Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks set to open Patriot League slate at Bucknell
4/1/2011 2:50:00 PM | Softball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh softball team travels to Lewisburg, Pa. to open Patriot League play against the defending tournament champion Bucknell Bison this weekend. The four game series begins Saturday with a doubleheader at Becker Field with a 1 p.m. first pitch. The 13-13 Mountain Hawks are looking to bounce back after dropping a doubleheader to regional power Fordham on Wednesday.
After a four game sweep of Niagara last weekend, Lehigh fell 9-1 and 9-0 to a Fordham team that was a NCAA Regional finalist last year. Both games were decided in five innings. Freshman Lizzy Odren drove in the only run of the day for the Mountain Hawks with a fifth-inning RBI single in game one.
Sophomore catcher Liz Lucas has been leading the way for the Mountain Hawks batting .370 with 27 hits, five home runs and 28 runs batted in. The corners of the infield have been helping as well, as senior third baseman Alex Cueva is batting .315 with 23 hits and junior first baseman Julie Fernandez is batting .325 with 25 hits. Senior Carly Potock went 8-for-16 at the plate last week en route to being named Patriot League Player of the Week. Potock picked up Lehigh's only extra-base hit and scored the Mountain Hawks only run in the Fordham doubleheader.
In the pitcher's circle, freshmen Ashley Quigley and Kelsey Lee will see Patriot League opposition for the first time. Quigley was 3-0 last week and coming into her own after a rough start. The Mountain Hawks also have sophomore Rebecca Bliss, who was especially tough within the league last year, with six wins and a 1.91 ERA.The Bucknell Bison (7-19) are coming off a 2-2 showing at the Mount St. Mary's tournament where they defeated the host Mountaineers twice while dropping two games to Cornell. Bucknell is the defending Patriot League tournament champion and this weekend's series will match the winners of the last three league titles as Lehigh won tournament crowns in 2008 and 2009 plus three of the previous four before that.
Bucknell is led by senior Allison Ford who is batting .375 with 30 hits and nine RBI. Sophomore Alex MacLean, the reigning Patriot League Rookie of the Year has been the ace in the circle with a 2.83 ERA and 63 strikeouts. Ford and senior outfielder Lauren Fry combined to go 6-for-10 with three doubles and five runs scored in the Bison's two wins over the Mountaineers last weekend.
Lehigh leads the all-time series versus Bucknell 68-36. The Mountain Hawks won three out of four games in the regular season meeting at Kaufman Field, but the Bison staged a come-from-behind 4-3 win in the opening round of the Patriot League tournament. Lehigh has won six of the last ten meetings in the series.
The Mountain Hawks have been the dominant team in the Patriot League, winning 11 straight Patriot League regular season titles and five out of six tournament crowns prior to last season.
Saturday's doubleheader is slated for a 1 p.m. start from Becker Field, while Sunday's twinbill will begin at 12 p.m. After opening league play with Bucknell this weekend, Lehigh will travel to Princeton for a midweek doubleheader on Wednesday April 6.
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