Hawks get afternoon win over Hillcrest Academy

KALONA – The Central Lee boys' baseball team rebounded with a tough loss at Class 1A Burlington Notre Dame Tuesday night with an 8-1 early afternoon win over Hillcrest Academy Wednesday.
The Hawks (10-5, 4-4 SEI Superconference) got four RBIs from senior Cory Jones who had two hits from the nine-spot. Zach Manwill went 2-3 with two runs scored as Central Lee jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the second.
Gage Van Ausdall’s fielder’s choice ground out scored Chase Johnson and then Jones followed with with a single to right to score Brayden Wyrick and Manwill before a flyout ended the inning.
Blake Davis got the win, going four innings, surrendering four hits, while striking out a season-high 10 hitters, and walking just two.
Johnson came on in the fifth to save some pitches on Davis’ arm and worked three innings, giving up one hit, and gave up the only Hillcrest run, while striking out three, and not giving up a walk.
Central Lee put up two more in the sixth and three in the seventh to pull away.
Davis, Johnson, Hunter Edlin, and Van Ausdall all had singles for the Hawks in the win.
On Tuesday, the Hawks gave the Nikes a scare with a 4-run fifth inning that cut the Nikes' lead to 7-4.
With one out and one on and the Hawks down 7-0, Bo Herdrich singled to center scoring Ward Fraise and moving Manwill to third base. Brett Cook came in to courtesy run for Herdrich and Kayden Calfee would walk to load the bases for Wyrick. Manwill would come around on a wild pitch and then Wyrick would drive a two-run single to right to make it 7-4. Hunter Edlin would then hit into a 4-6-3 double play to wipe out the rally.
Newtwon would sit down the Nikes in the fifth on just 12 pitches and the Hawks would go back to work in the sixth with Notre Dame’s Caden Schwenker pitching.
The senior walked Kayden Ames and then got a Central Lee strikeout before Jones doubled to left field putting two in scoring position. Davis would then work a walk on a 3-2 count to load the bases. Manwill would then ground back to the pitcher who started a 1-2-3 double play to end the inning for the second time in a row.
The Nikes would get after Caedon Newton in the bottom of the sixth, putting up four more runs on four straight singles to open the top of the inning.
Central Lee would get a walk in the bottom of the seventh with two outs, but couldn’t muster another rally in the loss.
Jones had two hits on Tuesday. Davis, Herdrich, and Wyrick had the other singles for Central Lee.
Newton’s line was seven runs, six earned on nine hits over three innings. Edlin took the loss going three innings and surrendering four runs, all earned, on four hits, while fanning one, and striking out one.
Central Lee will travel to Danville to take on the Bears in a single game Friday night before traveling to Dyersville on Monday to play Pekin at the Field of Dreams movie site.