Week 2 Recap: Lightning Use Clutch Hitting to Keep Win Streak Alive
Leesburg, FL - The Leesburg Lightning added all three of this week's game to the win column after a pair of dramatic 7-6 wins and their first 10+ run win of the season. A walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth secured the win for Leesburg in their first matchup with the Seminole County Scorpions on June 12th, and a tight game throughout just barely swung the Lightning's way when they matched up with the Sanford River Rats on June 14th. The Lightning were unable to play three games this week due to weather, two against Seminole County and one against Sanford. All three games were scheduled to take place at Sanford Memorial Stadium, where both the Scorpions and the Rats play their home games. Leesburg's win streak now sits at nine games, only one shy of the all-time team record for longest win streak (10 games - 2012).
Weekly Team Leaders:
(These numbers only reflect players' performances throughout the past week, not the entire season)
- Batting Avg: Jose Crisostomo - 0.714 (1st in the FCSL)
- Hits: Jose Crisostomo - 5 (3rd in the FCSL)
- Runs: Luke Brown - 4 (3rd in the FCSL)
- RBIs: Tanner May - 3 (4th in the FCSL)
- SOs: Matthews Coles - 6 (3rd in the FCSL)
- Innings Pitched: Matthew Coles - 4.2 (6th in the FCSL)
Best Performances of the Week
6/12 vs Seminole County Scorpions - Sean Mootrey and Tanner May
Most coaches' first choice to step up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs and their team down by a run wouldn't be the guy who was 0-14 on the season entering the night. Don't tell Sean Mootrey that. Mootrey, who came into the game as a defensive substitution in the top of the ninth, wanted no part of statistical improbability or lack of faith when he knocked a 2-RBI single up the middle to walk it off for Leesburg and seal the team's seventh straight win of the season. Tanner May also came up big for the Lightning in that game, finishing 2-4 with two hits, one walk, one RBI and two runs, including one of the two runs that scored on Mootrey's walk-off hit.
6/14 vs Sanford River Rats - Louis Davenport
Pitching proved to be the deciding factor in Leesburg's 7-6 win over the Rats in the first meeting between the two teams. After Jake Matulia, Tanner Clark and Jay Prather scored in the bottom of the seventh inning to give Leesburg a 7-6 lead, Davenport entered the game in the eighth inning and was phenomenal, earning the save and ensuring the Lightning's winning streak would live to see another day. He pitched a flawless two innings, striking out four of the six batters that he faced and not allowing a single Sanford batter to reach base, ending the Rats hopes of a late comeback.
6/15 vs Sanford River Rats - Jose Crisostomo
In a game in which the Lightning scored nine of their 14 runs in one inning and 12 Leesburg batters reached base via a walk, Crisostomo was 3-4 with one run, two RBIs and a walk of his own. Two singles and a double accounted for the two RBIs, and the productive night contributed to his outstanding .714 batting average for the week and a .368 average for the season so far.
Upcoming Schedule
Leesburg returns to Pat Thomas Stadium for a home game on Monday, June 18 when they'll host the DeLand Suns, who game the Lightning their only loss of the season, a 17-11 offensive showcase on opening night. The Lightning and the Suns will meet up on June 19th and 20th as well. Following their series with DeLand, Leesburg will play an away-home-away series with the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs on June 21st, 22nd, and 23rd. The Suns and the Diamond Dawgs will be the only teams with a shot at stopping the Lightning on their road to keeping their win streak alive for another week.
Standings
|
Team
|
W
|
L
|
PCT
|
GB
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lightning | 9 | 1 | 0.900 | --- |
| Suns | 7 | 6 | 0.538 | 3.5 |
| Diamond Dawgs | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | 4 |
| River Rats | 5 | 7 | 0.417 | 5 |
| Scorpions | 5 | 7 | 0.417 | 5 |
| Squeeze | 3 | 8 | 0.273 | 6.5 |
Matt Holzapfel (Elon University)