The baseball team split its four-game homestand against rival Lehigh University this past weekend, winning Friday and Sunday but dropping both games of Saturday’s doubleheader. The team also dropped its Tuesday non-conference contest to Wagner University.
Friday’s series opener saw the Leopards (5-15 Patriot League, 9-29 overall) leave the first inning with the lead. Lehigh (6-14 Patriot League, 13-26 overall) pushed a run across in the top of the frame, but RBI base hits from juniors infielder Matt Colella and catcher Brandon Doubek landed the Maroon and White a 2-1 edge.
Junior utility player Luke Caucci scored on a wild pitch in the second, and Doubek delivered another run on a right-field singler to make it a 4-1 game. Meanwhile, junior right-handed pitcher Tristan Helmick commanded the mound for seven innings, allowing one more earned run and earning the win in a 4-2 decision. Junior right-handed pitcher Owen Basso earned the save, pitching two scoreless innings in relief.
Sophomore infielder Boden Fernsler slashed a fourth-inning two-run homer to kick off the scoring in game one of Saturday’s doubleheader, which would remain the only Leopard runs of the game. Home runs in the sixth and seventh innings gave the Mountain Hawks a 3-2 lead, and the Maroon and White’s bats went cold in the bottom of the seventh after a leadoff walk to hand them the loss.
Doubek put the Leopards on the board first in game two on Saturday with a first-inning sacrifice bunt, followed by the Mountain Hawks scoring in the second and third to go up 2-1. Freshman infielder Will Dobil briefly tied the game in the bottom of the third on a right-field RBI single, but Lehigh’s offense barraged the Leopard bullpen with four consecutive runs. Doubek belted a two-run shot in the eighth, but the top of the ninth saw the Mountain Hawks pull back ahead to an 8-4 lead.
With two outs and runners on second and third, the Leopards kicked off a bottom-of-the-ninth rally courtesy of two wild pitches that scored both runners. Fernsler contributed a double that brought in another run, but Lehigh ultimately secured the final out to win 8-7.
Sunday’s game was moved to Lehigh’s turf field due to rain, with the Leopards still serving as the home team. The Maroon and White found their footing in the bottom of the first, as Doubek got things started with an RBI single and senior outfielder Charlie Chropuvka capitalized on an error to score two more. Chropuvka later scored on a wild pitch, giving the Leopards a 4-0 lead.
Dobil extended the lead to five with a second-inning RBI base hit, and Colella laid down a sacrifice bunt to follow up and make it a 6-0 ballgame.
Lehigh produced some damage with two runs in the fourth, and launched a solo shot in the seventh to cut the Leopard lead to 6-3. In the bottom of the frame, however, Doubek collected his second RBI of the day off a left-center single, which would hold for a 7-3 final score.
Wagner (18-19 overall) got the better end of a 15-11 shootout final on Tuesday, scoring on seven of the Leopards’ eight pitchers in the bullpen game. The Seahawks exploded for six runs in the first, with sophomore infielder Alex Barrist and Dobil putting runs on the board for the Maroon and White as well.
Heading into the bottom of the second, down 7-2, the Leopards pieced together an 8-0 run across the next three innings. The visitors returned serve, reclaiming a 12-10 lead by the seventh inning stretch. Colella ripped off an RBI double in the seventh that brought the hosts within one, but the Seahawks would push three more around the bases to bring the game out of reach.
The Leopards will embark on their final road Patriot League series this weekend, travelling to Army (12-8 Patriot League, 22-17 overall) for a three-game stand.