LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Lock Haven University baseball team (17-5, 6-2 PSAC East) used
Evan McFarland's (Cottonwood, Ariz./Gateway Community College) bat in game one and
Avery Eddy (Hughesville, Pa./Hughesville) tossed a one-hitter in game two, as the Bald Eagles swept Kutztown University (11-13, 2-6 PSAC East) for the second consecutive day.
The Bald Eagles won game one today, 4-3 and took game two 4-0 behind Eddy's one-hitter.
Yesterday (Sunday, April 3), the Bald Eagles swept Kutztown at home, 2-1 and 10-1 thanks to a pair of strong starts from pitchers
Jacob Belinda (Port Matilda, Pa./Tyrone) and
Mike Anthony (Audubon, Pa./North Hampton Community College), as well as an offensive surge in game two.
The four-game Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division series sweep marked Lock Haven's first since joining the PSAC East in 2014 and it's LHU's first four-game PSAC Divisional series sweep since 2010 when the Bald Eagles took four from Clarion. Last season, LHU did go 3-0-1 vs. Mansfield to close the season.
With the sweep, LHU moved to 17-5 overall and the Bald Eagles are now 6-2 in PSAC East play.
In the 4-3 game-one win, Lock Haven scored four runs on nine hits. Trailing 3-1, the Bald Eagles scored three runs in the top of the sixth to take a 4-3 lead – a lead that would hold, thanks to strong pitching down the stretch.
McFarland, the reigning PSAC East Player of the Week opened LHU's scoring in the second inning with a RBI-single that tied the game at 1-1.
In the sixth,
Justin Sleigh (DuBois, Pa./DuBois) and McFarland hit back-to-back RBI doubles and tied the game at 3-3.
Tyson Petersheim (New Holland, Pa./Garden Spot) added the go-ahead and eventual game-winning run in the sixth on a RBI-single.
Brett Morrison (Duncannon, Pa./Susquenita) provided another quality start and went 5 2/3 innings as he improved to 3-0. He allowed five hits, one walk and struck out five.
Breton LaRose (Ogdensburg, N.Y./Sacred Heart) worked the final 1 1/3 innings on the way to his sixth save of the season.
McFarland finished 2 for 3 with two RBIs and a run scored.
In game-two, Lock Haven jumped on Kutztown early and scored a pair of runs in the third and fourth.
Matt Lahn (Georgetown, ONT./Erie Community College) was 2 for 3 with a RBI and a run scored, and
Cayden Stover (Beech Creek, Pa./Chesapeake College) had a pair of hits and he drove in one run, but it was Eddy who was the biggest story.
Eddy picked up his third win of the season (3-1) in dominating fashion as he threw a complete-game one-hit shutout. He didn't allow a walk and struck out six. The outing lowered Eddy's season ERA to 1.23.
The Bald Eagles will now set their eyes on a four-game PSAC East series with Shippensburg University. LHU will host Shippensburg on Friday (April 7) at 1 p.m., before heading to Ship on Saturday.
Notes:
Earlier today, the updated NCBWA Atlantic Region weekly poll was releases and the Bald Eagles moved up one spot to No. 5 … This afternoon while Game 1 was underway,
Evan McFarland was named the PSAC Eastern Division Player of the Week for last week … Last week, he hit .750 over three starts … The bulk of his dominance at the plate came in a doubleheader sweep of Kutztown yesterday (Sunday, April 2), where he hit .833 over two games (5 for 6; Game 2: 3 for 3, 2 RBIs) … visit
www.GoLHU.com for more information.
