Leo and Bellmont went back and forth Thursday in an exciting NE8 baseball game, with the host Braves seemingly having an answer in the bottom of every inning, but it was the third inning that saw Leo put two runs on the board in their half and a zero in the bottom that ultimately made the difference.
Bellmont’s run in the bottom of the fourth inning brought the Leo lead to 5-3, but it was the last run scored in the game, with both starting pitchers settling down and posting zeroes the rest of the way.
Braves starter Beau Baker struck out an impressive ten batters. He set down seven in a row before being replaced by Layne LeMaster in the top of the seventh. LeMaster worked around a one-out double to throw a scoreless inning.
After falling behind 1-0, the Braves got their own run in the first, capitalizing on two Leo errors to score LeMaster.
Leo answered with another tally in the second, but Bellmont again replied. Oliver Werling singled to lead off the inning and his courtesy runner, Gavin Krull, stole third after taking second on a bunt to move into scoring position. Matt Bleeke knocked him in with a sac fly.
Leo’s two runs in the third came with two outs. They scored again in the fourth, but Bellmont answered right back with a pair of doubles by Kaigan Lee and Werling, but that was the end of the night for the scoreboard operator.
There was only one hit for each team after Werling’s RBI double made if 5-3.
The loss for the Braves dropped them to 0-4 in the NE8 and 5-10 overall. Leo, meanwhile, moved to 14-2 and 4-0 in the conference.
About the Author
