Lee Academy takes Game 1 of SCISA 2A semifinals

After coasting through the first round of the SCISA 2A playoffs, the defending state champions found themselves on the back foot when The King’s Academy traveled to Lee Academy on Monday. TKA struck first, but Lee punched right back to take a lead they would not surrender on their way to a 7-3 victory. Lee traveled to TKA for the second game of their series on Tuesday, but results were not available at press time. Head to theitem.com/sports to read about Game 2. If a third game is necessary, it would be played Thursday at Lee Academy.
“We knew with them coming in, it wasn’t going to be an easy job,” Lee Academy head coach Danny Price said. “With Andrew (Bowers) on the mound, a lot of times we just need to put runs on the board, and he holds us in the game. They’re a scrappy little bunch; they’re going to put the ball in play. We had to make plays and we did, but we’ve got to swing the bats a little bit more.”
King’s Academy was able to push two runs across in the top of the first inning. The leadoff batter reached base before Lee starter Andrew Bowers got two quick outs. A hit batter and a dropped third strike loaded the bases for the Lions before a pair of singles pushed TKA ahead 2-0, but Bowers was able to get another punch out to end the threat.
The Cavalier bats then immediately responded with five runs in the bottom of the inning. After a walk and a bunt to lead off the inning, Bowers smacked an RBI double to left. Landon Olson then doubled two more runs home. Cash Holloway singled to left later in the inning, but Olson was held at third. With two outs, Tucker Rogers hit a liner to left that the Lions couldn’t handle, which turned into a two-run error. Rogers tried to snag an extra bag and was thrown out at second to end the inning.
“It was extremely important that we did that,” Price said of his team responding with five runs in the bottom of the fifth. “The guys in the lineup right there got their bats on the ball, but we made some base running mistakes tonight that we shouldn’t have; guys hesitating a little cost us some and took us out of a couple of innings. That’s baseball; you’ve got to roll with it sometimes and hunker down and battle back. That’s what they did, and they did a good job.”
After the early explosion, the rest of the night was relatively quiet offensively as Bowers and TKA starter Owen DeFee settled in. King’s got a run back in the second on an RBI single by Jackson Alexander, while Lee added individual runs in the third and fourth. The Cavs were primed for a big inning in the third, as Olson led off with a double and scored on a single by Aiden Fitzgerald. Another single put runners on the corners, and the Cavaliers tried to catch TKA sleeping with a double steal. Holloway was thrown out at second and Fitzgerald was a little late breaking for home, leading to an unconventional double play before a strikeout ended the inning.
“They know better than that,” Price said. “You’ve got to find the ball; you can’t be thrown out there into a tag. They know better than that, it’s just like the deer in the headlights sometimes. In the playoffs, everything gets a little bit sped up and they don’t think.”
In the fourth, Tyler Gilbert reached on a dropped fly ball in right with two outs and came home to score on a single by Chase Entzminger. Two walks then loaded the bases before DeFee escaped the jam with a fly out to center.
After that, it was all zeros. Lee threatened to add to their lead in the sixth with a single and a walk, but Cary Privette was thrown out at third before a pop out ended the inning. King’s then loaded the bases in the top of the seventh with a single, an error and a walk. After the error, Bowers hit his pitch limit, so Lee Academy turned to Aiden Fitzgerald. He got the second out before loading the bases but ultimately punched out Cole Turner to seal the Cavalier victory.
All three runs scored against Bowers were unearned as he scattered seven hits and three hit batters while striking out nine. Olson led the offense with two hits and two RBIs. Holloway added two base knocks, while Gilbert scored two runs after reaching on a hit and a walk.
As Lee continues marching through the postseason, they’ll continue to lean on the experience that carried them to last year’s 2A title.
“Some of the older guys who have been here and done that, they were real relaxed today, which was a good sign. We had a good round of infield, and I hoped they were going to come out ready to play; and they did,” Price said. “We knew they’re a good little ball team. We played them in our region this year, but we’ve got plenty of pitching, we just have to swing the bats and put some runs on the board. If we can do that, we’ll be fine.
“Like I told them, every game is going to get a little tougher, the nerves will get a little bit more involved; you’ve just got to put that stuff aside and play baseball. If they play like they’ve been playing all year, they’ll be fine.”