Bulldogs sweep Lions in doubleheader

Broce and Reed earn wins on the mound for Burgin

 

Arpan Dixit
Herald Staff
sports@harrodsburgherald.com

After a rain out on Friday, April 5, the Burgin Bulldogs (9-4) returned home for a doubleheader against the Elliott County Lions (2-8), winning both games on Saturday, April 6.

Eighth grader Noah Broce was nominated for Kentucky.com Player of the Week for his performances against the Lions. Information on the poll can be found on twitter (@HLpreps) or Kentucky.com. Voting ends on Friday, April 12 at 12 p.m.

Here is a recap of both games.

Game 2

Eighth grader Hunter Reed earned the complete game 8-7 win on the mound  after pitching five innings, giving up seven runs on five hits, to go along with five walks and eight strikeouts.

Both Elliott County and Burgin were tied at four after one inning of play.

Reed singled, driving in a run, and that was followed by back-to-back RBI singles by Broce and senior Eli Stratton. Eighth grader David Lynn was hit-by-pitch, also driving in a run in the first.

The Lions took a 5-4 lead in the third inning after Cameron Adams’ RBI-single.

They added another run in the fourth inning off a RBI-double by Isaac Stephens.

The bottom half of the fourth was a big one for Burgin. Reed drove in another run and later scored on a passed ball to make it 6-6. The Bulldogs weren’t done. They tallied two more runs on an error and a balk to take a 8-6 lead.

Elliott County added one run, but Reed was able to close them out and secure the victory.

“We had a chance to blow the game wide open early and failed to do so,” said Head Coach Donnie Edwards. “Credit to Elliott County for taking advantage of our mistakes.”

Those mistakes Edwards is referring to is the eight errors the Bulldogs committed in the field.

“I was proud of the way our team fought back when facing a two-run deficit,” he said. “We faced adversity this past week and it was great to see the guys respond in a big way.”

STATS:

(W) Reed (5.0 IP, 5 H, 7 R, 2 ER, 5 BB, 8 K)

Jackson Qualls: 1/2, 2 R

Reed: 2/3, 2 RBI, 2 R

Nagel: 1 R

Broce: 1/1, 1 RBI, 2 R

Stratton: 2/3, 1 RBI, 1 R

Lynn: 1/1, 1 RBI

Aaron May: 1/3

Game 1

Broce earned the win on the mound, pitching a strong game and getting plenty of help on offense.

The Bulldogs put the game away early, winning 16-1 over the Lions early Saturday afternoon.

Broce pitched a complete game, going all four innings, giving up one run on two hits, to go with one walk and six strikeouts.

Elliott County scored the first run of the game, but never crossed home plate again.

Burgin scored two runs in the second, 11 runs in the third and three runs in the fourth to secure their eighth win of the season.

Sophomore Cameron Nagel led Burgin with three RBI, going 1-for-3 at the plate and scoring one run.

Reed, Broce, Stratton, eighth grader Jacob Qualls and seventh grader Aaron May all had two RBI each.

Eighth grader Diego Mandujano and sophomore Jackson Qualls led Burgin in runs, crossing home plate three times each.

“It was a total team effort in the first game of our doubleheader,” said Edwards. “It all began with Noah (Broce) pitching a great game. That was his fourth win of the season.”

Broce’s four wins ties him for tops in the state.

“Defensively, we played well and limited errors,”  said Edwards.

The Bulldogs will be back on the diamond Saturday, April 13, for the 12th Region All “A” Classic against Washington County. First pitch is set for 11 a.m.

STATS:

(W) Broce (4.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K)

Nagel: 1/3, 3 RBI, 1 R

Reed: 1/2, 2 RBI, 2 R

Broce: 2/2, 2 RBI

Stratton: 1/1, 2 RBI, 1 R

Boursaw: 1 R

Lynn: 1 RBI, 1 R

Aaron May: 1/1, 2 RBI, 2 R

Jacob Qualls: 1/2, 2 RBI, 2 R

Jackson Qualls: 3 R

Mandujano: 3 R

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