Lee's bat stays warm for Burlington Central
Michael Lee homered in the Burlington Central baseball team's final game last week at the Cal Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The senior's bat continued to be hot Tuesday in Burlington as well.
Lee went 3-for-4 with a double and drove in 2 runs as the Rockets opened Big Northern East play with a 9-2 victory over Marengo.
"I had a home run at the end of the trip and it just kind of came into this game," Lee said. "Baseball is a game of streaks a little bit."
The Indians took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first without getting a hit. Noah Klick walked to open the game. After a groundout moved Klick to second, he scored on two wild pitches.
Central (5-1) answered with 4 runs in the bottom of the first. Andrew Wiss led off with a double and scored on a Marengo error. Lee drove in a run with a single to left and would score on a wild pitch. Bryan Cynova, who walked, scored on a Brenden Bushy groundout.
"We've been taken good at-bats this year," Central coach Kyle Nelson said. "That's one of the things we've really stressed. Don't worry about the outcome, just take quality at-bats. That's what got us up a little bit in the first inning."
Cynova hit a 2-run home run to left field in the third to increase Central's lead to 6-1. Marengo plated an unearned run in the fourth to make it 6-2.
The Rockets added 3 runs in the fourth. Jacob Schutta scored from second of Wiss' flyout to left. Tanner Smith scored on a throwing error and Lee drove in Reed Hunnicutt with another single.
Danny Gerke (3-0) earned the victory, going 6 innings. The senior right-hander allowed 5 hits and 2 runs, only 1 earned. He struck out eight and walked one.
"He was little shaky early on. He didn't really attack hitters right away," Nelson said of Gerke. "We didn't help him defensively in the middle innings at all. We put him in a couple tough spots. He got some big strikeouts for us."