The Whitehall softball team found out on Tuesday that Mother Nature may be their toughest opponent yet this season.

The brutal cold and rain that had been falling since the game started eventually led to snow showers, forcing the suspension of their game against Allentown Central Catholic in the fourth inning.

The game was tied 6-6 when play was halted, and will be resumed at that point when the two Skyline Division teams play one another again later in the season.

During the game, the Zephs were able to capitalize on a number of the Vikettes mistakes, scoring three runs on wild pitches. That was made possible by their aggressiveness on the base paths, both in steals and taking the extra base whenever possible. That was underscored by the hustle play of Abigail Nguyen who beat a force play at second base on a roller up the middle which kept the inning alive and led to another Whitehall run.

But Mother Nature was an unrelenting foe, forcing the umpires to suspend the game at the completion of the fourth inning.

Monday's weather was a little more balmy, allowing them to kick off the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference schedule under more favorable conditions. Their opener against was against Bethlehem Catholic, last year's District 11 3A champs and a PIAA state-title finalist. It was a tough loss to a team that features one of the best pitchers in the league. Elyse Cuttic (16-5, a 1.49 ERA and 108 strikeouts) was one of the driving forces that led the Golden Hawks into the championship game, and she was on the mound to face the Zephs to start the 2014 campaign.

It was a pitcher's duel with Kay Solderitch toeing the rubber for the Zephs and matching her counterpart pitch by pitch. In fact, Solderitch only allowed two hits the entire game, while Cuttic allowed three hits in her debut performance. However, three errors proved to be their Achilles heel in that game as they lost 3-1 to the Hawks.

The loss drops their record to 0-2 on the young season, and they'll look to get back on the winning track once Mother Nature cooperates. They host Nazareth Area High School this Thursday and then stay in their division with a game against the Konkrete Kids on Tuesday.