The Matchup
The Leopards travel to West Point, N.Y. this weekend to continue Patriot League play in a three-game series with Army that starts on Friday. Army leads the all-time series, which began in 1896, with a record of 106-69-2. The Black Knights won the season series last year, winning four of the five matchups between the two squads. This weekend's games were originally scheduled to be played on Saturday and Sunday, but due to expected weather conditions in the Hudson Valley region, Sunday's game has been moved up to Friday, and will be played at 6 p.m. Saturday's doubleheader remains unchanged and will still start at noon.

A Familiar Face
A.J. Miller '11 has returned to College Hill as the Leopards' skipper in 2023. Miller who is a 2011 Lafayette graduate was the 2011 Patriot League Player of the Year, a All-Patriot League First-Team selection and tied the Lafayette program record for home runs with 22. Miller was a Charles L. Albert '08 award recipient and received the Paul E. Koch '28 award during his time in Easton. After leaving College Hill, Miller went on to play professional baseball for the Normal Cornbelters of the Frontier League and the Lincoln Saltdogs of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. He spent the previous seven years on the baseball staff at Lehigh University, holding titles of assistant coach, recruiting coordinator and associate head coach during his tenure.

Weekly Honors
Lafayette has won four weekly awards in the season to date. Freshman pitcher James Reese was awarded Patriot League Baseball Rookie of the Week for his work on the mound against High Point. Junior Blaze Fadio was named Patriot League Baseball Player of the Week and freshman Ethan Swidler was selected as Patriot League Baseball Rookie of the Week for their performances at Southeastern Louisiana. Senior Alex Walsh was named Patriot League Baseball Pitcher of the Week for his effort against Davidson. These were the first weekly honors for the four members of the Lafayette Nine.

The Leopards
Lafayette comes into the weekend sitting in fourth place in the Patriot League standings, with a 9-9 record in the league. The Leopards dropped their last game to Seton Hall 9-2 on Wednesday. Lafayette is led by sophomore Michael Zarrillo. The Atlanta, Ga. native has hit .295 this year with six home runs, nine doubles and 24 RBIs. Another player to watch for the Leopards is senior Seif Ingram. Ingram is batting .278, with 50 hits, four triples, seven home runs and 30 RBIs. Senior Pete Ciuffreda is tied for second in home runs in the Patriot League, with 11. On the mound, senior Alex Walsh has been the ace of the Leopards' pitching staff, recording a 4-1 record in 49.1 innings pitched, with a 2.92 ERA and 45 strikeouts, along with holding opposing batters to a Patriot League best .181 average.

The Opponent
Army enters this weekend with a 28-13 overall record and a 16-2 record in the Patriot League. The Black Knights are coming off of an 11-7 loss to Columbia on Tuesday. Offensively, Army has been led by Kevin Dubrule, who leads the Patriot League in batting with a .416 average, and also has 69 hits, 16 doubles, six home runs and 50 RBIs. On the mound for the Black Knights are Mike Ruggieri and Tanner Gresham, who have been outstanding. Ruggieri has a Patriot League best ERA of 2.30, along with a 6-1 record in 47 innings pitched, and has recorded 45 strikeouts. Gresham has a 2.90 ERA in 59 innings pitched, with a 5-1 record and 56 strikeouts.