Leesburg Picks Up Vital Doubleheader Sweep

WINTER GARDEN, Fla. - The Leesburg Lightning (13-19) led by four runs heading into the ninth but settled for a close one, holding on to defeat the Winter Garden Squeeze (16-15) on Wednesday night, 5-4. Josh Pagliei (Flagler) went 2-for-4 with 4 RBI and Clay Simmons (South Florida) finished 2-for-3 with a double and a HR, giving the Lightning just their fourth win in 10 games.

The game was a resumption of a suspended game on Friday, July 15, and preceded a regularly scheduled game between the two teams.

Pagliei put Leesburg on the board early, recording a two RBI single in the second, scoring Igor Baez (Flagler) and Austin Mauer (Florida Southern) to give the Lightning a 2-0 lead.

Winter Garden answered in the third as Jonah Garrison (Polk State) led off with a single, and advanced to second on a stolen base. He later advanced to third on a pass ball and then scored as a sacrifice fly by Kyle Corbin (Bethune-Cookman) cut the Leesburg lead to 2-1.

In the fourth, Simmons took an 0-1 fastball from Winter Garden starter Ryan Ashworth (Flagler) and annihilated it into the next area code — 400 feet over the fence in left-center. His third home run of the season gave Leesburg a 3-1 lead.

Walker Burgess (Florida Southern) got the start for the Lightning and was effective much of the way, allowing just one run in five innings of work. He struck out five in his longest outing of the season while also earning the win.

The Squeeze were held to just two hits from the fifth to the eighth as Nate Brecklin (The Citadel) threw two innings of shutout ball, allowing just one hit. Ryan Allain (Florida Tech) came on in the eighth and threw a scoreless frame but didn’t have the same luck in the ninth.

Following a one out walk, Allain gave up a double to Pablo Cabrera (Florida Southern) as Winter Garden now had runners on second and third with two outs. Tyler Halstead (Winthrop) followed next and made things interesting, doubling down the right field line, scoring both runs to cut the lead to 5-3.

Leesburg called on Dan Twitty (St. Leo) to finish things off but he gave up a single to Karl Ellison (Lynn), scoring Halstead to trim the lead once more to 5-4.

Twitty was able to retire the next batter as he picked up his first save of the season.

Simmons, Pagliei, and Mauer all finished with two hits for Leesburg.

In the second game of Wednesday night’s doubleheader, the Leesburg Lightning (14-19) used a nine-run fourth inning to crush the Winter Garden Squeeze (16-16) in seven innings, 14-1. Harrison Scanlon (Western Kentucky) and Harlan Harris (Valdosta State) led the way for the Lightning, both finishing a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate.

Winter Garden took an early lead in the second on a solo home run by Ellison just over the fence in center field. The 1-0 lead lasted just one inning and was the only lead the Squeeze held on the day.

Things unraveled in a rather ugly manner for Anthony Mazzurco (West Florida) in the fourth as Leesburg sent 14 men to the plate and erupted for nine runs — the most in any inning for the Lightning this season.

They rattled off seven hits in the inning with six of them accounting for at least one RBI.

It was the exact type of inning that a struggling team had been searching for. It was the kind of inning that you look back on and say, “That inning really turned our season around.” Most importantly, it was an inning that the Lightning desperately needed, especially after enduring Tuesday night’s 14-2 defeat at the hands of Winter Garden.

“We really needed that inning tonight,” Harlan Harris said. “It really helped turn our confidence around and we swung the bats with an extra sense of vengeance the rest of the game.”

Trace Norkus (North Florida) and Kade Hunkapiller (State College of FL) anchored the hill for Leesburg, allowing just one run in seven innings with six strikeouts.

Norkus picked up the win — his first of the season.

The Lightning picked up another five hits in the seventh, scoring five more runs to cement their mercy rule victory.

“Today was an extremely huge morale booster,” Harris said. “We know what we’re up against as the season gets closer to the end, but today’s wins definitely helped turn us in the right direction.”

Cornell Nixon (Eastern Kentucky), Austin Simmons (Thomas), and Clay Simmons also added two RBI each for the Lightning.

With Wednesday’s doubleheader sweep of the Squeeze, Leesburg is now just a half game behind the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs (13-17) for the final playoff spot.

The Lightning will return to action on Thursday night as they travel to Historic Sanford Memorial Stadium to take on the first place Sanford River Rats. The two teams will begin a three-game set, with first pitch slated for 7 p.m.

Eddie Poe, York College of Pennsylvania

Eddie Poe - 07/21/16 12:00am

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