Lehigh University
Cornell
Lehigh falls to Cornell, rebounds to beat Davidson
3/17/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
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In Lehigh’s game against Cornell, freshman Billy Swenson hit his first collegiate home run in the bottom of the fourth to put the Mountain Hawks ahead 3-1. With the bases loaded, junior Joe Ercolano hit into a fielder’s choice that allowed senior David Moscow to score and give Lehigh a 4-1 lead.
In the top of the fifth with Jimmy Heinz on first, Ryan Michael doubled to left field. Heinz advanced to third and then scored on a throwing error to pull the Big Red to within two.
Lehigh regained its three-run lead in the bottom of the fifth when Swenson’s single down the right field line brought classmate Dan Clauson home to make the score 5-2.
The score remained 5-2 in favor of Lehigh until the top of the eighth when Brant McKown hit a two-run double to left center to bring Cornell to within one run of the Mountain Hawks. Cornell then took the lead in the top of the ninth as Brian Kaufman hit a two-run double to right field to make the score 7-5.
With two outs and Ercolano on second, senior Nick Bet singled to left field to bring Ercolano home, but that would be as close as the Mountain Hawks would get.
Sophomore Greg Mortka picked up the loss after pitching the final 1.2 innings for the Mountain Hawks. Stephen Osterer earned his first win of the season for the Big Red. Osterer pitched four innings, struck out one batter and allowed two hits and one run.
In the second game, Lehigh and Davidson held each other scoreless through the first three innings with each team registering two hits. Senior David Moscow got the scoring underway in the top of the fourth when his double to left field scored Clauson and sophomore Matt Reitz. Lehigh added a third run when junior Liam O’Connor hit an RBI single that allowed Moscow to score and the Mountain Hawks to take a 3-0 advantage.
Davidson did not remain scoreless for long. Blake Osborn hit an RBI single to center field in the bottom of the fourth to send Alden Chrissy home as Lehigh held a 3-1 lead.
Lehigh’s offense continued in the fifth inning as the Mountain Hawks rattled off two more runs. Swenson and
The Wildcats cut into Lehigh’s lead by scoring two runs in the bottom of the seventh to make the score 6-3. But a two-run homer by Ercolano allowed the Mountain Hawks to regain their five-run lead.
Davidson put together one last rally in the bottom of the ninth. With two outs, Rob Wilson hit a two-run single up the middle. The Wildcats scored their next two runs off bases loaded walks in order to make the score 8-7 in favor of Lehigh. However, that would be as close as the Wildcats got as sophomore Geoff Campbell came in for junior Andrew Grim and struck out the final batter to end the game.
Senior Joel Hockman was awarded the win after pitching 6.0 innings. In his time on the mound, Hockman struck out two batters and only allowed one run.
Lehigh returns to action on Sunday when it faces Davidson. Game time is scheduled for noon.
