FAIRFIELD 8, HARVARD 6

The Crimson fell in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, with three Harvard relievers combining to surrender eight runs in the eighth inning. Senior righty Sean Poppen allowed just one hit in six scoreless innings, exiting the game with a seemingly safe 6-0 lead, but the bullpen was unable to keep the Stags offense under wraps.

“We had a chance to extend the lead in the sixth and seventh, get it done, but we left too many runners in scoring position,” Decker said. “Then it kind of blew up on us. One base hit and then all of a sudden it was like a football game: they got a touchdown and a two-point conversion before we could do anything.”

Bryan opened the scoring with a RBI double in the top of the fourth before a McColl sacrifice fly and two wild pitches plated three more an inning later. The Crimson extended the lead to six in the seventh with an error and Ellis’ RBI single.

After recording a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the seventh, captain Matt Sanders allowed two singles and two walks to start the eighth before being replaced by senior righty TJ Laurisch. Laurisch allowed three singles himself, failing to record an out, before senior lefty Sean O’Neill came in with the game at 6-5. He eventually got three outs, but three more runs crossed the plate.

HARVARD 7, FAIRFIELD 1

Behind junior right-hander Nick Gruener’s second complete game in as many outings, the Crimson snatched the first contest of the weekend, 7-1, against the Stags. Gruener improved to 3-1 on the season with seven innings of one-run ball, striking out five and walking just one to take his K-BB ratio to 21-2 on the season.

“Nick pitched really well,” Decker said. “He’s been really consistent for us, and you’re going to play well behind them because he has good tempo, good rhythm.”

Harvard jumped on their opponents early, scoring five times in the second inning to open up a comfortable advantage. Junior shortstop Drew Reid started the scoring with a RBI single before senior Mitch Klug and Fallon notched a two-run single and double respectively.

All nine Crimson starters reached base during the game, while Klug and Fallon each recorded multi-hit games. Fairfield got one run back in the bottom of the fourth, but sophomore right fielder Connor Quinn’s two-run single in the next frame was more than enough for Gruener, who allowed just six hits.

–Staff writer Manav Khandelwal can be reached at manavkhandelwal@college.harvard.edu.