Lehigh 11, Saint Peter’s 5

JERSEY CITY, N.J. (Interstat) — Ryan Holman pitched three hitless innings of relief and Lehigh’s offense broke open a tight game with six unearned runs in the sixth inning, leading the Mountain Hawks to an 11-5 victory over Saint Peter’s on Wednesday afternoon at Joseph J. Jaroschak Field.

Holman, the top star for Lehigh, struck out six batters and did not allow a hit or an earned run over three innings of work. The outing was a bounce-back performance for Holman, who had allowed four earned runs in two innings against Coppin State on April 14 and two earned runs in two innings against Army on April 11.

Lehigh improved to 12-26 overall. Saint Peter’s fell to 4-33.

The Mountain Hawks struck first in the top of the third inning after a walk and a single put two runners on base. An Aidan Quinn hit by pitch loaded the bases, but Owen Walewander flied out to left field to end the threat.

Saint Peter’s took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning when an error by the third baseman allowed Allen Ramos to reach second base. A throwing error by the first baseman put runners on the corners, and Ramos scored on a wild pitch with two outs to give the Peacocks an early lead.

Lehigh answered in the top of the fourth inning. Trystan Crawford walked and scored on a single by Cadeyrn Ahearn, and Ian Wirtz scored on a sacrifice fly by Max Dantoni to give Lehigh a 2-1 lead.

The game remained 2-1 until the top of the sixth inning, when Lehigh sent 12 batters to the plate and scored six unearned runs. A pair of errors extended the inning, and Walewander delivered the key blow with a three-run double to left field. Walewander later stole third base and scored on a throwing error by the catcher, giving Lehigh an 8-1 lead.

Dom Patrizi went 3 for 4 with two RBIs for Lehigh. Walewander finished 2 for 4 with three RBIs.

Lehigh added two more runs in the top of the eighth inning on a double by Patrizi and another run in the top of the seventh on a single by Silvio Giardina.

Ralph Gariano pitched three hitless innings with four strikeouts in a starting role for Lehigh. David Andolina allowed one earned run over two innings and struck out four. Cole Kochanowicz pitched one hitless inning and struck out one.

Saint Peter’s scored four unearned runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to cut the lead to 8-5. A fielding error by the shortstop loaded the bases, and Ramos drove in one run with a single. Louis D’Alessio grounded out to drive in another run, and Joey Dwyer singled to drive in the third run of the inning.

Linden Reaburn started for Saint Peter’s and allowed one hit over two and two-thirds innings with four strikeouts. Jackson Thorne pitched one inning and struck out three. Davis Gore allowed one earned run over one and one-third innings.

Allen Ramos went 1 for 3 with an RBI for Saint Peter’s.

The two teams last met on March 11, when Saint Peter’s defeated Lehigh 12-3 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Lehigh next plays a three-game series at Holy Cross starting Saturday. Saint Peter’s hosts Niagara for a three-game series beginning Friday.