Co-captain Margaux Black, shown here in earlier action, came on in relief after an uncharacteristically shaky start for sophomore Rachel Brown and managed to shut down the Cornell offense. Black pitched 4.2 innings of shutout softball to pick up her first win of the season and earn the Crimson a split with the Big Red.
For the Harvard softball team, Saturday brought the chance to see how it would measure up against the league’s top dog.
As it turns out, it’s a pretty even match.
The Crimson (9-15, 3-1 Ivy) and defending Ivy champion Cornell (15-8, 3-1) split a twinbill at Nieman-Robison Field, with the Big Red outhitting Harvard in an 8-4 win in the afternoon’s first game.
But led by co-captain Margaux Black’s 4.2 innings of scoreless relief, the Crimson returned the favor in the nightcap, coming home with the 7-6 victory—and the early lead in the Ivy League North.
“Today we were really happy to split,” sophomore pitcher Rachel Brown said. “We learned the hard way last year that every game counts—even the ones that are out of [division].”
HARVARD 7, CORNELL 6
When an uncharacteristically rough start from Brown put Harvard in a 6-3 hole after three innings, things weren’t looking good for the Crimson.
Enter Black.
The co-captain held off one of the league’s most potent offenses to give the Harvard bats enough time to win the game.
“I had a really rough start, but Margaux Black…she had it in her back pocket,” Brown said. “She had my back and she picked me up. It was such a great day for her.”
The Crimson came back with three runs in the top of the fourth. Sophomore Jane Alexander sparked the rally with a double to left center, moving freshman pinch runner Ashley Heritage to third. Senior Jessica Pledger plated Heritage, and freshman Jess Ferri brought Alexander around with a double to center.
Co-captain Melissa Schellberg, who is also a Crimson sports editor, put the third run on the board with an RBI sacrifice fly.
Sophomore Whitney Shaw put Harvard on top for good with two outs in the fifth, launching a ball over the left-field fence—the first baseman’s second homer of the game.
From there, Black cruised, retiring the last eight batters in order to get her first win of the season.
“Cornell has some great hitters, and they won’t back down,” Black said. “They pushed us, we pushed right back, [and] we showed heart. We were great in a lot of areas that second game.”
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