LEWISBURG, Pa. – Navy baseball (5-1, 1-1 Patriot League) started its Patriot League schedule on Saturday by splitting a doubleheader on the road against Bucknell (5-8, 5-4 Patriot League). The Midshipmen rolled to a 7-1 win in the first game of the weekend but suffered an 11-1 loss in the second half of the doubleheader at Depew Field.
 
Charlie Connolly (Sr., Wayne, Pa.) struck out a season-high 10 batters in the first game on Saturday to pick up this third win of the season. At the plate, Alex Smith (So., Laguna Hills, Calif.) finished with a team-high three hits for the day, while Zach Stevens (Jr., Lexington, Mass.) belted the Midshipmen's first home run of the season with a three-run blast in game one.
 
"Charlie had an outstanding game in game one, he threw the ball really well," head coach Paul Kostacopoulos commented. "We had a lot of opportunities on offense in the first game and the top of our lineup did well. Our top two guys were getting on base and the middle of the order was able to drive them in. Game two just got away from us early and we could not get back into it, but now we just have to regroup and get ready for tomorrow."
 
Navy 7, Bucknell 1
 
Navy got off to a strong start in its first game back from a three-week pause and pushed across three runs in the opening frame. Following back-to-back walks to Joe Simourian (Jr., Andover, Mass.) and Logan Keller (Fr., Longwood, Fla.), Stevens launched a three-run home run over the wall in right-center field to give the Midshipmen a 3-0 lead over the Bison.
 
The offense for Navy continued its strong start at the plate as it scored a run in each of its first three plate appearances. In the second inning, Smith drove in Keller with a single out to centerfield. Then in the third inning, Nico Valdez (Jr., Stevenson Ranch, Calif.) doubled down the left-field line with one out and then after a single from Zane Raba (Fr., San Antonio, Texas), Hudson Lehnertz (Fr., Santa Ana, Calif.) singled to right field plating Valdez to give the Midshipmen a 5-0 advantage after the first three innings of play.
 
Connolly controlled the mound for Navy and after allowing a leadoff double to start the game, he retired the next 11 batters before the Bison recorded back-to-back singles in the fourth inning.
 
In the fifth inning, the two teams traded a run as the Midshipmen loaded the bases and Keller worked a bases-loaded walk to score Valdez from third base. Then in the home half of the inning, Chris Cannizzaro's two-out double got Bucknell on the board.
 
Navy added an insurance run in the sixth inning as it loaded the bases once again and Valdez drove in Smith with a sacrifice fly to make it a 7-1 game.
 
Jack Ferguson (Sr., Atlanta, Ga.) finished the game on the mound for the Midshipmen and tossed a perfect seventh inning with a strikeout to secure the win in the first game of the doubleheader.
 
Connolly (3-0) finished with a season-high 10 strikeouts and was just one off his career-high. He allowed just one run on four hits and a walk over his six innings of work.
 
Will Greer (2-1) suffered the loss after allowing five runs on 10 hits and three walks in his four-inning start.
 
Bucknell 11, Navy 1 (7 innings)
 
In the second half of the doubleheader, Bucknell turned the tables on the Midshipmen with a three-run first inning and the Bison never looked back. Eunsung Yu delivered a two-run triple and then he scored on a groundout to take the 3-0 advantage after the opening stanza.
 
Navy answered back with one run in the top of the second inning following a sacrifice fly from Valdez that brought home Smith – who led off the inning with a double – to cut the deficit to two runs for the Midshipmen. Navy was unable to get any closer as they left two runners on base.
 
After being held scoreless in the second and third innings, the Bison broke the game open with three runs on four hits in the fourth inning and four runs on three hits in the fifth inning to grab a 10-1 lead.
 
The Midshipmen tried to rally in the fifth inning but left two runners stranded and then they left two more runners aboard in the sixth inning.
 
Bucknell loaded the bases in the seventh inning and then a hit by pitch brought in the Bison's 11th run of the game to bring the 10-run rule into effect and Bucknell took the second half of the doubleheader, 11-1.
 
Tommy Goodridge (Sr., San Diego, Calif.) suffered the loss after allowing six runs in 3-2/3 innings. Goodridge (1-1) gave up seven hits, walked two and hit one batter on Saturday afternoon.
 
Chris Difiore (2-1) earned the win after allowing just one run on six hits while recording a pair of strikeouts.
 
The loss in the second half of the doubleheader snapped Navy's 19-game winning streak, which was the second-longest winning streak in program history and longest since the 1960-61 seasons.
 
Navy and Bucknell wrap up the weekend series in Annapolis on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. from Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.