CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard softball heads out to Riverside, California to take part in the Lancer Invitational being held at California Baptist University. The Crimson will play doubleheaders on Friday, Mar. 8 and Saturday, Mar. 9 and will play one game on Sunday, Mar. 10. On Friday, Harvard will first face UC San Diego at 3:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. PST and will end the day against California Baptist at 8:30 p.m. EST/5:30 p.m. PST. Entering its second day in California, the Crimson will matchup against Sacramento State on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST before closing the day with another opportunity against tournament host California Baptist at 3:30 p.m./12:30 p.m. PST. Action at the Lancer Invitational will wrap up on Sunday as the Crimson is set to verse UC San Diego again at 1:00 p.m. EST/10 a.m. PST.
 
The Crimson will also travel to San Diego, Calif. for its first midweek doubleheader of the season, taking on San Diego on Tuesday, Mar. 12 at 6:00 p.m. EST/3 p.m. PST.

CRIMSON UPDATES:

• Harvard is 8-1 to begin the 2024 season, outscoring its opponents 26-5 at last weekend's Bob Heck Classic where the team went 4-0. This marks the best start to a campaign since 2002 for the squad.
• The Crimson swept the Ivy League weekly awards with three Harvard players receiving honors.
• Sophomore pitcher Riley Flynn garnered Ivy League Pitcher of the Week for the second straight week after posting a 0.33 earned run average and 18 strikeouts across her first six appearances this season.
• First-year infielder Sophie Sun earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week, going 4-for-11 with three extra base hits. Sun leads the Crimson in home runs this season with two and most recently hit a solo home run in Harvard's comeback win against Winthrop.
• Senior infielder Madi Mays took Ivy League Co-Player of the Week honors after pacing the Harvard offense. Mays went 7-for-11 at the plate, driving in one run, scoring two runs, and recording two doubles. The senior is batting .435 this season with five RBIs and is leading Harvard with a 1.161 OPS.
• At the Bob Heck Classic last weekend, Harvard won all four games played, including a stellar 8-0 win over Winthrop to close out the tournament.
• The 12 Crimson hits in the win over Winthrop is a single-game high this season. Six student-athletes registered RBIs in the win as well.
• Junior outfielder Savannah Fitzpatrick recorded four RBIs in the 9-1 win against Tennessee Tech, a new career high.
• Harvard hit five home runs across two games on day one of the Bob Heck Classic.
• Junior infielder Maya Douglas and Fitzpatrick each hit their first career home runs in the win over Tennessee Tech and first-year catcher Alexa Wohr hit her first against Winthrop.
• On day two, the Crimson outscored its opponents 17-1 in two run-rule victories. Harvard scored nine runs in the win over Tennessee Tech, the most in a game this year. 

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION:

• Tournament host California Baptist is 9-10 on the season after going 2-3 at the Lancers Invite last weekend. The Crimson and Lancers are currently tied 1-1 in the all-time series matchup, with the Crimson earning the most recent win last season.
• UC San Diego sits at 4-14 and is coming off a 1-4 weekend at the ASU Invitational. The Crimson and the Tritons faced each other for the first time last season in a matchup where UC San Diego prevailed, 6-0.
• Sacramento State is 11-6 on the year following a 4-1 outing at the Capital Classic. Saturday's game will be the first ever playing of the Crimson vs. the Hornets, as Harvard looks to start a lead in the all-time series.
• Holding a 5-15 record this season, San Diego participates in the Bulldog Classic in Fresno, Calif. before the Toreros take on Harvard on Tuesday.

UP NEXT:

Harvard begins Ivy League play next weekend, heading to New Haven, CT. for a three-game set against Yale.

For complete coverage of Harvard Softball, follow the team on Twitter (@HarvardSB) and Instagram (@harvardsb).