Lehigh Falls To #22 Miami In Season Opener
Lehigh (0-1) and Miami (1-0) met once prior to Friday’s game in a 9-2 Hurricanes win in 2008. Starter AJ Ciscar received the win for Miami after striking out seven batters while allowing five hits and two runs in 5.0 innings. Junior Liam O’Hearen was credited with the loss after allowing one earned run with two strikeouts in 2.0 innings.
O’Hearen had a stellar start to the night, retiring the Canes 1-2-3 with two strikeouts in the bottom of the first inning. The Mountain Hawks generated some offense in the top of the second by way of singles from junior Raffaele Rogers and sophomore Edwin Betances, but Miami escaped the jam. O’Hearen kept the Hurricanes off the board once again in the bottom of the second to keep the game scoreless after two.
Lehigh threatened in the top of the third, loading the bases on singles from junior Robbie Carvelli and senior Owen Walewander while senior Aidan Quinn was hit by a pitch. Senior Trystan Crawford then grounded one towards third base, but Miami’s defender bobbled the ball, allowing Carvelli to score and give Lehigh a 1-0 lead.
Miami responded with a six-run bottom of the third to gain a five-run advantage. A Max Galvin two-RBI double, Alex Sosa three-run homer, and Fabio Peralta RBI single provided the spark for the Hurricanes.
After entering in relief in the third, first-year Ryan Holman kept the Hurricanes off the board in the fourth. First-year Christopher Nell replaced his classmate in the bottom of the fifth and was spectacular, striking out five in 2.1 scoreless innings to keep the Mountain Hawks in the game. In the top of the sixth, senior Dom Patrizi singled home Rogers to cut Lehigh’s deficit to four with three innings remaining.
Down to their final six outs, the Mountain Hawks once again threatened in the top of the eighth. The inning began with a Crawford walk and a Rogers single to put two on with no outs, but Miami’s defense and relievers kept Lehigh from crossing home plate. The Hurricanes added seven runs in the bottom of the eighth to put the game out of reach.
Rogers got on base three times for the Mountain Hawks, going 2-3 with a walk and a run scored. Patrizi provided Lehigh’s lone RBI of the night while Carvelli, Quinn, Betances, senior Owen Walewander and junior Matt Tsiaras also got hits in Friday’s loss.
The Mountain Hawks will play game two of the series against the Hurricanes on Saturday, February 14 at 6 p.m.
Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
