"I'm proud of the way we ended and proud of the way girls played," head coach Rachel Hanson said. "This sets us up well to be a threat next year."
On Saturday, Dartmouth beat Harvard for the first time since 2009 after fending off multiple Crimson comeback attempts. The Big Green took a 1-0 lead in the second inning after Kat Hicks '12 lined a single to center field, and Hillary Hubert '13 drove her home with an RBI double to right-center field.
In the top of the fourth inning, the Big Green added another run to take a 2-0 lead. Hillary Barker '12 led off the inning with a single before Hanson brought in Megan Averitt '15 to pinch run for Barker. Averitt moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and later scored on a single by Noelle Ramirez '13. Harvard added a run in the fifth inning, making the score 2-1.
In the top of the sixth, Kristen Rumley '15 smashed a leadoff double, and Barker drove her home on yet another Big Green double. Harvard scored once again in the bottom of the sixth, but Rumley's composure on the mound kept the Dartmouth lead intact heading into the seventh.
Fellow pitcher Barker described Rumley's poise in the circle.
"She doesn't get upset when she's in the circle and can perform in clutch situations," Barker said. "Staying composed is one of the best things you can have as a pitcher."
The Big Green added one more run in the top of the seventh to win, 4-2.
"The momentum switched a lot in this game, but the girls kept playing our style of play," Hanson said.
The second game was scoreless until Dartmouth finally broke the deadlock on an RBI single by Ramirez in the fourth inning.
In the fifth inning, Harvard responded with two runs, proved to make the difference in the game. Dartmouth had a chance to come back in the seventh after Ramirez led off the inning with a single, but she was immediately caught stealing. Crimson pitcher Rachel Brown retired the next two batters to record the save. Barker was impressive in the circle, going six innings and allowing two runs on three hits.
The Big Green faced Harvard once again at Dartmouth Softball Park on Sunday. Dartmouth had a sluggish first game, as the Crimson scored runs in the first, fifth, sixth and seventh innings to win by a score of 4-0. Rumley was Dartmouth's only source of offense, collecting the team's only hit in the first inning. She also pitched all seven innings, allowing four runs on six hits while tallying 11 strikeouts.
"Kristen has done a great job of growing," Hanson said. "She finished the season strong."
In its last game of the season, the Big Green used a six-run third inning to trounce the Crimson, 9-3. Harvard threatened in the top of the fourth but only scored three runs before Barker shut the Crimson down in the final game of her Dartmouth career.
"I definitely think the team bounced back well on Sunday," Barker said. "We just brought a ton of energy to the second game."
Hicks and Katie Adams '13 led Dartmouth offensively with two hits each. Barker pitched the entire game, allowing three runs on four hits and recording five strikeouts.
"I'm just really proud of the seniors," Hanson said. "They've put in four years of hard work, blood, sweat and tears."
Dartmouth will lose five seniors this year, but the team is "very excited for next season," according to Hanson.
"We're excited to build on the way we ended this year," Hanson said.
