Tuesday, March 26
Newark, Del.
3 p.m.
Lehigh University
at
Delaware
Photo by: Josh Liddick
Lehigh travels to Delaware Tuesday, hosts Saint Peter's Wednesday
3/25/2019 5:51:00 PM | Baseball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Lehigh baseball is set to continue the regular season this week with two non-league games, first at Delaware at 3 p.m. Tuesday and then at J. David Walker Field on Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. against Saint Peter's. Sophomore left-hander Cameron Van Hoorebeke is scheduled to get the starting nod on Tuesday against Delaware.
The Mountain Hawks travel to Newark, Del. on Tuesday to face-off with the Blue Hens in the first round of the annual Liberty Bell Classic. The winner will play an opponent to be determined next Tuesday with the hopes of advancing to the championship game at Citizens Bank Park, home of Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies. Lehigh will attempt to win their first Liberty Bell Classic title since 2004, the inaugural season of the ballpark.
Lehigh is coming off a rough stretch, having dropped four of its last five games, including three of four to archrival Lafayette this past weekend at home. The Mountain Hawks rebounded, however, with a 16-9 victory in the final game of the series on Sunday to get back in the win column.
Six players hit over .300 last week in six games for Lehigh, with junior Tony Gallo and senior Jeff Shanfeldt each batting an identical .421 average. Gallo went 8-for-19 with two doubles, six RBIs, six runs scored, hit three times and slugged .526 with a .500 on-base percentage. Shanfeldt had almost the same week as his infield counterpart, going 8-for-19 from the dish with a double, four runs and six RBIs, but also walked six times. He had a slugging percentage of .474 with an OBP of .560.
Senior Ryan Malloy got his average back up to the over-.400 mark after a 7-for-18 week, with two doubles, a grand slam home run, seven runs scored, six RBIs and six walks. He was also hit three times for a team-high .593 OBP and slugged .667. Malloy currently has a .408 (31-for-76) batting average on the year, first in the Patriot League and 37th in the nation. He has 10 doubles, six home runs, 22 RBIs and is slugging a league-best .803 on the year so far.
The Lehigh offense has been spectacular for most of the season thanks to Malloy, Gallo, Shanfeldt and others, as the team currently leads the Patriot League in home runs with 14 hit to date. Malloy's six lead the way, but a pair of homers from Gallo, Mike Maguire and Quinn McKenna have bolstered the total.
The Mountain Hawks will face off with Delaware on Tuesday, looking to get back to a .500 record on the road, which is currently set at 6-7. The Blue Hens (5-17, 1-2 CAA) have seen better days after falling in their first 13 games to start the season. Since then, Delaware is 5-4, having fallen in its last two games at James Madison.
The Blue Hens are led offensively by Jordan Hutchins, who is the only member of the team hitting over .300 with a .313 average. Hutchins also has two home runs, seven doubles and 18 RBIs on the year. Left-hander Brandon Walter has been excellent so far starting on the mound for Delaware, going 2-3 in six starts with a 2.06 ERA. He has also struck out 44 batters and walked 10 in 35 innings. Walter has double-digit strikeouts in back-to-back games, throwing a four-hit shutout with 12 K's against Goldey-Beacom on Mar. 15 and then struck out 10 batters, while allowing six hits and just one earned run against JMU on Mar. 22.
All-time, the Mountain Hawks are 21-60 against Delaware and fell in the second round of the Liberty Bell Classic last season at J. David Walker Field, 15-7 on Apr. 11, 2018.
On Wednesday, Lehigh will host Saint Peter's for the first of two matchups this season. The Mountain Hawks are quite familiar with the Peacocks after two memorable wins last season, where the Lehigh contingency of Peter Woltersdorf and Matt Svanson no-hit Saint Peter's, 14-0 on Mar. 28 at J. David Walker Field. Then, in the second game of the year in Jersey City, the Mountain Hawks went on to win a 27-2 game on 17 hits.
The Peacocks are currently searching for their first win of the season, coming into Wednesday with an 0-17 record. John Gavura (.292 AVG) and Peter Ferony (.286) lead the Saint Peter's offense, while Steve Epstein is 0-0 with a 3.57 ERA in nine relief appearances this season, striking out 16 batters in 17 2/3 innings of work
Lehigh is 9-1 all-time against Saint Peter's, having won the last six matchups dating back to Mar. 30, 2016. The last time the Mountain Hawks fell to the Peacocks, the team won a Patriot League Championship at the end of the 2015 season.
Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
The Mountain Hawks travel to Newark, Del. on Tuesday to face-off with the Blue Hens in the first round of the annual Liberty Bell Classic. The winner will play an opponent to be determined next Tuesday with the hopes of advancing to the championship game at Citizens Bank Park, home of Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies. Lehigh will attempt to win their first Liberty Bell Classic title since 2004, the inaugural season of the ballpark.
Lehigh is coming off a rough stretch, having dropped four of its last five games, including three of four to archrival Lafayette this past weekend at home. The Mountain Hawks rebounded, however, with a 16-9 victory in the final game of the series on Sunday to get back in the win column.
Six players hit over .300 last week in six games for Lehigh, with junior Tony Gallo and senior Jeff Shanfeldt each batting an identical .421 average. Gallo went 8-for-19 with two doubles, six RBIs, six runs scored, hit three times and slugged .526 with a .500 on-base percentage. Shanfeldt had almost the same week as his infield counterpart, going 8-for-19 from the dish with a double, four runs and six RBIs, but also walked six times. He had a slugging percentage of .474 with an OBP of .560.
Senior Ryan Malloy got his average back up to the over-.400 mark after a 7-for-18 week, with two doubles, a grand slam home run, seven runs scored, six RBIs and six walks. He was also hit three times for a team-high .593 OBP and slugged .667. Malloy currently has a .408 (31-for-76) batting average on the year, first in the Patriot League and 37th in the nation. He has 10 doubles, six home runs, 22 RBIs and is slugging a league-best .803 on the year so far.
The Lehigh offense has been spectacular for most of the season thanks to Malloy, Gallo, Shanfeldt and others, as the team currently leads the Patriot League in home runs with 14 hit to date. Malloy's six lead the way, but a pair of homers from Gallo, Mike Maguire and Quinn McKenna have bolstered the total.
The Mountain Hawks will face off with Delaware on Tuesday, looking to get back to a .500 record on the road, which is currently set at 6-7. The Blue Hens (5-17, 1-2 CAA) have seen better days after falling in their first 13 games to start the season. Since then, Delaware is 5-4, having fallen in its last two games at James Madison.
The Blue Hens are led offensively by Jordan Hutchins, who is the only member of the team hitting over .300 with a .313 average. Hutchins also has two home runs, seven doubles and 18 RBIs on the year. Left-hander Brandon Walter has been excellent so far starting on the mound for Delaware, going 2-3 in six starts with a 2.06 ERA. He has also struck out 44 batters and walked 10 in 35 innings. Walter has double-digit strikeouts in back-to-back games, throwing a four-hit shutout with 12 K's against Goldey-Beacom on Mar. 15 and then struck out 10 batters, while allowing six hits and just one earned run against JMU on Mar. 22.
All-time, the Mountain Hawks are 21-60 against Delaware and fell in the second round of the Liberty Bell Classic last season at J. David Walker Field, 15-7 on Apr. 11, 2018.
On Wednesday, Lehigh will host Saint Peter's for the first of two matchups this season. The Mountain Hawks are quite familiar with the Peacocks after two memorable wins last season, where the Lehigh contingency of Peter Woltersdorf and Matt Svanson no-hit Saint Peter's, 14-0 on Mar. 28 at J. David Walker Field. Then, in the second game of the year in Jersey City, the Mountain Hawks went on to win a 27-2 game on 17 hits.
The Peacocks are currently searching for their first win of the season, coming into Wednesday with an 0-17 record. John Gavura (.292 AVG) and Peter Ferony (.286) lead the Saint Peter's offense, while Steve Epstein is 0-0 with a 3.57 ERA in nine relief appearances this season, striking out 16 batters in 17 2/3 innings of work
Lehigh is 9-1 all-time against Saint Peter's, having won the last six matchups dating back to Mar. 30, 2016. The last time the Mountain Hawks fell to the Peacocks, the team won a Patriot League Championship at the end of the 2015 season.
Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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