Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks open PL home slate vs. Army
4/3/2009 9:15:00 AM | Softball
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lehigh opens up the home portion of its Patriot League schedule as the Mountain Hawks host the Army Black Knights for four games with doubleheaders scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at Kaufman Field. After one weekend of league play the Mountain Hawks sit atop the Patriot League standings after winning three of four games last weekend at Colgate. Lehigh (15-14-1) has been off since Saturday, as its Wednesday doubleheader at Towson was rained out.
The Mountain Hawks’ bats came to life last weekend in Hamilton, N.Y. as Lehigh batted .383 in the four game series and averaged over nine runs per game against the Raiders. Freshman Audra Wood led a contingent of three Mountain Hawks who batted .500 or better in the series as she ripped eight hits in 14 at-bats in the four games, while scoring five runs. Seniors Alisha Gonzales (7-for-13) and Lisa Sweeney (8-for-16) also enjoyed a strong start to league play at the plate. Sweeney added three home runs and seven RBI in the series as she moved into first place on Lehigh’s career home run list with 23.
Sweeney and Wood both received accolades from the Patriot League this week as Sweeney was named the league’s Player of the Week, while Wood earned her first career Rookie of the Week nod.
Freshman Julie Fernandez continues to lead the league in batting with a .380 average, while Gonzales and Sweeney give Lehigh three players in the top ten. Fernandez also leads the league with 35 hits and nine doubles. Sweeney tops the league in home runs (seven), runs scored (25) and RBI (22, while Wood has swiped a league-leading 19 bases.
In the pitcher’s circle, Sweeney picked up two wins versus Colgate and one win versus Penn last week to move to 9-8 on the season. She won both ends of Saturday’s doubleheader against the Raiders to ensure Lehigh a series win. Sweeney is just fifth in the league with a 3.28 ERA, but she does lead the league in wins, innings pitched (109) and strikeouts (118). Last weekend she extended her own Patriot League career records with her 80th win and 800th career strikeouts. Junior Tiffany Curtis is 6-4 with a 3.89 ERA and leads the league in opponents’ batting average as she’s limiting opposing hitters to a .247 clip.
Army enters this weekend’s series at 12-21 overall and 2-2 in the Patriot League. The Black Knights split a doubleheader at Rider on Thursday and opened up league play last weekend with a split at Lafayette. Army is in the unusual position of boasting the Patriot League’s top pitching staff in terms of ERA (3.47) but the league’s worst team batting average at .238.
Freshman Alexis AuBuchon leads the Black Knights with a .376 batting average and seven doubles, while junior Erin McClain is also at the .300 mark with 17 RBI. Freshman Rachael Duval has been the team’s top run producer with four home runs and 19 RBI.
The Black Knights have a deep pitching staff with six players seeing time in the circle this year. Junior Jessi Muckelroy has been Army’s top pitcher with an 8-8 record 3.03 ERA and 49 strikeouts. Muckelroy ranks second behind Sweeney in wins and third in the league in ERA. Freshmen Beverly Nordin and Shawna Bleyl have also started games in the circle for Army, whose longtime coach Jim Flowers will be making his final regular season visit to Bethlehem this weekend.
Lehigh leads the all-time series 58-24, including 22 of the last 23. The Mountain Hawks have won nine straight over the Black Knights, including a four-game sweep at West Point last year and an 8-0 win in the opening game of the 2008 Patriot League tournament.
The Mountain Hawks and Black Knights will play doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday at Kaufman Field with first pitch set for 12 p.m. on both days. Sunday’s twin bill will be broadcast online at Lehighsports.com with streaming video of both games beginning at 2:30 p.m.
Watch Alisha Gonzales and Lauren Eichblatt preview Army
