Lehigh University
Penn St
Lehigh splits doubleheader at Penn State
3/23/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
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Pitching was the dominate theme in the first game, as the teams were scoreless through the first four and a half innings. The Nittany Lions got on the board first on a single to leftfield by Ryan Boonie, scoring Cory Wine, who started the inning off with a walk.
Lehigh responded in the top of the fifth on a sacrifice fly to leftfield by Brendan McGaheran. The starting pitchers for both teams continued to control the tempo of the game, as the teams remained in a 1-1 deadlock heading into the top of the ninth.
The Mountain Hawks did not start the inning the way they would have liked to, picking up two quick outs. However, Lehigh kept the inning alive after a pair of walks and a hit batsman loaded the bases. Joe Ercolano poked a single through the right side of the infield to break the game open and give the Brown and White a 3-1 advantage.
Jordan Warncke closed out the game in the bottom of the ninth, pitching a 1-2-3 inning to record his third save of the season.
The second game also featured two more strong pitching performances from the game’s starters.
Andrew Berger (2-4) pitched a complete game, allowing just two runs on six hits, but Mike Loreston was able to match him pitch for pitch, pitching six shutout innings, allowing three hits. Drew O’Neil came in to close the game in the bottom of the seventh to pick up his third save of the season.
Freshman Billy Goldman collected two of Lehigh’s three hits in the game, while classmate Austin Borden had the other hit. The Mountain Hawks had a couple of chances to score in the game, advancing a runner to third twice, but were unable to capitalize on their opportunities.
Lehigh returns to the diamond on Tuesday, when it hosts Villanova in the first round of the Liberty Bell Classic. That game is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. from the Goodman Campus.
