, his Harvard career will be over—and this time, there won’t be room for another encore.

­—Staff writer Pablo S. Torre can be reached at torre@fas.harvard.edu.