ANNAPOLIS, Md. – With the Midshipmen pitchers combining to allow just three runs over 16 innings and striking out 19 Mountain Hawks, the Navy baseball team (11-11, 4-2 PL) posted a pair of wins over Lehigh (11-11, 0-2 PL) in Patriot league action on Saturday afternoon at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.
 
Backed by 15 runs from the Navy lineup in the opener, captain Nate Mitchell tallied a career-high 10 strikeouts in a complete-game performance to secure the Mids' 15-1 victory, while Liam Golden struck out a career-best eight batters over six innings in the nightcap to keep Navy's chances alive until Brock Murtha's triple sparked an eighth-inning rally and 3-2 win for the Mids.
 
Game One Recap
Led by Nate Mitchell's second seven-inning complete game of the season, the Mids provided him plenty of offense, as Colin Smith and Henry Mitchell both tallied three-hit contests while Alex Smith and Nick Burch also notched multi-hit performances, with Burch accounting for a team-high three RBI in Saturday's opener.
 
With Mitchell shutting out the Lehigh batters for the first three frames, the Navy lineup were able to score runs in five of its six trips to the place beginning with the first inning. After Alex Smith was hit by a Luke Rettig pitch to load the bases, a wild pitch from Rettig allowed Murtha to race home for the game's opening run, while a bases-loaded fielder's choice and a throwing error two plays later brought home Logan Keller and Alex Smith.
 
Navy added four more runs in the second inning off a Keller sacrifice fly, a two-run double from Alex Smith and a dropped fly ball by Lehigh off the bat of Kyle Rausch that allowed Smith to score from second. The hits continued in the third inning when Colin Smith and Henry Mitchell singled to start the frame and both eventually came in on Murtha's double to the right-center gap, growing the Navy lead to 9-0.
 
Lehigh scratched across one run in the top of the fourth thanks to a two-out single from Andrew Nole with two runners on, but Colin Smith answered right back in the bottom of the inning when he hit an opposite-field two-run home run that snuck just inside the right-field foul pole.
 
Navy tacked on another four-spot in the sixth when Burch tripled with the bases loaded and Brendan Munnelly finished off a 12-pitch at-bat with an RBI-groundout that plated Burch two batters later.
 
Despite Casey Rother roping his third double of the game to put two runners in scoring position with two outs in the top of the seventh, Nate Mitchell finished what he started when he struck out Drew Morse for his 10th punchout of the afternoon.
 
The complete game earned Mitchell his four victory of the season and his third quality start of 2023, as the Navy ace held Lehigh to 12 hits and no walks to match his 10 strikeouts. For Lehigh, Rettig got the loss after lasting two innings and giving seven runs (two earned) on seven hits, while Marcus Danchision followed with four runs allowed in two innings before Lucas Rich and Jack Frankovic both pitched a frame each out of the bullpen
 
Game Two Recap
Working into the sixth inning the first time this season, Golden recorded at least one strikeout in every inning pitched en route to picking up his first quality start of the campaign, while reliever Jackson Beattie picked him up until Murtha's game-tying triple in the eighth was followed by another Keller sacrifice fly, allowing Landon Kruer to close out the Mids' Saturday sweep.
 
After both teams were retired in order to start the game, Lehigh got on the board in the second when a sacrifice bunt put two runners in scoring position and Nole cashed in one of those men on base with a single, but Golden got a strikeout and lineout to strand runners at the corners.
 
Lehigh made it 2-0 in the fourth via another Nole single with two on, but Eduardo Diaz responded for Navy in the home half of the inning after Alex Smith singled and Rausch doubled, sending a deep fly ball into right field that let Smith tag up and score the Mids' first run.
 
With both pitching staffs holding the opposition scoreless over the next three frames, Navy canceled out a lead-off double in the eighth when Gerard Sweeney was doubled off second base by Hudson Lehnertz' throw following an Andrew Kohl flyout, with Beattie then getting a groundout to wrap up another scoreless outing. The momentum shift was felt in the bottom of the eighth when Lehnertz reached on a throwing error and was followed by Murtha's triple down the right-field line. With Murtha tying the game at 2-2, Keller completed the comeback five pitches later when he lifted a ball to right field that brought Murtha in for the go-ahead run.
 
Turning the ball to Kruer, Navy's closer earned his fourth save of the season when he got three straight outs after walking his first two batters, ending with a Jake Whitlinger flyout that was run down by Burch in center field.
 
Golden earned the no-decision after limiting the Mountain Hawks to two runs on six hits and three walks in a career-best six innings, while Beattie's one-hit outing over two innings earned him his first collegiate win and Kruer's three outs gave him a league-leading four saves. Lehigh starter Teddy Tolliver also got a no-decision after allowing just one run in four innings, as Shane O'Neill got the loss after surrendering two runs in three frames and Will Grisack recorded the final three outs for the Mountain Hawks.
 
Paul Kostacopoulos Postgame Comments
"Obviously, when you can take two games in a day, it's a good day. I thought our pitching was really good today. Going back to the first game, when we were able to get a complete game out of Nate Mitchell, that helps your bullpen tremendously and gives you some decisions that you can make as the weekend goes on. That was big and then we had some timely hits and we just got right after it early offensively. The second game was a great baseball game, with just a lot to it. Even though we only had five hits, I thought we hit the ball really well but we just kept hitting it at them. Then, we had a really good eighth inning of just staying with it and, obviously, Brock got the big hit (in a timely spot). Sometimes it's not how many, it's when you get them. So, it was a good day. On the mound, Golden's start was outstanding, Jackson was really good and Landon did a great job because he had first and second with no outs and we got out of it. In all, we did a lot of good things today."
 
"(The key to our pitchers' success) is commanding the breaking ball. We're able to locate our fastball well enough, but it's commanding the breaking ball and having confidence throwing it when we need to to get outs. The staff has really bought into that and I think that's been a big difference in our ability to get the outs that we need."
 
"(Tomorrow) is the same kind of mindset as before. You just got to start over again - with a brand new team, new day - and our thing that we have focused on is being consistent. Tomorrow is an opportunity to be consistent, because I thought we played really well today but we need to be consistent tomorrow."
 
Game Notes
• Navy is now 96-52 all-time against Lehigh, winning each of the last four meetings with the Mountain Hawks.
• Nate Mitchell's 10 strikeouts is the most by a Navy pitcher since Charlie Connolly had 11 punchouts against Lehigh on April 3, 2021.
• Nate Mitchell is the first Navy pitcher with multiple complete games in a season since Noah Song had six complete-game performances in 2019.
• Nate Mitchell's 32 strikeouts this season are a career best.
• Game 1 was Colin Smith's first three-hit game since a recording three hits in both ends of an April 16, 2022 doubleheader against Lehigh.
• Murtha has recorded an extra-base hit in five of his last six games.
• Golden has not allowed more than two earned runs in a start all season.
• Beattie has not allowed an earned run to a team other than Georgetown all season.
• Kruer's save gives him 11 career saves, tying him for sixth in program history with Ryan Hefner.
 
Up Next
Navy hosts Lafayette for a league doubleheader on Sunday, March 26. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. from Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.