May 13, 2006

For box scores and championship information visit the 2006 Patriot League Softball Championship Page.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Lehigh needed just one game on Saturday to earn its third-straight Patriot League Championship title, defeating Army, 5-1, at Kaufman Field on the campus of Lehigh University. The Mountain Hawks (41-12) will advance to the NCAA Tournament as the League's automatic qualifier. Army ends its season at 18-37 overall.

Lehigh freshman pitcher Lisa Sweeney (Lumberton, N.J./Rancocas Valley Regional) was named the 2006 Tournament Most Valuable Player. Sweeney pitched a perfect game against Army on Friday, came in for the save against Lafayette in game four and earned the victory in Saturday's contest that clinched the title for the Mountain Hawks. Sweeney allowed just one run and four hits in 15.2 innings of work. She struck out 18 and did not walk a batter.

The Mountain Hawks attacked early, putting three runs on the board in the top of the second. Sweeney started off the inning with a single and was moved over to second on a Taryn Hanley (Bremerton, Wash./King's West Christian) bunt. Megan Conrad (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown) tripled to score Sweeney, and came around herself by virtue of a Whitney Schenbeck (Park, Colo./ Ponderosa) triple. Heather Hamasaki (Glendale, Calif./Glendale) singled home Schenbeck for the final Lehigh run of the inning.

Lehigh would score twice more before allowing the only Army run of the game. In the top of the fourth with Conrad at second base Kate Marvel (Manasquan, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) tripled to put up the fourth run of the game for the Mountain Hawks. Marvel's triple brought her total on the year to nine, breaking the Lehigh single-season record and tying the Patriot League single-season mark.

Mary Wieder (Emmaus, Pa./Emmaus) scored the final Lehigh run of the game in the top of the seventh off a Julie Sterrett (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh) RBI double

Army's Nikki Posey (Midlothian, Texas/Midlothian) was the first Black Knight to get a hit off of Sweeney in two games with a single to right field with one out in the sixth. The Black Knights scored their only run of the game in the bottom of the seventh when Jamie Gjurgevich (Tucson, Ariz./Salpointe Catholic) came up with a RBI double to score Melissa Garza (Floresville, Texas/Incarnate Word).

Army pitcher Veronica Barth (Granada Hills, Calif./Chaminade) took the loss, allowing four earned runs in seven innings.

Lehigh's 41 wins match a Patriot League single-season record, established by the 2005 Mountain Hawks.

Lehigh will learn of its NCAA fate on Sunday, May 14 at 3:30 pm on ESPNEWS. NCAA regional play begins Friday, May 19 at campus sites that will be announced tomorrow along with the full 2006 NCAA Softball Tournament bracket.

Photos (c) 2006, Chris Christian/Lehigh Athletics.