Box Score (Harvard 11, Cornell 8)
Box Score (Cornell 18, Harvard 5)

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- The Cornell offense combined for 29 hits and 26 runs on the day as the Big Red split a doubleheader at Harvard on Sunday afternoon in Cambridge, Mass. After Cornell fell in the opener, 11-8, the Big Red responded with an 18-5 thrashing of the Crimson in the nightcap.

Tom D'Alessandro and Brian Billigen led the way for the Big Red offense, with D'Alessandro going 6-for-9 with nine runs scored and five driven in. Billigen, meanwhile, was 4-for-7 with four runs driven in and five scored. All told, Cornell hitters combined for six home runs on the day, with Frank Hager, Mike Lopez and Chris Cruz all going deep on the afternoon.

The opener saw the Big Red take a heart-wrenching loss, as the Crimson (4-24, 1-7 Ivy League) scored six runs in the seventh to rally for the victory after Cornell took an 8-5 lead into the final inning. The Big Red took the 2-0 lead in the second on back-to-back solo home runs from Hager and Cruz, but the Crimson took the lead with three in the bottom half of the inning off of Cornell starter Jadd Schmeltzer.

Cornell (4-20, 2-6 Ivy League) would regain the lead in the third with another pair of runs, with Hager delivering a double to left-center that scored both Billigen and Mickey Brodsky, but Harvard regained the lead with another pair of runs in the bottom half of the third, chasing Schmeltzer from the game after three innings. Mike Carroll came on and worked an inning and a third of scoreless ball, allowing the Big Red offense to regain momentum.

The Big Red went ahead with two more runs in the fourth, with Marshall Yanzick hitting an RBI single and D'Alessandro hitting a sacrifice fly as the Big Red took a 6-5 lead. In the sixth, D'Alessandro led off with a double to right-center and Billigen walked, and the pair scored on back-to-back singles by Yanzick and Brodsky as the lead swelled to 8-5.

The wheels came off in the bottom of the seventh, however. Anthony Irigoyen, who came on to relieve Carroll and worked two innings, ran into trouble in the bottom half of the inning with one out. An error by third baseman Ben Swinford was followed with a pair of singles, cutting the lead to 8-6 as Rick Marks came on to try to get the final two outs. Marks surrendered a single and a walk to drive in one more run, then gave up a grand slam to right to end the contest.

After falling in such heartbreaking fashion in the opener, Cornell didn't take long to respond in game two. After Taylor Wood gave up a run to the Crimson in the bottom of the first, the Big Red offense erupted for 12 runs in the top of the second. Cornell sent 15 men to the plate in the inning, collecting a three-run home run from Billigen and a two-run blast from Lopez in the frame. All told, Cornell collected eight hits during the inning, with four batters collecting multiple RBIs.

Leading 12-1 after an inning and a half, Cornell allowed a run in the bottom half of the second, but kept its foot on the gas with another home run in the fourth, this time a three-run shot from Cruz to stretch the lead to 15-2. Harvard would get three runs back in the bottom of the fourth, but Cornell added single tallies in the fifth, sixth and eighth innings to breeze to the victory.

Wood picked up the win, his second of the year, after working 7.2 innings and scattering eight hits and five runs while striking out 10. Dan Lea came on in relief and allowed one hit while recording a strikeout for three of the final four outs of the game.

Cornell returns to action on Tuesday, taking on Le Moyne in a doubleheader in Syracuse, N.Y. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 2 p.m.