Claire Harris knows how to start the Lehigh Valley Conference portion of the Emmaus softball schedule. Harris led off the game against Allen with a home run that sailed over the left field fence, giving the Hornets a quick 1-0 lead. From there, Emmaus built on its lead and grabbed a 7-2 win over the Canaries.

Harris wasn't done for the day after her home run, as she doubled in her next at-bat to continue her hot hitting streak, which started during the team's recent Florida road trip. Harris is off to a good start as the team's third baseman, filling the hole created by the graduation of Emily Hockman, who is now attending DeSales University.

"I wasn't really thinking about anything, I just kept my head clear and took a swing at it and there it was," said Harris of her home run.

Pitcher Rachel Brown breezed through the game, allowing just two earned runs, one of which came on a fifth inning home run by Phoebe Schmehl. Brown helped herself out with a bases loaded two-run double in the third inning that took Emmaus' lead to 7-0 at the time.

While Brown is known more for her strong pitching than her hitting, she was a little prouder of her bat than her arm against the Lady Canaries. On the mound, Brown threw strikes and didn't allow herself to lose her focus when she got into jams.

"I just need to remember to stay in my head, because sometimes, I let everything else get in my head," said Brown. "I'm really happy with how we all played today. There are always things you can improve on, but we played really well."

Emmaus is picked as the favorite to win the West Division of the Lehigh Valley Conference and both Harris and Brown noted that the team chemistry is good and there's a lot of talent, so hopes are high. For coach John Eyer, one goal is to get that elusive LVC title that the team hasn't been able to win even though they've had successful runs during his tenure.

"I figure one of these years, we have to get it [an LVC championship]," laughed Eyer. "It's going to take a lot of hard work to get it, because there are a lot of good teams out there, so we just have to play with our hearts and see what happens."

While it's never easy to replace good players, Eyer believes that Harris will handle the third base job well and likes what he sees from her.

"She's a good hitter and she does well for us," Eyer said.

Eyer was impressed with how his team came out and put up seven runs in the first three innings, but thought they played a little tight later in the game and should have been able to put more runs on the board. Overall though, he's been happy with his team's performance in the early going and believes his team will get even stronger as the season progresses.

Now that the team is back from Florida and are into more familiar surroundings and routines, there is plenty of work to do. Over the next week, the Lady Hornets have three games, two of which are LVC matchups with Dieruff and Northampton. They also have a trip to C.B. South on Saturday for a non-conference game.