EASTON, Pa. – Lehigh took both ends of Saturday's softball doubleheader, winning 8-7 and 7-5 on an unseasonably warm day at Metzgar Fields.
Senior catcher
Maggie Klug had a strong day overall, collecting four hits while driving in three runs. The Tennessee native also managed to throw out a pair of baserunners from behind the plate.
Big innings were the story of game one. The Leopards trailed 3-0 after two and a half innings when they warmed up their bats. Lafayette batted around the order in the bottom of the third.
Emma Ahlborn's infield single scored the second run of the inning after an initial score on a passed ball. Klug knocked in two more with a single to right. Then, a first-and-third steal pushed Lafayette ahead 6-3.
Lafayette extended its lead to 7-3 in the fourth inning when Klug came through again with an RBI-single.
Lehigh re-took the lead in the top of the fifth inning, plating five runs on three hits and two Leopard errors. In the bottom half of the inning, Lafayette managed three hits but stranded two runners without scoring.
In the top of the seventh,
Marisa Powell struck out the side for Lafayette and gave the Leopards a final chance in the bottom of the inning. The hosts advanced a runner into scoring position with two outs before a groundout ended the game with the 8-7 score intact.
Powell was tagged with the loss, despite allowing just two runs and a lone hit while striking out three and walking two. Starter
Makayla Lecky gave up four earned on 11 hits with a strikeout. Maria Urban, who was the third Lehigh pitcher in the circle, grabbed the victory. She did not allow any runs over 3.1 innings pitched.
Game two was knotted at 4-4 through five innings before Lehigh scored three runs in the top of the sixth in a 7-5 final.
Lehigh struck first with two runs in the top of the first on a Rory Dudley double. The visitors stretched it to 4-0 in the third inning via singles by Dudley and Holly Lovett.
The Leopards scored four runs on three hits with the aid of two Lehigh errors in the bottom of the third inning to knot the score at 4-4.
Katie Harrington, Ahlborn and
Regan Dillon all drove in runs for the Leopards.
In the sixth, Lehigh took control of the game, pushing across three runs on five hits to lead 7-4. Lecky came on in relief of starter
Parker Rowden to get the final two outs of the inning.
The Leopards cut the gap to two with a score in the bottom of the inning.
Jocelyn O'Keeffe drove home
Sabina Lehnert, who had pinch run for Klug after her lead-off single. Madison Finnerty retired two of the next three batters to keep the score at 7-5, where it stood at its conclusion.
Finnerty tossed 4.2 innings, allowing one run on three hits with four strikeouts. Rowden took the loss after giving up six runs on 10 hits over 5.1 innings.
The teams will finish off the second Patriot League weekend on Sunday with first pitch slated for 12:05 p.m.
