If it’s true that pitching wins championships, then no one should be surprised if the Bearcats have a title in their future.

The Binghamton baseball team (7-5-1) swept a pair of doubleheaders this weekend at Lehigh (8-15), defeating the Mountain Hawks 4-2 and 7-0 on Saturday before winning 3-0 and 5-1 on Sunday. Each game was marked by stellar starting pitching, as the Bearcats turned to the bullpen just once during the four-game set.

“I don’t think [the performance of the pitchers] is much of a shock,” said freshman left-hander Jeff Dennis, who won his first collegiate start in the second game Sunday. “We have a good staff and I think our coaches and teammates almost expected it of us.”

Dennis gave up just six hits and zero earned runs in six innings of work, leading the Bearcats to a 5-1 victory. Dennis struck out two and didn’t walk a single batter, lowering his season ERA to 1.00 in the process.

“I just took it one inning at a time, instead of thinking ahead about who’s coming up next or who got hits off me and what I did wrong,” Dennis said.

Dennis wasn’t the only starter to come up with a big performance this weekend. In the earlier game Sunday, junior Mike Van Gorder tossed a two-hit shutout in his first start of the season. After the game, Van Gorder’s ERA fell to 1.06.

Saturday featured two other stellar pitching performances, as sophomore lefty Scott Diamond allowed just two runs in a complete-game victory for his third win of the year, and sophomore Zach Groh fired back with a one-hit gem in the nightcap. Groh racked up six strikeouts and didn’t allow a hit until the sixth inning, when Lehigh’s second baseman blooped a single into center.

The Bearcats also showed an extremely balanced attack at the plate this weekend, as eight different batters got hits in each of the first two games. On Sunday, the middle of the order provided significant punch, as the 3-4-5-6 hitters in the lineup provided eight hits and four runs in the second game.

“The lineup is really balanced this year, and we get production from every spot in the order,” said junior second baseman Matt Simek. “That balance makes it a lot easier for those guys who are expected to produce.”

Simek, junior first baseman Brendon Hitchcock, junior outfielder Jeff Monaco, junior shortstop Justin Smucker and senior center fielder Aaron Davis all registered hits in every game this weekend. Monaco currently leads the team with a .409 batting average.

The Bearcats will play their home opener today at Varsity Field, hosting red hot Niagara (10-10) in a doubleheader at 1 p.m. The teams enter the game in similar paths; Binghamton has the best record in the America East, while Niagara is currently in first place in the MAAC. In addition, BU has earned five straight victories and the Purple Eagles come in having won their past six games.

BASEBALL AWARD WINNERS:

For the second time this season, two players on the Binghamton baseball team received America East weekly honors.

After throwing a one-hitter against Lehigh on Saturday, sophomore right-hander Zach Groh was named America East Pitcher of the Week. In 16 innings this season, Groh has a 1.69 ERA, struck out 17 batters and given up just three walks.

Freshman lefty Jeff Dennis earned conference Rookie of the Week honors, after allowing no earned runs and six hits in his first career start. Dennis’ ERA is now 1.00 on the season.

“It feels pretty good to be able to know that I have made the transition into college and that I can contribute to the team,” said Dennis about notching his first collegiate win.

Earlier in the season, sophomore pitcher Scott Diamond and junior catcher Pat Haughie earned conference awards for their play against Delaware State two weeks ago.