Mountain Hawks Fall 4-3 in Rubber Match at Bucknell
The Lehigh softball team dropped its series finale at Bucknell 4-3 Sunday at Becker Field. Three Lehigh errors led to all four Bucknell runs being unearned The Mountain Hawks fall to 22-24 overall and 4-11 in Patriot League play.
Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks Fall 4-3 in Rubber Match at Bucknell
4/19/2026 5:11:00 PM | Softball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Lehigh softball team dropped its series finale at Bucknell 4-3 Sunday at Becker Field. Three Lehigh errors led to all four Bucknell runs being unearned The Mountain Hawks fall to 22-24 overall and 4-11 in Patriot League play.
Bucknell (8-30-1, 5-7 PL) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Molly Lawson doubled to center field with two outs and then came around to score when Kelly Fricker couldn't handle Shea Malone's ground ball at second base.
Fricker led off the fourth with a bunt single and came all the way around to tie the game at 1-1 when junior Peyton Sward's bunt was thrown away.
The Bison answered with two runs in the bottom of the fourth to take a 3-1 lead. A dropped foul ball prolonged an at bat, allowing Molly Lawson to double home Brooke Popella. Later in the inning Marissa Rapino doubled down the left field line scoring pinch runner Skye Perez.
Sophomore Lizzie Kern tripled into the right field corner with one out in the fifth and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of senior Abbey Tabaka.
A catcher's interference call against Lehigh led to Popella singling home Sarah Zimmerman in the fifth to put the Bison back up by two.
In the sixth, Lehigh had runners on the corners with nobody out. Sward hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-3 and junior Holly Lovett doubled, putting runners at second and third with one out. A failed bunt attempt and then a ground ball to shortstop got Bucknell out of the jam with the lead intact.
Lehigh went down in order in the seventh inning, giving the Bison the 2-1 series win.
Senior Chloe Hess started in the circle allowing three unearned runs on six hits over 3.2 innings with one strikeout. First-year Addison Moorman went the remaining 2.1 innings allowing an unearned run on one hit with a walk and two strikeouts.
Lehigh registered five hits against Bucknell's Avery Powers, led by Fricker's two.
The Mountain Hawks return to Leadership Park to host Saint Joseph's Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.
Bucknell (8-30-1, 5-7 PL) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Molly Lawson doubled to center field with two outs and then came around to score when Kelly Fricker couldn't handle Shea Malone's ground ball at second base.
Fricker led off the fourth with a bunt single and came all the way around to tie the game at 1-1 when junior Peyton Sward's bunt was thrown away.
The Bison answered with two runs in the bottom of the fourth to take a 3-1 lead. A dropped foul ball prolonged an at bat, allowing Molly Lawson to double home Brooke Popella. Later in the inning Marissa Rapino doubled down the left field line scoring pinch runner Skye Perez.
Sophomore Lizzie Kern tripled into the right field corner with one out in the fifth and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of senior Abbey Tabaka.
A catcher's interference call against Lehigh led to Popella singling home Sarah Zimmerman in the fifth to put the Bison back up by two.
In the sixth, Lehigh had runners on the corners with nobody out. Sward hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-3 and junior Holly Lovett doubled, putting runners at second and third with one out. A failed bunt attempt and then a ground ball to shortstop got Bucknell out of the jam with the lead intact.
Lehigh went down in order in the seventh inning, giving the Bison the 2-1 series win.
Senior Chloe Hess started in the circle allowing three unearned runs on six hits over 3.2 innings with one strikeout. First-year Addison Moorman went the remaining 2.1 innings allowing an unearned run on one hit with a walk and two strikeouts.
Lehigh registered five hits against Bucknell's Avery Powers, led by Fricker's two.
The Mountain Hawks return to Leadership Park to host Saint Joseph's Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Avery Powers (6-11)
L: Hess, Chloe (3-1)
Lehigh
Batting:
2B: Lovett, Holly 1
3B: Kern, Lizzie 1
RBI: Sward, Peyton 1 ; Tabaka, Abbey 1
SF: Sward, Peyton 1 ; Tabaka, Abbey 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Fricker, Kelly 1 ; Kern, Lizzie 1 ; Woloshyn, Helen 1
SB: Woloshyn, Helen 1
Bucknell
Batting:
2B: Brooke Popella 1 ; Molly Lawson 2 ; Marissa Rapino 1
RBI: Brooke Popella 1 ; Molly Lawson 1 ; Marissa Rapino 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sarah Zimmerman 1 ; Brooke Popella 1 ; Molly Lawson 1 ; Skye Perez 1
CS: Haley Speicher 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
MHT EP 12 - Softball
Friday, March 13
2026 Lehigh Softball Season Preview
Thursday, February 05
Lehigh Sports Central: Softball
Wednesday, April 30
2025 Season Preview: Softball
Thursday, February 06