Baseball looks to extend winning streak against Rider
Posted: 03/05/2013 | Last updated: March 5, 2013 at 01:21 PM
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh baseball team will put its winning record to the test when it faces Rider in a single game at 3 p.m. Wednesday on Sonny Pittaro Field. The Mountain Hawks enter the contest with a 5-4 mark overall following wins against Iona and Fordham Sunday. Rider will take on Lafayette on Tuesday before facing Lehigh Wednesday.
Lehigh outscored its Bronx opponents 10-3 in the two games Sunday, taking down Iona 4-3 in 10 innings and shutting out Fordham 6-0. Juniors Tyler Brong and Brandon Wilt had three-hit performances in the contests and Wilt swiped four bases. Sophomore Justin Pacchioli earned his first Patriot League Player of the Week honor Monday and remains Lehigh’s best hitter at .385 (10-for-26) in seven starts. Sophomore John Elson shares the team lead in RBI with senior Casey Turner, as both players have five in nine games.
Juniors Colin Gotzon and Jayme Edwards earned two wins each in the Mountain Hawks four games over the weekend. Gotzon earned Patriot League Pitcher of the Week last week after throwing four shutout innings against Iona Sunday, while Edwards held Fordham without a run over six innings in Lehigh’s second game that day. Overall, Lehigh’s stingy pitching has given up just 58 hits in 74 innings of work this season.
Rider has an overall record of 5-1 after back-to-back seven-inning victories against Radford. The Broncs are hitting .304 as a team and are led by Adam Wayman’s .485 (11-for-24) batting average. Nick Crescenzo has drove in a team-high nine runs so far this season.
Kurt Sowa and Tyler Smith lead Rider’s pitching staff with two wins apiece, but Smith owns the advantage in strikeouts with 13 to Sowa’s five. Sowa is coming off a complete game outing against Radford.
Wednesday’s game will be the first matchup between the Mountain Hawks and Broncs since 2007 when Rider pulled away with a 12-5 victory on its home field. Rider leads the overall series 32-13.
First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. Following the game, Lehigh will play a three-game series against Coppin State on Saturday and Sunday to kick off its Spring Break.
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