The baseball team (9-24 overall, 4-7 Patriot League) lost to Bucknell University (13-19 overall, 5-10 Patriot League) and won against the United States Naval Academy (20-13 overall, 10-5 Patriot League) at Kamine Stadium in two doubleheader series over the weekend. The team then lost to the University of Delaware on Tuesday and beat Saint Peter’s University on Wednesday.
The Leopards lost to the Bison 4-2 in game one and 12-11 in game two. In the fourth inning of the first game, senior infielder Blaze Fadio scored after freshman outfielder Teddy Cashman hit an RBI single. Senior center fielder Michael Mallas followed up in the fifth inning by crossing the plate after sophomore center fielder Ethan Swidler hit a double. The Bison notched a home run during the third inning and three runs during the fourth inning to secure their win over Lafayette.
“We struggled a little bit offensively, like being able to produce there,” junior pitcher Jacob Maurer said. “We had a couple of errors in the field as well that contributed to that loss.”
The second game proved to be even more challenging, as Bucknell scored seven runs in the fourth inning. Mauer said the team did a good job of maintaining the score, specifically through its pitching, which allowed for Lafayette to bring the score to 11-11. However, the Leopards ultimately lost in extra innings.
The following day, Lafayette emerged victorious over Navy by a score of 3-2 in the first game and 6-2 in the second. In the fourth inning of the first game, junior center infielder Michael Zarrillo hit a two-run triple bringing Fadio and junior outfielder Easton Brenner in to score.
Navy tied the game in the fifth inning with two home runs, but Lafayette came back in the sixth inning when junior infielder Ben Petrone hit an RBI triple to right field that allowed Fadio to score and cement the final tally of 3-2.
In the first inning of the second game against Navy, Petrone hit an RBI single to right field that resulted in a run by Swidler. Lafayette continued to score in the second and fourth innings, while Navy failed to score until the sixth inning. The Leopards ultimately brought the score to 6-1 in the eighth.
“We did a good job of executing and getting runs in that game,” Maurer said. “We had some timely hits that helped us score and then we put up two in the top of the eighth which gave us some good insurance in the lead which made the last inning a lot less stressful.”
The two Patriot League wins against Navy are crucial, as only the top four teams make the playoffs.
“Conference games are a premium, so whenever you can win those it’s obviously very important because the games stack up quickly, so it was huge to get those two Sunday,” Maurer said.
However, Lafayette’s winning streak came to an end on Tuesday at Kamine Stadium when the team lost to the University of Delaware (17-14 overall) by a final score of 22-2. The Blue Hens did not hold back in this Liberty Bell Classic, taking a 9-0 lead by the fourth inning.
Then, the Maroon and White emerged victorious over Saint Peter’s University (10-23 overall) by a score of 6-5 on Wednesday. A back-and-forth affair that came down to the ninth inning, it was freshman UTL Luke Caucci who emerged to hit a walk-off single and clinch the result.
Freshman RHP Mason Koczwara recorded his first collegiate victory, striking out two while giving up two runs and one hit in the process.
The Leopards will face the United States Military Academy (17-15 overall, 7-4 Patriot League) on Saturday at noon, competing in a three-game series that will have deep implications for the conference standings.
Four members of the baseball team did not respond to request for comment.
