March 17, 2008
Center Valley, Pa. - Every Patriot League team played at least three contests last week, with Navy leading all squads with seven games. The Mids also had the best record of the week at 5-2, with Lehigh posting a winning mark at 3-2. Lafayette split its four games for the week, while Army, Bucknell and Holy Cross all finished below .500.
Patriot League Baseball Release - 3.17.08 
Player of the Week (March 10-16)
Mitch Harris, Navy Sr., DH, Mt. Holly, N.C.
Harris helped Navy to a 5-2 record last week while becoming the first player in school history to homer in three consecutive games twice during his career. Harris only hit .231 (6-for-26) for the week, but notched four home runs, eight RBI and five runs scored to lead the Mids. He was 5-for-14 with all of his home runs and seven of his RBI in the last four contests of the week, where Navy went 3-1. He started his home run binge with a solo shot in a 20-6 win at Maryland-Eastern Shore on Thursday. He went 2-for-3 with two home runs and four RBI in a 6-3 win over Monmouth on Friday, and then hit a home run and a go-ahead triple in the seventh inning of a 5-4 win over Maine on Saturday. Harris was the first Navy player since 1999 to go deep twice in the same game. Harris earns his first Patriot League Player of the Week honor of the year and second of his career to go with six Pitcher of the Week nods.
Pitcher of the Week (March 10-16)
Jason Buursma, Bucknell Sr., P, Seattle, Wash.
Buursma tossed a nine-inning complete game while allowing one run and seven hits and striking out six in an 8-1 victory over Eastern Kentucky on Monday. The nine innings were a career high. He added a pair of scoreless relief appearances later in the week, and finished his week with 11 innings pitched, one run and seven hits allowed, and eight strikeouts. Buursma also excelled at the plate with a .467 batting average and three home runs. He earns his first Pitcher of the Week award of the season, and second of his career.
Rookie of the Week (March 10-16)
Zach Fritz, Lafayette Fr., P, Pottsville, Pa.
Fritz threw five shutout innings to win his first collegiate start in Lafayette's 13-2 win over Harvard on Sunday. He allowed just four hits and did not walk a batter while striking out three. Fritz had seven scoreless innings for the week, as he allowed one hit in two innings of work in Lafayette's victory over La Salle. Fritz receives his first Patriot League Rookie of the Week honor.
Patriot League Notebook
Changing it Up in the Sunshine State
First, it was Lehigh and Holy Cross. Last week, it was Bucknell. Now, Lafayette and Army are trying their luck playing games in Florida. The Leopards are 1-2 in their first three games in Bradenton, and play two more contests on Monday and Tuesday. Army dropped a doubleheader to Massachusetts to open its time in the Sunshine State, and has another game with the Minutemen in Tampa before playing four in Bradenton. Patriot League teams have a 12-16 record in games played in Florida this season.
Home Schedules Heating up, Too
The only team that didnt go to Florida was Navy, and that's because the Mids have already played 11 home games in their first 16 contests. They finally have some company in the home record column, as Lehigh began its home slate by dropping two of three to George Washington over the weekend. Bucknell and Holy Cross are both set to play their home openers with mid-week games this week.
Patriot League Players on National Radar...Again
Navy's Mitch Harris, Army's Cole White and Bucknell's Mathew Wilson have all been named to the 2008 Roger Clemens Award Watch List. They are part of a group of 78 pitchers up for the award as college baseball's pitcher of the year. That same trio was also named to the Brooks Wallace Award Player of the Year Watch List before the season.
Four-Team Tournament
A change in the format adds another team and another round to this year's Patriot League Baseball Tournament. The best-of-three semifinals will be at the site of the top two seeds on May 10 and 11, with the best-of-three Patriot League Championship at the site of the highest remaining seed on May 17-18.
Team Notebooks
Army The Black Knights have dropped their last six contests after losing at Seton Hall on Wednesday and getting swept in a doubleheader by Massachusetts on Sunday. At 2-11, Army is off to its worst start since 1999. Senior right-hander Cole White made his seasonal pitching debut against Seton Hall and fired two shutout innings. Army completes its three-game set against Massachusetts in Tampa on Monday, then plays four games in Bradenton to close out the Florida trip.
Bucknell The Bison dropped their final five contests on their spring trip in Bradenton, Florida, to fall to 5-7-2 for the year. They had won the first two games of the trip. Senior Mark Angelo had a nine-game hitting streak that ended on the final game of the trip on Saturday. Jason Buursma allowed one run in 11 innings during the week, including a nine-inning complete game against Eastern Kentucky on Monday. Sophomore Andrew Brouse tied a school single-game record with three doubles against Illinois State. The Bison play their first two home games this week, taking on Niagara on Tuesday and Mount St. Mary's on Thursday.
Holy Cross After their home opener against Assumption was rained out on Wednesday, the Crusaders were swept in a four-game series at Washington over the weekend. They lost by scores of 7-5 and 4-1 on Saturday, and 14-0 and 8-0 on Sunday. The Crusaders go to Siena on Wednesday, then once again try to play on their home field with games against Le Moyne on Thursday and Quinnipiac on Saturday.
Lafayette The Leopards started the week with an 11-0 shutout of La Salle on Tuesday, and currently have a 1-2 record on their spring trip to Bradenton, Florida. Lafayette fell in close contests to Illinois State and Harvard, then beat the Crimson, 13-2, on the back end of a doubleheader on Sunday. Zach Fritz earned the victory against the Crimson in his first collegiate start. The Leopards have games in Bradenton on Monday and Tuesday, then play a three-game set at Delaware from Thursday-Saturday.
Lehigh The Mountain Hawks won weekday games at Delaware State and Coppin State, then extended their winning streak to six games by beating George Washington in the first matchup of a three-game set at home. Lehigh dropped the last two games of the series against the Colonials. It was the start of the home schedule for the Mountain Hawks. Joe Matteo threw seven innings of one-run ball to earn the victory in the 2-1 triumph over George Washington. Freshman Brendan McGaheran was 9-for-19 with seven runs scored for the week, while classmate Austin Borden went 6-for-12 with a home run and four RBI. The Mountain Hawks play four road games this week, with a Tuesday clash at Temple and a three-game weekend series at Penn State.
Navy The Midshipmen posted a 5-2 record in the last week, with one of the losses coming on the road at No. 16 Virginia. Designated hitter Mitch Harris returned to the lineup and belted four home runs and eight RBI for the week, and became the first player in Navy history to homer in three consecutive games twice in his career. The Mids defeated Maryland-Eastern Shore, 20-6, scoring their most runs since putting up 24 against Hartford on March 22, 2003 and matching their most hits (24) since facing Bucknell in the 2003 Patriot League Tournament. Navy southpaw Yale Eckert came just two outs away from throwing a no-hitter against Iona on Monday. The no-no was snapped on an infield single with one out in the seventh inning. Eckert got the final-two outs to preserve the one-hit shutout. Navy has hit nine home runs in 11 home games this year, with six Mids contributing to that total. Last year, the Midshipmen hit only one home run in 33 home games. Navy is in the midst of a nine-game homestand, which continues against Belmont Abbey on Wednesday and with a four-game weekend series against Princeton beginning on Friday.
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