ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Andrew Manning drove in four runs and the Navy baseball team (22-13, 9-7 PL) held off a late charge to defeat Patriot League foe Lafayette (7-25, 3-13 PL) by a 10-9 score on Sunday afternoon at Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium, finishing off the Midshipmen's four-game weekend sweep of the Leopards in a series that was presented by Federal House Bar & Grille.
Manning sparked the Navy offense with a two-run single in the first inning and later blasted a two-run home run in the sixth, while fellow slugger
Patrick Walsh went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, reaching base four times to extend his impressive on-base streak to 15 games. Meanwhile,
Evan Brown knocked an RBI single in the second inning, improving his hitting streak to eight games and continuing his hot return from injury.
Following a four-pitch top of the first from Navy starter
Owen Phypers, the Mids got to work in the bottom of the inning when they used a hit-by-pitch and a pair of walks to load the bases with two outs, bringing up Manning for a two-run single into left field that gave Navy a 2-0 lead.
Lafayette answered immediately, as Brandon Doubek's single to lead off the second inning set up Boden Fernsler for a two-run homer, sending a shot out to left with the wind. Navy wasted no time taking the lead back, as back-to-back singles to start the home-half of the second allowed
Tyler Cripe to lift a sacrifice fly to left that scored
Will Howard, while Brown later singled home
Noah Stead and Walsh drove in
Chris Klug on a single himself to grow the Mids' edge to 5-2.
Another quick answer from the Leopards in the third saw Matt Colella drive in a pair on a single down the left-field line, but Navy responded once again in the bottom of the frame when
Jake Hooten was plunked to lead off, stole second then took home when Lafayette threw the ball away on Stead's fielder's choice.
Colella cut into the Navy lead again in the fifth, singling in Ryan Ulisse to make it 6-5.
Navy widened its advantage again in the sixth after getting two runners in scoring position with one down, as Brown grounded out to plate Cripe and Walsh ripped an opposite-field double to knock in
Victor Izquierdo. Manning then cleared the bases when he launched his two-run homer into the right-center power alley, swelling the lead to 10-5.
Continuing the game's trend, Lafayette cut the deficit to 10-7 in the seventh on Ryan Stoddard's two-run home run to left-center after Will Dobil got a bloop single to start the frame. The Leopards made it a one-run game again in the eighth, as Doubik singled and then went first-to-home on Fernsler's double into the left-center gap while Dobil's fielder's choice later in the frame plated Fernsler, but reliever
Jackson Beattie struck out Stoddard to end the inning.
Beattie then kept the ball for the ninth and worked around Colella's third single of the game, striking out Doubek and Fernsler to seal the sweep and pick up his first save of the season.
Phypers (4-3) picked up the win after going seven-plus innings, allowing nine runs (eight earned) but striking out six and not allowing a walk. Beattie then held Lafayette to one hit in six-out save, punching out four Leopards.
Lafayette starter Wesley Maksimow (0-2) was handed the loss after going 1.2 innings, allowing five runs (four earned) on four hits, while Ben Waterman followed by giving up five runs (four earned) in 4.1 innings of relief despite four strikeouts. James Reese then pitched 1.2 innings before Braden Pomponi recorded the final out for the Leopards.
Game Notes
• Navy is now 110-55-2 in the all-time series with Lafayette, winning the last six meetings in the series.
• This marks Navy's first regular-season sweep of Lafayette since 2018.
• The sweep is Navy's four-game sweep of an opponent since Bucknell in 2019.
• The seven innings pitched matched Phypers' season high, previously going seven frames on March 1 against St. Bonaventure and March 22 against Bucknell.
• This was Beattie's first save since April 16, 2023 at Lafayette.
• Brown moved his hitting streak to eight games, getting a hit in every game since his return to the lineup on April 4.
• Walsh improved his on-base streak to 15 games and his hitting streak to seven games.
Up Next
Navy hits the road for a 3:00 p.m. game at George Washington on Tuesday.
