Seminole County Scorpions

4

FINAL

8

Leesburg Lightning
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
SEM 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 1 0 4 5 2
LEE 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 4 0 8 7 0
WSurinach
LShear
Kelley, Cox Power Lightning to 8-4 Win Over Scorpions

Kelley, Cox Power Lightning to 8-4 Win Over Scorpions

LEESBURG, Fla. -- The Lightning (11-13) played game three of its series with the Seminole County Scorpions (4-19) at Pat Thomas Stadium on Wednesday night.

The game was a pitcher’s duel, with both offenses struggling to muster runs and each pitching staff cruising through the respective lineups.

The Lightning starting pitcher, Dylan Kelley (South Florida State) was lights out on the mound. He cruised through five innings, allowing just five hits and one run while striking out seven.

After the game, Kelley said he just needed to rely on his stuff and his teammates. “I just had to trust my pitches and trust my defense behind me and keep the offense in the game,” Kelley said. “My fastball was really working tonight. I was able to disguise my changeup and curveball and locate all three pitches well tonight.”

The lone Scorpions run scored off Kelley came on a fielder’s choice in the fifth inning, that tied the game at 1-1 after the Lightning got on the board with a run on a wild pitch.

The sixth inning was significant for the Bolts, as they took a three-run lead in the frame. Wyatt Elbe (Maryville) scored on a wild pitch to put the Lightning up 2-1. An RBI walk from Max Law (Embry-Riddle) and a run on a fielder’s choice gave Leesburg a 4-1 lead after six.

The Scorpions did not go away lightly, as they pulled within a run in the sixth inning. A wild pitch and an RBI single from Topher Grant (Lenoir-Rhyne). 

Seminole County knotted it up at 4-4 on a sacrifice fly in the seventh, but stranded the go-ahead run on third base when Lightning pitcher Edward Surinach (Embry-Riddle) recorded a clutch strikeout that ended the inning. 

The fireworks came a day early in the bottom of the eighth inning. Cage Cox (Valdosta State) belted a three-run, go-ahead home run, his fifth of the year, that pushed the Lightning out to a 7-4 lead. 

Cox explained that he wasn’t swinging for the fences, but just trying to help his team. “My mindset was to just find a good pitch and hit it hard,” Cox explained. “I was trying to drive something back up the middle. I just wanted to get the guy in from third, but the pitcher left the ball inside, and I did what I did.” Cox is participating in the Home Run Derby as a part of the 2019 FCSL All-Star Game festivities in Sanford on Sunday. When asked if he was eyeing a win in the derby, Cox laughed it off. “There’s a lot of stiff competition,” Cox said with a smile. “I’m going to do my best and it should be a lot of fun.”

Following Cox’s blast, Tate Mathis (North Alabama) reached on an error, then stole third base and advanced home on yet another error to add a run. The Lightning handed the ball to Parker Pillsbury (Chipola) to protect an 8-4 lead in the ninth.

Pillsbury worked a 1-2-3 inning and the Lightning came away with the 8-4 victory.

Lightning manager Rich Billings was happy to see his team play a relatively well-rounded game. “We weren’t really great on offense, but we were good on the mound and we were good defensively,” Billings said. “We were good on offense when we needed to be. We got some clutch hits.”

The Lightning will face the Sanford River Rats on July 4 at 5:30 PM for the wildly popular Independence Day game. Fireworks will immediately follow the conclusion of the game. You will not want to miss it!



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Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Grant, 1b 5 0 1 2 0 0
Hoglund, dh 5 0 0 0 0 3
Smith, rf/lf 3 0 1 0 0 0
Christopoulos, 3b 3 1 2 0 1 1
Richardson, ss 3 0 0 0 1 3
Lopez, 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0
Wells, lf 2 0 1 0 0 1
Reynolds, ph/rf 0 1 0 1 1 0
Rikeman, c 1 2 0 0 2 1
Cross, c 1 0 0 0 0 1
Gunter, cf 3 0 0 0 0 2
Martinez, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Koehler, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Shear, p 0 0 0 0 0 0

Batting

RBI - Grant 2, Reynolds

HBP - Smith

Baserunning

SB - Rikeman

Fielding

E - Cross, Shear

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Martinez 3.0 3 0 0 1 5
Koehler 2.1 0 4 4 8 1
Shear, L 2.2 4 4 3 2 0

Wild Pitches - Martinez, Koehler 3

Pitches/Strikes - Martinez 55/36, Koehler 76/30, Shear 47/24

Groundouts/Flyouts - Martinez 2/2, Koehler 1/5, Shear 4/4

Batters Faced - Martinez 13, Koehler 15, Shear 14

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Scott, cf 2 1 0 0 3 0
Backus, 2b 5 0 1 0 0 0
Law, 3b 2 1 1 1 3 1
Cox, dh 5 1 1 4 0 1
Mathis, rf 5 1 2 0 0 1
Mootrey, 1b 4 1 1 0 1 0
Elbe, lf 2 1 0 0 2 1
Horsley, c 2 1 0 0 2 1
Rocco, ss 4 1 1 0 0 1
Kelley, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Wilmer, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Surinach, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Pillsbury, p 0 0 0 0 0 0

Batting

2B - Mathis, Mootrey

HR - Cox

RBI - Law, Cox 4

Baserunning

SB - Law 2, Mathis, Rocco

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Kelley 5.0 2 1 1 2 7
Wilmer 2.0 2 2 2 2 2
Surinach, W 1.0 1 1 1 1 1
Pillsbury 1.0 0 0 0 0 2

Wild Pitches - Kelley 5, Wilmer, Surinach

Pitches/Strikes - Kelley 83/52, Wilmer 43/25, Surinach 25/14, Pillsbury 13/9

Groundouts/Flyouts - Kelley 3/5, Wilmer 4/0, Surinach 0/2, Pillsbury 1/0

Batters Faced - Kelley 20, Wilmer 10, Surinach 5, Pillsbury 3

Scorpions

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Grant, 1b 5 0 1 2 0 0
Hoglund, dh 5 0 0 0 0 3
Smith, rf/lf 3 0 1 0 0 0
Christopoulos, 3b 3 1 2 0 1 1
Richardson, ss 3 0 0 0 1 3
Lopez, 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0
Wells, lf 2 0 1 0 0 1
Reynolds, ph/rf 0 1 0 1 1 0
Rikeman, c 1 2 0 0 2 1
Cross, c 1 0 0 0 0 1
Gunter, cf 3 0 0 0 0 2
Martinez, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Koehler, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Shear, p 0 0 0 0 0 0

Batting

RBI - Grant 2, Reynolds

HBP - Smith

Baserunning

SB - Rikeman

Fielding

E - Cross, Shear

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Martinez 3.0 3 0 0 1 5
Koehler 2.1 0 4 4 8 1
Shear, L 2.2 4 4 3 2 0

Wild Pitches - Martinez, Koehler 3

Pitches/Strikes - Martinez 55/36, Koehler 76/30, Shear 47/24

Groundouts/Flyouts - Martinez 2/2, Koehler 1/5, Shear 4/4

Batters Faced - Martinez 13, Koehler 15, Shear 14

Lightning

Batting

Name AB R H RBI BB SO
Scott, cf 2 1 0 0 3 0
Backus, 2b 5 0 1 0 0 0
Law, 3b 2 1 1 1 3 1
Cox, dh 5 1 1 4 0 1
Mathis, rf 5 1 2 0 0 1
Mootrey, 1b 4 1 1 0 1 0
Elbe, lf 2 1 0 0 2 1
Horsley, c 2 1 0 0 2 1
Rocco, ss 4 1 1 0 0 1
Kelley, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Wilmer, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Surinach, p 0 0 0 0 0 0
Pillsbury, p 0 0 0 0 0 0

Batting

2B - Mathis, Mootrey

HR - Cox

RBI - Law, Cox 4

Baserunning

SB - Law 2, Mathis, Rocco

Pitching

Name IP H R ER BB SO
Kelley 5.0 2 1 1 2 7
Wilmer 2.0 2 2 2 2 2
Surinach, W 1.0 1 1 1 1 1
Pillsbury 1.0 0 0 0 0 2

Wild Pitches - Kelley 5, Wilmer, Surinach

Pitches/Strikes - Kelley 83/52, Wilmer 43/25, Surinach 25/14, Pillsbury 13/9

Groundouts/Flyouts - Kelley 3/5, Wilmer 4/0, Surinach 0/2, Pillsbury 1/0

Batters Faced - Kelley 20, Wilmer 10, Surinach 5, Pillsbury 3

Scoring Plays

Bottom 4th

Tucker Horsley advanced to second on a wild pitch. Wyatt Elbe advanced to third on a wild pitch. Sean Mootrey scored on a wild pitch.

Top 5th

Topher Grant grounded out to 2b, RBI. Brooks Rikeman scored.

Bottom 6th

Tucker Horsley advanced to second on a wild pitch. Wyatt Elbe scored on a wild pitch.
Max Law walked, RBI. Jarrett Backus advanced to second. Robbie Scott advanced to third. Tucker Horsley scored.
Cage Cox reached on a fielder's choice to second base, RBI. Max Law out at second 2b to ss. Jarrett Backus advanced to third. Robbie Scott scored.

Top 7th

Brooks Rikeman advanced to third on a wild pitch. Joshua Reynolds scored on a wild pitch.
Topher Grant singled through the left side, RBI. Brooks Rikeman scored.

Top 8th

Joshua Reynolds fouled out to 1b, SF, RBI. Kyle Richardson advanced to third. Mike Christopoulos scored.

Bottom 8th

Cage Cox homered to right center, 3 RBI. Max Law scored. Mike Rocco scored.
Tate Mathis stole third, scored on a throwing error by c, unearned.

All Plays

Top 1st

Topher Grant grounded out to 1b unassisted. 1 out
Gunnar Hoglund flied out to cf. 2 out
Parker Smith hit by pitch.
Parker Smith advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Parker Smith advanced to third on a wild pitch.
Mike Christopoulos walked.
Kyle Richardson struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 1st

Robbie Scott walked.
Robbie Scott advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Jarrett Backus grounded out to 1b unassisted. Robbie Scott advanced to third. 1 out
Max Law struck out looking. 2 out
Cage Cox grounded out to p. 3 out

Top 2nd

Fausto Lopez grounded out to p. 1 out
Nick Wells singled to shortstop.
Nick Wells advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Brooks Rikeman struck out looking. 2 out
Jeremy Gunter struck out swinging to catcher. 3 out

Bottom 2nd

Tate Mathis doubled to right center.
Sean Mootrey doubled to left field. Tate Mathis advanced to third.
Wyatt Elbe struck out swinging. 1 out
Tucker Horsley struck out swinging. 2 out
Mike Rocco struck out swinging to catcher. 3 out

Top 3rd

Topher Grant popped up to p. 1 out
Gunnar Hoglund struck out looking. 2 out
Parker Smith singled down the lf line.
Parker Smith advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Mike Christopoulos struck out looking. 3 out

Bottom 3rd

Robbie Scott flied out to ss. 1 out
Jarrett Backus flied out to ss. 2 out
Max Law singled through the left side.
Max Law stole second.
Cage Cox struck out swinging. 3 out

Top 4th

Kyle Richardson struck out swinging. 1 out
Fausto Lopez flied out to rf. 2 out
Nick Wells struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 4th

Ethan Koehler replaces Quinton Martinez at pitcher.
Tate Mathis struck out swinging. 1 out
Sean Mootrey walked.
Wyatt Elbe walked. Sean Mootrey advanced to second.
Tucker Horsley walked. Wyatt Elbe advanced to second. Sean Mootrey advanced to third.
Tucker Horsley advanced to second on a wild pitch. Wyatt Elbe advanced to third on a wild pitch. Sean Mootrey scored on a wild pitch.
Mike Rocco reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop. Tucker Horsley advanced to third. Wyatt Elbe out at home ss to c. 2 out
Mike Rocco stole second.
Robbie Scott walked.
Jarrett Backus flied out to 3b. 3 out

Top 5th

Brooks Rikeman walked.
Brooks Rikeman stole second.
Jeremy Gunter lined out to lf. 1 out
Brooks Rikeman advanced to third on a wild pitch.
Topher Grant grounded out to 2b, RBI. Brooks Rikeman scored. 2 out
Gunnar Hoglund lined out to cf to right center. 3 out

Bottom 5th

Max Law walked.
Max Law stole second.
Cage Cox flied out to lf. 1 out
Tate Mathis flied out to ss. 2 out
Sean Mootrey lined out to 2b. 3 out

Top 6th

Stephen Wilmer replaces Dylan Kelley at pitcher.
Parker Smith grounded out to ss. 1 out
Mike Christopoulos singled to right field.
Kyle Richardson struck out swinging. 2 out
Fausto Lopez grounded out to 2b. 3 out

Bottom 6th

Wyatt Elbe walked.
Wyatt Elbe advanced to second on a wild pitch.
Tucker Horsley walked.
Mike Rocco flied out to rf. Wyatt Elbe advanced to third. 1 out
Tucker Horsley advanced to second on a wild pitch. Wyatt Elbe scored on a wild pitch.
Robbie Scott walked.
Ethan Shear replaces Ethan Koehler at pitcher.
Jarrett Backus singled to center field. Robbie Scott advanced to second. Tucker Horsley advanced to third.
Max Law walked, RBI. Jarrett Backus advanced to second. Robbie Scott advanced to third. Tucker Horsley scored.
Cage Cox reached on a fielder's choice to second base, RBI. Max Law out at second 2b to ss. Jarrett Backus advanced to third. Robbie Scott scored. 2 out
Tate Mathis flied out to rf. 3 out

Top 7th

Joshua Reynolds replaces Nick Wells at pinch hitter.
Joshua Reynolds walked.
Joshua Reynolds advanced to second on a passed ball.
Brooks Rikeman walked.
Jeremy Gunter grounded out to p, SAC, bunt. Brooks Rikeman advanced to second. Joshua Reynolds advanced to third. 1 out
Brooks Rikeman advanced to third on a wild pitch. Joshua Reynolds scored on a wild pitch.
Topher Grant singled through the left side, RBI. Brooks Rikeman scored.
Gunnar Hoglund struck out swinging. 2 out
Parker Smith grounded out to ss. 3 out

Bottom 7th

Parker Smith replaces at left field.
Joshua Reynolds replaces at right field.
Hayden Cross replaces Brooks Rikeman at catcher.
Sean Mootrey flied out to cf. 1 out
Wyatt Elbe flied out to cf. 2 out
Tucker Horsley grounded out to ss. 3 out

Top 8th

Edward Surinach replaces Stephen Wilmer at pitcher.
Mike Christopoulos singled through the right side.
Mike Christopoulos advanced to second on a balk.
Kyle Richardson walked.
Fausto Lopez fouled out to c. 1 out
Kyle Richardson advanced to second on a wild pitch. Mike Christopoulos advanced to third on a wild pitch.
Joshua Reynolds fouled out to 1b, SF, RBI. Kyle Richardson advanced to third. Mike Christopoulos scored. 2 out
Hayden Cross struck out swinging. 3 out

Bottom 8th

Mike Rocco singled to left field.
Robbie Scott grounded out to 2b. Mike Rocco advanced to second. 1 out
Jarrett Backus grounded out to 1b unassisted. Mike Rocco advanced to third. 2 out
Max Law walked.
Cage Cox homered to right center, 3 RBI. Max Law scored. Mike Rocco scored.
Tate Mathis singled to pitcher, advanced to second on a throwing error by p.
Tate Mathis stole third, scored on a throwing error by c, unearned.
Sean Mootrey flied out to rf. 3 out

Top 9th

Parker Pillsbury replaces Edward Surinach at pitcher.
Jeremy Gunter struck out swinging, out at first c to 1b. 1 out
Topher Grant grounded out to ss. 2 out
Gunnar Hoglund struck out looking. 3 out

Friday's game has been suspended due to weather.