Lehigh visits rival Lafayette for four this weekend

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The second weekend of Patriot League play sends Lehigh 15 miles down the road to face arch rival Lafayette in a four game series with doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday. The Mountain Hawks swept their league-opening four game series at Army and will be looking to continue their recent dominance over their rivals. Lehigh has won 34 straight games over Lafayette, with the Leopards last win coming in 1999.

“Every Lehigh team loves to play Lafayette and we're certainly no exception,” said junior pitcher/outfielder Lisa Sweeney. “League play is always fun and exciting, but there's definitely something special about our rivalry with Lafayette. We're ready to get going with the weekend.”

Lehigh (23-6) will be looking to bounce back from a non-league doubleheader sweep at Hofstra on Wednesday, where the Brown and White dropped two close games to one of the top teams in the northeast. The Mountain Hawks hit .375 as a team in the four-game sweep of Army, led by freshman Alex Cueva who went 7-for-12 with five RBI. Sweeney added six hits for the Mountain Hawks, and leads the Patriot League with a .402 batting average. Senior Megan Conrad has also come on of late, with four hits in last Sunday’s doubleheader at Army and then two hits, including her first home run of the season against Hofstra.

Sweeney continues to double as the league’s top pitcher, with her 12-2 record and 0.97 earned- run average. Her 10 strikeout performance against the Pride gave Sweeney 10 double-digit strikeout games for the season. Sweeney is 4-0 in her career versus Lafayette, with 32 strikeouts and a 0.86 ERA. Sophomore Tiffany Curtis picked up two wins versus the Leopards last year, and did not allow a run in 12 innings of work.

Along with Conrad, fellow seniors Kate Marvel and Taryn Hanley have enjoyed tremendous success against the Leopards. In 14 career games, Marvel is batting .533 (24-for-45) versus Lafayette with 17 runs scored. Hanley is hitting .413 (19-for-46) with three of her five career home runs and 15 RBI versus the Leopards.

Lafayette enters the weekend series at 9-13 overall. The Leopards, picked third in the preseason poll, split four games at home with Bucknell last weekend. Freshman Kerry Griffin leads the Leopards with a .388 batting average, while senior Kristen Ruckno is Lafayette’s top run producer with three homers and 18 RBI. Sophomore Kasey Karr is batting .308 and is also the Leopards’ top option in the pitcher’s circle with a 4-5 record and 3.26 ERA. Freshman Ali Henry will share the pitching duties with Karr.

Last season Lehigh swept a four game series at Kaufman Field, and then eliminated the Leopards from the Patriot League tournament with a 13-0 win. The Mountain Hawks batted .510 as a team and outscored the Leopards 54-4 in those five games. Despite the prolonged success against their rivals, the Mountain Hawks will not be taking anything for granted.

“This series is an important follow up for us after sweeping Army last weekend,” said junior outfielder Alisha Gonzales. “Lafayette has been improving every year and so we know not to take them lightly and that we need to come ready to play all weekend.”

Lehigh and Lafayette will play doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday at Metzgar Fields in Forks Township. First pitch for game one on both days is set for noon.

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Lehigh visits rival Lafayette for four this weekend

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