­With a trip to the Ivy League Championship Series at stake on the season’s final weekend, the Harvard softball team matched up against Dartmouth for a home-and-home series.

The Big Green (23-16, 16-4 Ivy) entered the weekend three games ahead of the Crimson (23-21, 13-7) in the standings, so Harvard needed to sweep the four-game series to come away with the Ivy North title. But by dropping its first game on Friday afternoon, the team’s fate was sealed for the remainder of the weekend.

Saturday’s last game proved to be a tearful goodbye for the Crimson as the team graduates seven seniors, many of whom have had a profound influence on the team in their four years.

“I guess to sum it up, they’ve been a special class,” Harvard coach Jenny Allard said. “They’ve been great friends, they’ve been great teammates to each other, they’ve been great leaders on this team, and I think they’re some of the best people I was lucky to be around.”

DARTMOUTH 4, HARVARD 1

Although the fate of its season had already been decided, the Crimson fought until the end of its final matchup against the Big Green at Soldiers Field.

Harvard struck first in the fourth inning, but Dartmouth answered in their next at bats by scoring three runs. The Big Green tacked on another in the top of the seventh to widen the gap, and the Crimson was unable to respond.

Senior Gabrielle Ruiz got the start in the circle for Harvard, and classmate Laura Ricciardone came on in the fifth to close out the game.

“This weekend as a whole we were able to come out really strong,” senior outfielder Andrea Del Conte said. “We obviously wanted to come out and compete for a championship, but we gave it our all the whole way through.”

HARVARD 3, DARTMOUTH 2

In a game that came down to the wire, it was senior infielder Adrienne Hume that delivered the final victory of the season for the Crimson.

With the score tied at two in the bottom of the seventh, Hume stepped up to the plate with runners at first and second and ripped a single down the left field line, bringing in the winning run.

For the majority of the game, the teams were tied. The game remainedscoreless until the fifth inning when Dartmouth outfielder Tiffany Dyson hit a two-run home run.

Harvard answered immediately in the bottom of the inning by stringing together two runs after a double by sophomore infielder Catherine Callaway scored senior catcher Katherine Appelbe and junior outfielder Haley Davis.

It was not until the bottom of the seventh that the Crimson scored again, securing the win.

HARVARD 7, DARTMOUTH 6

Propelled by a six-run offensive outburst in the seventh inning, the Crimson rallied late in the game to record its first win of the weekend in Hanover.

The inning commenced with a hit batter and a single from senior infielder Katie Lantz, setting up Del Conte with a chance for an RBI. Del Conte delivered, poking a single through the infield to cut the deficit to 5-2.

Two batters later, Davis lifted a pitch over the fence with two runners on, pulling the Crimson even. Back-to-back hits from senior infielder Adrienne Hume and Appelbe later in the inning brought in two more runs, giving Harvard the lead.

Dartmouth came back with a run of its own in the bottom of the seventh, but Ricciardone got senior Kristen Rumley to fly out to center field to end the game.

“They’ve been an incredible team,” Allard said. “A lot of this team’s success has had to do with being resilient and being tough, and that showed in the games we were able to take this weekend.”

DARTMOUTH 1, HARVARD 0

After the Big Green scored in its first at bats of the series, the scoreboard went silent for the remainder of the contest.

In the bottom of the first, Dartmouth manufactured its lone run after leadoff hitter Katie McEachern was hit by a pitch and stole second. With two outs, outfielder Karen Chaw singled off of Ricciardone, bringing McEachern around to score.

The Crimson offense was able to muster only four hits throughout the game, with two coming off the bat of senior shortstop Emily Gusse.

Riccardone suffered the loss, pitching all six innings while striking out four and walking none.

 

—Staff writer Ariel Smolik-Valles can be reached at ariel.smolik-valles@thecrimson.com.