CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard Softball is set to open Ivy League action this weekend when it travels to the City of Brotherly Love to face Penn. The series begins on Saturday, March 18, with a doubleheader (12:30 p.m. ET/3 p.m. ET) and will conclude with a single game at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 19. All three contests will air live on ESPN+.

What to Know

• Harvard is coming off a trip to The Golden State where it endured rainy conditions en route to a 1-3-1 record. The Crimson had its first two games (vs. Syracuse, at California Baptist) canceled at the Lance Up Invite in Riverside before ultimately facing UC San Diego (L, 0-6), the Orange (L, 0-1) and CBU (W, 2-1).
• Kaitlin Lampson posted a .571 batting average with a 1.196 OPS across three games at the Lance Up Invite. Katie Arrambide, meanwhile, recorded an ERA of 0.88 in two starting assignments.
• Following its time in the Inland Empire, Harvard traveled south to America's Finest City for a Tuesday doubleheader at San Diego. The Crimson dropped a narrow 6-5 decision in Game 1 and settled for a 2-2 tie in an 8-inning Game 2 due to inclement weather.
• Madi Mays went 4-for-7 with one run and an RBI in two games against the Toreros. Arrambide and Anna Reed received the starting nods and combined to post five strikeouts in 7.2 innings.
• Harvard enters its Ivy League opening series with 7-7-1 record after having been picked to finish second in the conference preseason media poll. The Crimson finished the 2022 campaign with a 15-6 record, trailing only this year's preseason favorite, Princeton (17-4).
• The Crimson's seven victories leads all Ivy League schools, entering March 15 action.
• Harvard has won three consecutive Ivy League openers (2018, 2019, 2022; 2020-21 DNP-Pandemic).
• The Crimson leads the all-time series with Penn, 61-20-1, and swept the Quakers a season ago. Weather pushed last year's series to a Saturday-Monday arrangement at Soldiers Field, with Harvard earning 8-2, 8-0 (6 innings) and 11-8 decisions.
• Harvard is making its first trip to Philadelphia since 2019. That season, the Crimson won the opener, 8-7, before dropping the final two tilts.
• Penn is seeking its first victory of the season. The Quakers, who have dropped all 16 games in 2023, had their most recent date postponed (Tuesday vs. Delaware State moved to April 25).

Up Next

Harvard begins its Ivy home schedule on Saturday, March 25, when it welcomes Cornell to Cambridge. The Crimson and Big Red will play a doubleheader to open the series (12:30 p.m. ET/3 p.m. ET) before closing it out with a single game on Sunday, March 26, at 12:30 p.m. ET. All three contests will air live on ESPN+.