Lehigh University
Bucknell
Ling and Hamasaki dominant in Bucknell sweep
4/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Allentown, PA – Looking to beat the weather, the Mountain Hawks faced Bucknell a day early at Patriot’s Park in
In the first game, Bucknell got a run in the top of the first to make it 1-0, and had the bases loaded with only one out against Ling. But Ling would settle down, striking out the last two batters of the inning to prevent further damage. Lehigh would then take the lead in the bottom of the inning, as a double by Mary Wieder would score Shana Treon, and then Wieder would score when Lauren Haney followed with a base hit of her own.
Ling would make those two runs stand, as she gave up just six hits and struck out eight in earning her eleventh win of the season (11-3).
In the second game, the Mountain Hawks scored a run in each of the first two innings to take a 2-0 lead. Heather Hamasaki was dominant early, striking out five in a row during the second and third innings and appeared to be on her way to an easy victory.
Bucknell had other ideas, as in the fifth they would begin a rally with two outs. Jill Pompeii would be hit by a pitch, then two straight infiled hits would load the bases for Angel Stackhouse. Stackhouse blooped a base hit to center, and centerfielder Whitney Schenbeck made a diving attempt to catch it but the ball fell out of her glove, and all three runs scored to give Bucknell a 3-2 lead.
At that point, the Mountain Hawks bats came alive, and they returned the favor scoring three runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth. Three straight hits by Erin Hengemuhle, Jessica Young, and Wieder would give Lehigh the lead back at 5-3.
Hamasaki (6-7) would cruise from there, ending the game with 14 strikeouts in the game, the third time this season she has had 14 or more.
“I definitely started feeling it out there today,” said Hamasaki on the postgame radio show. “I felt my stuff working and I just tried to go after the hitters and be aggressive. It was frustrating to see them get a few hits and runs off of bloop hits and grounders, but I tried to stay focused and finish them off.”
With the wins, Lehigh (
The two teams will do it again on Saturday at Kaufman Field, with the first game set to start at
