PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania baseball program split its Ivy League opening twinbill with Harvard. The Crimson took game one after an early offensive surge, scoring eight runs in the first three innings to win 12-9. Penn rebounded in game two, scoring seven runs in the eighth to secure a 16-12 victory.
 
GAME 15: PENN 9, HARVARD 12
WP: Hunter Bigge (2-1)
LP: Christian Scafidi (2-1)
 
GAME 16: PENN 16, HARVARD 12
WP: Mitchell Holcomb (3-0)
LP: James Kirkptrick (0-1)
 
NOTES
*Over two games, Penn hit seven home runs. Sean Phelan hit a pair of bombs in game one while freshman Josh Hood hit his first and second collegiate home runs in game two. Fellow freshman Andrew Hernandez hit his first collegiate dinger in the ninth inning of game one.
 
*Craig Larsen continued to dominate behind the plate in the doubleheader. Over the two games, he went 6-of-10 with three doubles, four RBI, and three runs scored.
 
*Hood had a career game in the second game of the doubleheader. He went 4-of-5 with two home runs, a double, five RBI, and three runs scored.
 
*Hood and Larsen both went 4-of-5 in game two of the doubleheader.
 
*After notching a hit in each game against Harvard, Larsen extended his hitting streak to nine games.
 
*Phelan went 6-of-9 over both games with two home runs, two doubles, six RBI, and five runs scored.
 
*Holcomb earned his third win of the season in game three. He threw six frames while striking out six batters.
 
*Josh Sidney pitched 4.2 innings of relief in game one. He allowed two earned runs on three hits and struck out four batters.
 
*Over two games, Penn tallied 28 hits with 15 extra-base hits and scored 25 runs.
 
*Four Penn players tallied three or more RBI in game two. Hood lead the group with five RBI while Larsen, Phelan, and O'Neill each drove in three runs.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: GAME 1
Harvard set the tone in the first inning of game one with a leadoff home run and a solo shot later in the inning. Penn cut the lead in half as Phelan got his first home run of the day to make it 2-1.
 
The Crimson extended their lead in the second with a two-RBI double to center field and an RBI single to left. Harvard kept it going in the third with a three-run home run to left field.
 
The Quakers cut the lead in half in the fourth. Peter Matt started the scoring with an RBI single to right. Phelan kept it going with an RBI single to left and Larsen capped it off with another RBI single to left to make it 8-4, Harvard.
 
Harvard extended its lead with an RBI double to left in the fifth. Penn made it 9-6 after an infield error allowed Matt McGeagh to score in the fifth, and a single by Hood plated Larsen in the sixth.
 
The Crimson extended their lead again in the eighth. A two-RBI double to right made it 11-6 and a sac fly later in the inning brought in Harvard's 12th run.
 
Hernandez, Tommy Courtney, and Phelan each hit a solo home run in the top of the ninth, but Penn's comeback fell short.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: GAME 2
Harvard struck first again in game two. A triple down the left field line in the top of the second made it 2-0 for the Crimson. Penn got a run back as Hood hit his first collegiate homer, crushing a ball over the left field wall.
 
A Harvard homer in the top of the third made it 3-1. The Quakers responded by taking their first lead of the series in the bottom of the frame. Larsen doubled to right center to plate Matt. Hood made it 5-3 in favor of the Quakers with a three-RBI double to right center, plating Phelan, Larsen, and O'Neill.
 
The Quakers kept it going through the fourth. Phelan plated Matt with a double down the right field line, then Larsen plated Phelan with a double to left, extending the Quakers' lead to put Penn in front, 7-3.
 
Harvard cut two back with a two-RBI single in the fifth, but Hood made it 8-5 with his second home run of the day in the bottom of the frame. Harvard cut Penn's lead to two with an RBI single in the seventh inning, but the Quakers responded with an RBI single of their own in the seventh—with Larsen notching his third RBI of the game to make it 9-6.
 
Penn ripped into Harvard with a crucial, high-scoring eighth inning. McGeagh started the scoring with a sac fly to right field, bringing in Hood. Phelan then ripped off a two-RBI single to center, plating Malinowski and Petersen. Matt scored from third base on a passed ball, and O'Neill made it 16-6 with a three-run moon shot to left field.
 
Harvard would not lay down, however. The Crimson loaded the bags in the top of the ninth, and Hunter Bigge hit a grand slam to make it 16-10. Harvard scored two more runs, but Jacob Sadowitz was able to retire the side to give Penn its first Ivy League win of the season.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Penn will host Harvard tomorrow to in the series-deciding third game. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. at Meiklejohn Stadium