CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – With a combined 35 runs and 36 hits marking the scoreboard, the Harvard baseball team (22-20, 12-9 Ivy) played spoiler in the 2018 season finale, edging Dartmouth (17-22-1, 12-8-1 Ivy) out of a spot in the Ivy League Championship Series with an 18-17 victory at O'Donnell Field this afternoon. While the Crimson's playoff hopes were dashed with Columbia winning at Cornell, Harvard persevered to post its best overall record in 18 years and best Ivy record in more than a decade.   

To cap off its historic season, Harvard went out with a bang in a game that saw the lead change hands six times. The sixth inning saw a tidal wave of scoring, Dartmouth taking a 17-9 lead off six runs in the top of the inning, and Harvard nearly erasing that lead with seven runs on the back end, led by Devan Peterson's three-run homer to put the score at 17-16. 

Matt Rothenberg secured the sweetest ending to his college career, banking his second home run of the game in the bottom of the eighth to give Harvard the eventual 18-17 victory. 

Rothenberg led the team with five total RBI while Hunter Bigge collected four, including two on a bomb of his own in the third. Bigge was also the winning pitcher for the Crimson, hurling the final four innings, tossing four batters while allowing just two runs from the Big Green. 

Jake Suddleson was responsible for the Crimson's fifth home run in this afternoon's contest, sending a three-run bomb over the center field wall to take back a 9-7 lead for Harvard. Patrick Robinson was also a heavy contributor to the Crimson's success, going three-for-five at bat while plating three runs of his own from first or second base positions. 

What's Next?
The Crimson walk away from the 2018 season with the best overall record since 2005, the best Ivy record since 2007, a Beanpot Championship title and its first series win over Dartmouth since 2005.