BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Navy baseball team (11-16, 3-7 Patriot League) posted a nine-run, 17-hit effort in the night cap of Saturday's doubleheader against Lehigh (14-12, 2-4 Patriot League), en route to earning a 9-3 victory and a split of the twin bill at the Mountain Hawks' Walker Field.
 
The 17 hits in game two were the most for the Mids in a single game this season, along with being their highest hit total in a game since recording 17 hits against Bucknell on March 28, 2021.
 
Zane Raba (So., San Antonio, Texas) paced the Navy offense over the two games, combining to go 5-for-8 with two RBI and two runs scored. The sophomore outfielder's effort was highlighted by a 3-for-6 showing in the night cap of the doubleheader.
 
Christian Policelli (Sr., Walkersville, Md.) added a multi-hit effort in both games against Lehigh, finishing the afternoon a combined 4-for-9 with a double, a triple, two runs scored and two RBI. With the aforementioned offensive efforts on Saturday, Policelli extended his current hitting streak to six-straight games and tallied his team-leading 13th and 14th multi-hit games of the season.
 
"Overall it was our best offensive day of the year, we had 26 hits combined in the two games," said head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. "Our approaches were really good, the pitcher that we faced today in game one (Luke Rettig) had given up one earned run all year and we got four off him. We got a couple people back on the train today, and sometimes that's what it takes. I thought that was our best offensive performance as far as the year goes. Good at-bats, good approaches, clutch hitting, the whole thing. I thought that was the highlight today."
 
On the mound, Nate Mitchell (Jr., Parker, Colo.) recorded a career-best outing against the Mountain Hawks in game two. The junior right hander allowed just three runs and struck out six batters over a career-high 7.1 innings pitched. Nolan Jorgenson (So., Eastvale, Calif.) pitched the final 1.2 innings in relief, holding the potent Lehigh offense hitless to close out the win.
 
"Nate (Mitchell) gave us a starters performance today, went 7.1 innings which was our longest start of the year," said Kostacopoulos of the junior's performance. "It was much needed with where we are at right now, he did a heck of a job and really gave us some innings and consistent pitching today. He kept things at the right tempo and did a really good job.
 
"He's (Mitchell) really improving and pitched almost as many innings today as he did all of last season (8.2). If we can just keep getting him out there, keep learning the game, I think its going to be a great benefit. That's kind of what its been for our pitching staff, the last couple weeks haven't been what we wanted, but if you think of where he started against where he is now its astronomical. We just have to keep putting our guys in spots to succeed."

Game One: Lehigh 10, Navy 4 (Seven Innings)
Navy opened the game with three runs over the first two innings, holding a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the fourth, but ultimately saw the early advantage evaporate as Lehigh totaled 10 runs over the next three innings to secure a six-run victory over the Midshipmen in game one of the twin bill, 10-4.
 
Colin Jones (Sr., Collierville, Tenn.) took the loss (2-1) in what was his second career start for the Mids, allowing six runs on eight hits over four innings of work. The senior then gave way to Tanner Wade (Fr., Fayetteville, Ark.) who yielded an additional four runs on four hits in two innings of relief.
 
Lehigh's Luke Rettig (6-1), who had allowed just one earned run through 35 innings of work entering Saturday, earned the win despite giving up four runs on nine hits over 5.2 innings. Nick Pave earned the save after pitching totaling 1.1 innings of relief, retiring four of the five batters he faced.
 
After Alex Smith (Jr., Laguna Hills, Calif.) gave Navy a 2-0 lead in the first on a two-RBI single into the right-center field gap, the Midshipmen extended their lead to three runs in the top of the second as Raba tallied his first hit of the day, an RBI single to center field.
 
On the back of the three-run effort from his offense over the first two innings, Jones was masterful on the mound over his first two innings of work, retiring six of the first seven batters he faced. The senior left hander worked around back-to-back hits to open the bottom of the third, escaping the inning without allowing a run to preserve the three-run lead for the Midshipmen.
 
In the home half of the fourth, the potent Mountain Hawks' offense came to life against Jones with three runs on three hits, including a two-run home run by Joe Gorla, to tie the game at 3-3. After the breakout from its offense in the fourth, Lehigh continued to add to its lead in the fifth with an additional four runs on three hits, taking its first lead of the day at 7-3.
 
Navy attempted to rally in the sixth, as Raba picked up his second RBI hit of the game with one out in the inning, bringing the Midshipmen deficit to three runs at 7-4. However, the Lehigh lead quickly expanded to six with three runs on three hits in the bottom of the frame, that ultimately secured a 10-4 victory for the Mountain Hawks in game one of the doubleheader.
 
The Midshipmen offense was not without opportunity over the final three innings of play, stranding five runners on base, including a pair of runners in both the fifth and sixth.
 
Game Two: Navy 9, Lehigh 3
After dropping the first game of Saturday's twin bill, the Midshipmen parlayed a nine-run, 17-hit effort at the plate with a career-best outing from Mitchell (1-2) to secure a 9-3 victory in game two and a split of the doubleheader.
 
The pairing of Raba and Zach Stevens (Sr., Lexington, Mass.) led the way for the Navy offense in the night cap. Raba finished off his impressive day by going 3-for-6 with a run scored, while Stevens tallied three hits in five at-bats, along with scoring two runs.
 
Policelli went 2-for-5 with a triple and two RBI, while Eduardo Diaz (So., Miami, Fla.) posted a multi-hit effort of his own, going 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Ivan Aguirre (Fr., Temple City, Calif.) and Logan Keller (So., Longwood, Fla.) rounded out the top-offensive performers for the Mids in game two. Aguirre recorded a career-high three RBI and scoring a run in a 2-for-3 showing, while Keller added a 2-for-6 effort with an RBI and a run scored.
 
With the support of his offense, Mitchell pitched a career-high 7.1 innings and allowed just three runs on nine hits to secure his first win of the season. The junior also tied a career-best strikeout total, sitting down six Lehigh batters on the afternoon. Jorgenson closed the door on the win in relief of Mitchell, with his aforementioned 1.2 hitless innings of relief.
 
Mountain Hawks' starting pitcher Ben Christian (2-2) took the loss after allowing seven runs, four being earned, on nine hits over 2.2 innings of work. Tyler Thompson and Ryan Deom combined to pitch the final 6.1 innings of relief for Lehigh, allowing two unearned runs on eight hits. Behind the effort of its pitching staff, the Lehigh defense committed four errors in game two, tying a season-high mark.
 
After a scoreless first inning, the Navy offense continued its hot hitting from game one, scoring four runs on three hits in the top of the second. The rally was highlighted by a two-run triple by Policelli that scored Keller and Raba to give the Midshipmen a 4-0 lead.
 
After Lehigh responded with two runs on three hits in the bottom of the second to reduce the Navy lead to two runs, the Midshipmen scored three runs on five hits to extend their advantage to five runs at 7-2. The trio of Aguirre, Keller and Joe Simourian (Sr., Andover, Mass.) each tallied an RBI single in the frame to highlight the three-run inning.
 
With a five-run lead in hand, Mitchell went on to pitching two-straight scoreless frames, prior to the Mids pushing their lead to 8-2 in the fifth as Diaz came home to score on a groundout by Aguirre. Lehigh tallied a run in the home half of the inning to cut the Navy lead back to five runs, but Navy was able to quickly take back the score in the sixth as Colin Smith (Jr., Wilmington, Del.) singled home Policelli.
 
Mitchell limited the Mountain Hawks to just two hits over his final 1.1 innings of work, prior to giving way to Jorgenson in the eighth who closed out the win by retiring four of the five batters he faced.
 
UP NEXT
Navy will have a quick turnaround following its split against Lehigh, as it travels to take on Lafayette in a Patriot League doubleheader on Sunday. First pitch from Easton is scheduled for noon.