Baseball Heads to Lafayette for Weekend Series

EASTON, Pa. – Army West Point Baseball travels to the Lehigh Valley for a three-game set at the Lafayette Leopards.

The teams will play a doubleheader Saturday, with a first pitch time of 12:00 p.m. A series finale is slated for 1:00 p.m. Sunday at Kamine Stadium.

All three games are scheduled to be on ESPN+.

Notes and Storylines

» Army secured a midweek series win Tuesday at home, dispatching Stony Brook 4-1. Bryce Brownlee set the table with his 4.2 inning, zero-run and two-strikeout start, giving way to eventual winner Joel Rubin in the fifth. William Parker was 3-for-4 with an RBI, and Derek Berg had two RBIs. Coleson Titus moved from the everyday DH spot to catcher and threw out both attempted base stealers. The Black Knights committed no errors in the field and Andrew Berg recorded a seven-out save.

» One day after suffering a doubleheader sweep at the hands of Holy Cross last Saturday, it took the Black Knights less than one inning Sunday to surpass Saturday's total offensive output at Doubleday Field. The Black Knights went ahead 5-0 after one inning, and exploded for nine runs on seven hits in the third. Leading by as much as 21 after six, Army bludgeoned the Crusaders 21-6 in the weekend series finale for its second run-rule win in Patriot League play.

Not to be outdone by the lively hitting, Steven Graver delivered six scoreless innings, striking out four and allowing just five baserunners.

Army finished the weekend series 2-2 after a win in Friday's series opener.

» Sam Ruta made history Sunday against Holy Cross, tying a program single-game record with eight RBIs, and hitting two home runs (including a grand slam) to break the program record for career home runs. The senior stands at 36 home runs across his career with a team-leading 11 this year. In addition to leading the league in homers (11), Ruta's 28 walks are third-most in the league.

D1 Baseball slotted Ruta as the No. 19 third baseman nationally in its Midseason Player Position Rankings.

» 11 games into Patriot League play, Army has allowed six or fewer runs in each matchup, and three or fewer runs in seven games across that stretch. The team's conference ERA sits at league-best 4.07. Black Knight starting pitching has gone five innings or longer in all but one Patriot League game. Army has not allowed a home run in conference play.

» Army leads the Patriot League in home runs (34) across all games, and in batting average across league games (.292).

Behind Enemy Lines

» The Leopards enter Saturday with a 9-24 record, and a 4-7 Patriot League mark.

» The Pennsylvania program split a pair of midweek matchups this week, falling to Delaware in the Liberty Bell Classic Tuesday before dispatching St. Peter's Wednesday.

» Lafayette was swept at home against Bucknell in a doubleheader April 6, but responded with a doubleheader sweep the next day against Navy.

» Senior Blaze Fadio leads the team with a .336 AVG. Sophomore catcher Ethan Swidler follows at .295. The duo each have a team-high five home runs.

Next Up

Army will return to Patriot League action next week for its sole conference midweek game this year, at Holy Cross 5:00 p.m. Wednesday. The Black Knights are next at home April 20 to begin a three-game series against Bucknell.

Follow the Black Knights

Follow Army Baseball on X @ArmyWP_Baseball and on Instagram @armywp_baseball. Fans can also like Army West Point Athletics on Facebook and learn more about baseball and other programs at goarmywestpoint.com.

Baseball Heads to Lafayette for Weekend Series

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Players Mentioned

Andrew Berg

Derek Berg

Bryce Brownlee

Steven Graver

William Parker

Joel Rubin

Sam Ruta

Coleson Titus

Army West Point Athletics