Mountain Hawks Fall to Butler on Opening Day

Friday, February 16

Wilmington, N.C.

12 p.m.

Lehigh University

0-1

Butler University

1-0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Butler	0	2	0	1	0	3	0	1	5	12	10	1
Lehigh	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	6	3

2/16/2018 4:25:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

WILMINGTON, N.C. – The Mountain Hawks fell to Butler, 12-1, on opening day of the 2018 in what was a closely-contested game before the Bulldogs tacked on six runs in the final two frames.

Sophomore Levi Stoudt took to the mound to open the season for Lehigh (0-1) and went 5.0 innings, surrendering three runs, one earned, on four hits with a pair of strikeouts. Stoudt was charged with the loss as he received just one run in support. Senior Buck Schwab was also one of six arms used on the day and had an effective outing as he tossed a scoreless inning with just two hits allowed in his relief effort.

Butler's Connor Mitchell earned the win for the Bulldogs (1-0) as he went 5.0 innings, surrendered one run on five hits with a game-high eight strikeouts. As a staff the Bulldogs finished the day with an 11-1 walk-to-strikeout ratio and allowed just eight batters on base.

Junior Ryan Malloy led Lehigh in hits on the day as he went 2-for-3 in the four-hole. Fellow junior Jeff Shanfeldt scored the team's lone run as sophomore Mike Maguire drove him in.

Butler got on the board first as a Lehigh fielding error sparked a two-run, two-out rally in the top of the second for the Bulldogs. The Mountain Hawks answered back in the bottom half as Maguire drove in Shanfeldt from second with two away.

Lehigh threatened in the third as Chris Kersey and James Bleming each reached on singles, but Butler worked out of the jam with an inning-ending strikeout. From that point on, the Mountain Hawks went cold as they managed to compile just one hit in the final six innings.

With a 7-1 lead heading into the ninth, Butler put the game out of reach with five runs in the final frame. The Bulldogs used just one hit in the inning as LU walked five batters and sent three runners home on wild pitches.

The Mountain Hawks will return to action Saturday with two games on the docket. LU will face Eastern Kentucky at 10 a.m. before facing Butler again in the night cap at 6 p.m.