There are three elements of a baseball game that a team needs to be successful: pitch the ball, hit the ball, and field the ball.

In Friday night’s 9-4 loss to Coplay in a Lehigh Valley Senior Connie Mack League contest, the home Bulldogs did fairly well pitching and hitting — but they couldn’t overcome six errors in the field.

Northern Lehigh hurler Beckett Fox retired the side in order in the opening frame with two strikeouts, and in the home half, the Bulldogs took a 1-0 lead. Jayden Christman led off with a line single to left and promptly stole second. Fox followed with an RBI single to right.

The lead was short-lived, as Coplay plated seven runs in the top of the second inning — with plenty of help from five Northern Lehigh errors. With one out, the visitors loaded the bases on three infield miscues. Owen Miley then cracked a two-run single to center. After a throwing error, Henry Shultz tripled to deep right-center to bring home two more runs. Kane Braun followed with a double over the left fielder’s head before another outfield error allowed the seventh run of the inning to score. Coplay had just three hits in the inning, but five errors led to seven unearned runs.

Northern Lehigh coach Andrew Kabrick said some of his players are still adjusting to playing on the larger field.

“The problem is that some of our players are playing on the big field with 90-foot bases for the first time,” Kabrick said. “We don’t really practice much, which would be helpful, so they’ll have to figure it out with more game experience.”

Northern Lehigh scratched out another run in the bottom of the second. With one out, Paul Porobenski dropped a double just inside the left-field foul line. Garrett Kunkle moved him to third with a single to right, and Justin Diehl’s sacrifice fly brought him home.

Coplay took an 8-2 lead in the third when Mason Solderitch belted a long home run over the left-field fence. The score remained the same until the top of the fifth, when Carson Strauss ripped a triple just over the center fielder’s glove and scored on an infield single by Kihan Resto.

Northern Lehigh attempted a comeback in the home half of the fifth. With two outs, Cole Mohrey bounced a ground-rule double over the center-field fence. Colton Becker followed with an infield single to put runners at first and third for Christman, who drove both home with a double to the gap in left-center. That would be the final scoring of the game.

Kabrick told his team afterward that they’ll need to clean up the defense to be competitive.

“We have a bad habit of having one bad defensive inning, and tonight, it was the second that really decided the outcome,” he said. “We pitched and hit well enough, but the simple errors put us far behind.”

RBIs for Northern Lehigh were recorded by Fox, Diehl, and Christman, who had two.

RUN, DON’T WALK ... In a game with 13 total runs, there were only two walks issued by four pitchers. The first didn’t come until the bottom of the sixth, when Brayton Dougherty drew a free pass.

GUNNED DOWN ... Northern Lehigh catcher Avery Kabrick had a solid game behind the plate and threw out two baserunners attempting to steal second.

Coplay 071 010 0 - 9 8 2

N. Lehigh 110 020 0 - 4 8 6

Sheen, Shultz (6) and Miley; Fox, Christian (4) and Kabrick. W- Sheen. L- Fox. HR: Coplay - Solderitch (3rd, none on).

Records: Coplay (2-6); Northern Lehigh (3-6-1).