Harvard students from the Chicago area rejoiced as the Chicago Cubs Major League Baseball team won the National League Championship pennant on Saturday and reached the World Series for the first time since 1945.

The Cubs defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in game six of the National League matchup to secure their spot. The Cubs lost their first game 6-0 to the Indians in Cleveland, Ohio on Tuesday, the first of the best-of-seven matchup.

Until now, the team’s lack of success has been attributed to the so-called“The Billy Goat” curse. According to legend, a local tavern owner named Billy Sianis cursed the team after being turned away from a World Series game in 1945 because he brought his pet goat, Murphy, with him.

Several Harvard students eagerly awaited the day the Cubs would return to the World Series.

“It’s huge. This is our chance to win a championship. It’s absolutely exciting,” Myung Suh ’20 said.

John S. Acton ’17 said being a Cubs fan has been difficult and he is happy to witness the team’s comeback.

“The Cubs haven’t been in the World Series for a long time, and it feels a little surreal,” he said. “It would would be incredible if they won, but regardless it’s really cool to see them on the big stage.”

“Even though I have two papers and a midterm this week, I still plan on spending four hours watching each game,” Declan P. Garvey ’17 said, adding that he has been an avid Cubs fan for as long as he can remember.

Nicolas Xu ’20 said the Series provides a great opportunity to bond with other Harvard students from Chicago.

“I actually watched the game last night with a club at Harvard with kids from Chicago in the basement of Lowell… it was great to be able to joke around and talk with other Cubs fans while watching the game,” Xu said.

Part of what distinguishes the Cubs from other baseball teams is the support the team garners despite their lack of success, Damian Richardson ’20 said.

“They have one of the most loyal fan bases in sports who have really stuck with the team through terrible seasons, and to finally have the moment of glory is really wonderful,” he said.

Garvey said he learned valuable lessons from being a Cubs fan throughout years of losing seasons.

“I think it can be viewed as a metaphor for life—even when things don’t go your way, there’s the saying, ‘there’s always next year’,” he said.