Penn at Harvard
BOSTON (Interstat) — Penn looks to complete a series sweep Sunday afternoon when the Quakers face Harvard at Joseph J. O’Donnell Field.
The Quakers (16-18) have dominated the Crimson (8-24) in the first two games of this Ivy League series, winning 13-7 and 10-2 on Saturday. Penn has won five of its last seven games overall, while Harvard has dropped nine of its last 11.
The pitching matchup will feature Penn right-hander Thomas Shurtleff, who has been nearly untouchable of late. The junior has thrown 21⅓ consecutive scoreless innings over his past three starts, all wins. In his most recent outing Saturday against Harvard, he threw seven innings of two-run, no-hit ball with 10 strikeouts. He also fired a seven-inning no-hitter with 10 strikeouts against Princeton on April 18 and allowed no runs in six innings against Cornell on April 12.
Harvard shortstop Jack Rickheim will be a key bat for the Crimson. He homered twice and drove in four runs in Saturday’s 13-7 loss and has reached base safely in seven of his last 10 games. Harvard’s pitching staff has struggled, allowing 23 runs in the two games against Penn.
The Quakers are hitting .289 as a team and have scored at least six runs in seven of their last nine games. Outfielder Gavin Collins drove in four runs in Saturday’s opener, going 3 for 5 with a home run. Center fielder Gavin Degnan added three RBIs.
Harvard is batting .241 and has allowed 10 or more runs in four of its last six games. Catcher Liam Wilson has been a bright spot, going 3 for 3 with a home run and an RBI in the series opener.
Interstat’s game simulator projects a 6-2 victory for Penn.
Penn travels to Wagner on Tuesday before a home series against Brown next weekend. Harvard visits Holy Cross on Tuesday before a three-game series at Princeton.
First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. under cloudy skies with a temperature of 54 degrees.