This weekend, the 2017 Harvard baseball team, fresh off an offseason full of change, traveled to the nation’s capital to kick off its 43-game regular season with four games as part of the D.C. Grays Collegiate Challenge. The Crimson looked to take care of business in Washington, D.C. against two teams that had combined for one win and 10 losses before the start of weekend play.

Buoyed by an offensive outburst of 33 total runs, Harvard (4-0) did more than just take care of business—its weekend sweep illustrated the potential of a team firing on all cylinders.

“Everyone was ready to go, right off the bat,” sophomore outfielder Ben Skinner said. “We got off to a quick start, which definitely helped. We were able to get some momentum going and carried it through all four games.”

HARVARD 6, COPPIN ST. 2

Sophomore righty Kevin Stone pitched five innings of one-run ball, and his younger brother, freshman Grant Stone, picked him up with three innings of relief work, to guide the Crimson to a 6-2 win over Coppin State University (1-7) on Sunday.

“The bullpen was huge—it’s really nice when you can turn to your bullpen and be confident in them,” Skinner said. “We had some freshman arms that stepped up and they’re going to take on pretty big roles this season. We’re looking forward to watching them develop and help us as a program.”

Sophomore first baseman Patrick McColl drove in two runs on a fourth-inning homer to provide an early boost for Harvard. McColl also drew two walks on a weekend in which the Crimson drew 26 walks overall.

Meanwhile, junior Matt Rothenberg capped off his weekend by going 3-for-4 to up his early season batting average to .600.

“I thought we really played four complete games,” said Rothenberg, last season’s team leader in batting average and hits. “We swung it well, one-through-nine, [and] we got some great pitching performances. It’s huge for team momentum going forward.”

HARVARD 6, LAFAYETTE 0

Rothenberg was quick to point to junior righty Ian Miller’s complete game, one-hit shutout of Lafayette as the prime example of the weekend’s stellar pitching performance.

Indeed, Miller faced just two hitters above the minimum 27 and struck out eight in a nine-inning gem to lead Harvard to a 6-0 win over the Leopards (2-10) on Sunday.

On the offensive side, senior first baseman Matt Hink, who had just 15 plate appearances last year but a solid sophomore campaign, had a career day after driving in four runs on a pair of two-run home runs.

“I really think we have a good squad here,” Skinner said. “[Coach Bill Decker] mentioned that every single player got into a game at some point this weekend, which goes to show you how it was truly a team effort.”

Miller’s performance is a positive sign for a rotation that’s tasked with filling the sizeable hole that former Crimson ace Nick Gruener left. At the end of last season, Gruener elected to forgo his final year of eligibility to sign with the Baltimore Orioles.