Saturday, May 15
Bethlehem, Pa.
12 p.m.
Lehigh University
vs
Navy (Semifinals)
Photo by: Hannahally Photography
Regular season champ Lehigh hosts Navy in Patriot League semifinal series
5/14/2021 4:00:00 PM | Baseball
Game One first pitch set for noon Saturday at Walker Field
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – For the first time since 2016, the Lehigh baseball team is playing in the Patriot League Tournament, but for the first time since 2006, the Mountain Hawks are doing so as the Regular Season Champions.
Top-seeded Lehigh is set to host fourth-seeded Navy Saturday at noon for two best 2-out-of-3 nine-inning contests. Game 3 would be played Sunday at 1 p.m. in the event of a 1-1 series tie.
The Mountain Hawks are coming off a 3-1 weekend at Holy Cross after taking the first three contests before dropping the regular season finale in Worcester. Lehigh finished the season 21-16 overall with a 17-10 record in Patriot League play.
Lehigh and Navy are meeting in the Patriot League Tournament for the first time since 2015, when the Mountain Hawks bested the Midshipmen in three games for the league title in Annapolis. Lehigh is 2-5 all-time against Navy in tournament games.
All-Patriot League teams and major awards were voted on and decided on Wednesday, as Lehigh took home a league-high three major award honors with eight players named All-League for the 2021 season. Junior Casey Rother was named Player of the Year, junior right-hander Mason Black earned Pitcher of the Year honors while head coach Sean Leary was named the Gene DePew Coach of the Year winner for the third time and the first time since 2010.
Rother comes into the semifinal round series as the team's best hitter, slashing .350/.518/.441 with 48 hits, six doubles, five homers and 29 RBIs. He's also walked 19 times and struck out just 13 times in 36 games, playing a mixture of first base and left field this year. Two other Mountain Hawks are hitting above-.300 on the campaign including First Team All-Patriot League selection Eric Cichocki (.323) and Second Team All-Patriot League selection Joe Gorla (.302). Junior Gerard Sweeney was named Patriot League Player of the Week for the final weekend of the regular season after a stellar weekend against the Crusaders. Sweeney is hitting .375 and has driven in 10 runs over his last 10 appearances. Lehigh's top of the lineup has been consistently strong all season long as four members of the starting lineup (Cichocki, Rother, Gorla and Adam Retzbach) earned All-Patriot League laurels when it was all said and done.
As a team offensively, the Mountain Hawks are ranked third in the Patriot League this season with a .253 batting average. They're ranked second in hits (297), second in doubles (59), second in homers (20), third in RBIs (167) and second in walks (149).
Mason Black has certainly lived up to the hype all season long and is continuing to have one of the best seasons ever in Lehigh Baseball program history. The Preseason Pitcher of the Year became the Pitcher of the Year in the Patriot League at season's end. He's 7-2 with a 2.51 ERA in 11 starts, striking out 90 batters in 64.2 innings of work. Lehigh's last Pitching Triple Crown (wins, ERA, strikeouts) winner was Dave Cerminaro in 2002 and Black is on the brink of also taking home that honor this year. Cerminaro was also Lehigh's last Pitcher of the Year honoree back in '02 as well. With 90 strikeouts, Black is also just five away from breaking and setting the new single-season program record, currently held by Lehigh Athletics Hall of Famer Craig Anderson since 1960, a 61-year-old record. He has reached the 10 or more-strikeout plateau in six games this year. A couple solid postseason performance could assist Black be named a semifinalist for the prestigious Golden Spikes Award.
Though Black has made most of the headlines this season, the Mountain Hawks boast two more hurlers that have made a tremendous impact on the starting rotation all season long. Matt Svanson (3-4. 2.73 ERA) and Luke Rettig (2-3, 3.86) each made appearances on All-Patriot League teams as members of the First Team and Second Team, respectively. With 57 strikeouts, Svanson is ranked second in the league, while Rettig's 50 is good enough for third.
In relief, no one was better than Sam Wurth in 2021, who finished 2-2 with a 2.08 ERA in 21.2 innings of work, finishing with four saves. He was named a First Team All-Patriot League player this season. Wurth has not allowed an earned run since April 14 at Lafayette, throwing nine straight scoreless innings.
Lehigh's pitching staff is ranked first in the league in ERA (4.24), first in shutouts (3), first in earned runs (145), second in strikeouts (323) and second in opponents' batting average (.252).
The Midshipmen (16-13, 11-12 PL) have won two straight games and are attempting to qualify for the Patriot League Championship series for the third straight season. Navy has not won a league title since 2016.
Navy is led by First Team All-Patriot League selection Nico Valdez, who is slashing .341/.402/.462 with 19 walks in 27 games. Four other Mids are hitting above .300 this season including Logan Keller (.327), Christian Policelli (.325), Zach Stevens (.324) and Zane Raba (.300). Stevens enters the weekend as the team's leader in home runs with four.
On the mound, Charlie Connolly has been excellent, boasting a 4-1 record with a 3.62 ERA in 32.1 innings of work in seven starts. Jared Leins has come back from injury in a big way, is 1-0 with a 1.62 ERA in six appearances, making four starts. In 13 appearances out of the bullpen, Trey Braithwaite has been a consistent stopper for the Midshipmen over the years and is 3-2 with a 4.84 ERA in 13 appearances with three saves.
Navy's batting is tops in the league with a .286 average and a .398 slugging percentage. However, the Midshipmen have lacked power this season with just 10 home runs.
On the mound, Navy has the highest ERA in the league at 6.62 and is fifth with 218 total strikeouts.
Lehigh is 4-2 against the Midshipmen this season in six games and have held Navy to a 2.81 ERA over 48 innings. In the all-time series, Navy has a record of 90-48 against the Mountain Hawks since the series began in 1895.
Saturday's doubleheader starts at noon and will be streamed live on ESPN+. Should the series be pushed to a third deciding game on Sunday afternoon, that contest will begin at 1 p.m.
Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Top-seeded Lehigh is set to host fourth-seeded Navy Saturday at noon for two best 2-out-of-3 nine-inning contests. Game 3 would be played Sunday at 1 p.m. in the event of a 1-1 series tie.
The Mountain Hawks are coming off a 3-1 weekend at Holy Cross after taking the first three contests before dropping the regular season finale in Worcester. Lehigh finished the season 21-16 overall with a 17-10 record in Patriot League play.
Lehigh and Navy are meeting in the Patriot League Tournament for the first time since 2015, when the Mountain Hawks bested the Midshipmen in three games for the league title in Annapolis. Lehigh is 2-5 all-time against Navy in tournament games.
All-Patriot League teams and major awards were voted on and decided on Wednesday, as Lehigh took home a league-high three major award honors with eight players named All-League for the 2021 season. Junior Casey Rother was named Player of the Year, junior right-hander Mason Black earned Pitcher of the Year honors while head coach Sean Leary was named the Gene DePew Coach of the Year winner for the third time and the first time since 2010.
Rother comes into the semifinal round series as the team's best hitter, slashing .350/.518/.441 with 48 hits, six doubles, five homers and 29 RBIs. He's also walked 19 times and struck out just 13 times in 36 games, playing a mixture of first base and left field this year. Two other Mountain Hawks are hitting above-.300 on the campaign including First Team All-Patriot League selection Eric Cichocki (.323) and Second Team All-Patriot League selection Joe Gorla (.302). Junior Gerard Sweeney was named Patriot League Player of the Week for the final weekend of the regular season after a stellar weekend against the Crusaders. Sweeney is hitting .375 and has driven in 10 runs over his last 10 appearances. Lehigh's top of the lineup has been consistently strong all season long as four members of the starting lineup (Cichocki, Rother, Gorla and Adam Retzbach) earned All-Patriot League laurels when it was all said and done.
As a team offensively, the Mountain Hawks are ranked third in the Patriot League this season with a .253 batting average. They're ranked second in hits (297), second in doubles (59), second in homers (20), third in RBIs (167) and second in walks (149).
Mason Black has certainly lived up to the hype all season long and is continuing to have one of the best seasons ever in Lehigh Baseball program history. The Preseason Pitcher of the Year became the Pitcher of the Year in the Patriot League at season's end. He's 7-2 with a 2.51 ERA in 11 starts, striking out 90 batters in 64.2 innings of work. Lehigh's last Pitching Triple Crown (wins, ERA, strikeouts) winner was Dave Cerminaro in 2002 and Black is on the brink of also taking home that honor this year. Cerminaro was also Lehigh's last Pitcher of the Year honoree back in '02 as well. With 90 strikeouts, Black is also just five away from breaking and setting the new single-season program record, currently held by Lehigh Athletics Hall of Famer Craig Anderson since 1960, a 61-year-old record. He has reached the 10 or more-strikeout plateau in six games this year. A couple solid postseason performance could assist Black be named a semifinalist for the prestigious Golden Spikes Award.
Though Black has made most of the headlines this season, the Mountain Hawks boast two more hurlers that have made a tremendous impact on the starting rotation all season long. Matt Svanson (3-4. 2.73 ERA) and Luke Rettig (2-3, 3.86) each made appearances on All-Patriot League teams as members of the First Team and Second Team, respectively. With 57 strikeouts, Svanson is ranked second in the league, while Rettig's 50 is good enough for third.
In relief, no one was better than Sam Wurth in 2021, who finished 2-2 with a 2.08 ERA in 21.2 innings of work, finishing with four saves. He was named a First Team All-Patriot League player this season. Wurth has not allowed an earned run since April 14 at Lafayette, throwing nine straight scoreless innings.
Lehigh's pitching staff is ranked first in the league in ERA (4.24), first in shutouts (3), first in earned runs (145), second in strikeouts (323) and second in opponents' batting average (.252).
The Midshipmen (16-13, 11-12 PL) have won two straight games and are attempting to qualify for the Patriot League Championship series for the third straight season. Navy has not won a league title since 2016.
Navy is led by First Team All-Patriot League selection Nico Valdez, who is slashing .341/.402/.462 with 19 walks in 27 games. Four other Mids are hitting above .300 this season including Logan Keller (.327), Christian Policelli (.325), Zach Stevens (.324) and Zane Raba (.300). Stevens enters the weekend as the team's leader in home runs with four.
On the mound, Charlie Connolly has been excellent, boasting a 4-1 record with a 3.62 ERA in 32.1 innings of work in seven starts. Jared Leins has come back from injury in a big way, is 1-0 with a 1.62 ERA in six appearances, making four starts. In 13 appearances out of the bullpen, Trey Braithwaite has been a consistent stopper for the Midshipmen over the years and is 3-2 with a 4.84 ERA in 13 appearances with three saves.
Navy's batting is tops in the league with a .286 average and a .398 slugging percentage. However, the Midshipmen have lacked power this season with just 10 home runs.
On the mound, Navy has the highest ERA in the league at 6.62 and is fifth with 218 total strikeouts.
Lehigh is 4-2 against the Midshipmen this season in six games and have held Navy to a 2.81 ERA over 48 innings. In the all-time series, Navy has a record of 90-48 against the Mountain Hawks since the series began in 1895.
Saturday's doubleheader starts at noon and will be streamed live on ESPN+. Should the series be pushed to a third deciding game on Sunday afternoon, that contest will begin at 1 p.m.
Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Players Mentioned
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