Catasauqua head baseball coach Steve Bradley believes his team will soon snap out of their doldrums. If fate turns in their favor, his prognostication could take effect this week.

In the meantime, Bradley is dealing with a recent slump that includes losses in four of their last five games, the latest being an 8-0 defeat to Pen Argyl Monday.

What once was a comfortable 7-3 mark has dwindled down to an 8-7 slate to begin the week. And Bradley has offered a simple explanation for their plight.

"We're not getting opportune hits," stated Bradley. "We have been leaving too many guys on base in recent games. We're just not getting it done right now."

He cited the teams' first loss in their recent slide when they fell behind 5-2 and eventually lost a 10-7 contest.

"We had battled back in that game, but we couldn't take advantage of our opportunities," said Bradley. "We had the bases loaded a few times and came away without any runs. This happened in a few more games after this one.

"We're getting hits, but we're not getting hits at the right time."

Bradley did note some positives along the way. He credited the performance of pitcher Jake Kober against Northampton in a 5-2 decision.

"Jake (Kober) threw a good game against them," said Bradley. "We should have supported him better, but we did manage two runs against a good lefthander. Northampton is a good team and they have been playing well.

"We also faced a good Pen Argyl team. We stole a game from them in an opening game this season, and I'm sure they were gunning for us. With the way we have been playing, we nearly have had to play perfect."

Bradley also mentioned how his team recently has been playing with 11 players. Junior pitcher and infielder Jordan Madaya has been sidelined with a rotary cuff injury, and senior center fielder Jacob Stopay has yet to play due to offseason knee surgery.

The Roughies also entered the week with a stretch of nine games in their last 10 days.

"Jordan (Madaya) could have helped us, and Jacob (Stopay) was our starting center fielder," said Bradley. "We do have a good core of players here, though. Jacob was a good leadoff hitter for us.

"We haven't had time for practice as the only day off we had lately was on a Sunday. But we aren't making any excuses."

The Roughies were back in action against Lehighton Thursday before they are scheduled to end the season next week against Northern Lehigh and Northwestern. Bradley is optimistic his squad can rebound and gain some momentum before the postseason begins.

"We'll be OK," said Bradley. "These guys will bounce back. We'll keep working and get back at it. We have the talent here, and these guys believe in themselves. They don't want to have a short season."