Thursday’s game will be televised on ESPN2
By Jennifer Eisenbart
Sports Editor
The dream goes on for the Burlington Little League All-Star team – at least through Thursday.
In a must-win situation against Kentucky Tuesday morning, the Burlington squad – representing Wisconsin – scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to secure a 7-3 win in the Great Lakes regional tournament in Indianapolis.
Because Michigan upended Ohio – in a must-win situation of their own – Burlington is the No. 4 seed in the semifinals, and will play undefeated Illinois Thursday at 6 p.m. on ESPN2.
Burlington defeated Michigan, 3-2, in the opening round, but then lost to Ohio 13-2 Sunday and Illinois 15-5 on Monday.
In spite of getting the four seed, Burlington manager Scott Safar was excited about getting to play on national TV.
“That’s all right,” Safar said of playing Illinois. “We’ve still got a chance. But we’ll have to bring our ‘A’ game.
“They are really phenomenal.”
Just to make the semifinals, Safar said, his players responded in a big way after the losses to Ohio and Illinois.
“We had a big day today,” Safar said Tuesday. “We came off two tough losses. The kids responded really well in their preparation.
“It was a really convincing win,” he added. “We hit well, we pitched well.”
Burlington drew a pair of walks to put runners at first and second, and Sean Safar came home on Derek Koenen’s RBI double. Kawalec went to third, and scored on a passed ball.
Leading 2-0, Trey Krause came in on a Koenen RBI single in the third inning. Drew Pesick hit a single, but both runners were stranded. Kentucky had a two-run homer in the top of the fourth, but Burlington scored its final four runs in the bottom of the inning.
Burlington opened the inning with a single by Mauro Martinez and two walks to Trent Turzenski and Lucas Zasada load the bases. Then Sean Safar hit a two-RBI double to the wall. Krause hit an RBI grounder to drive home Zasada and Safar later scored on a passed ball.
Kawalec pitched four and a third innings to get the victory, with one hit (the homer). He struck out four. Krause got the save, allowing one run.
While baseball has been the main focus of the trip, Safar said everyone involved is having a great time. He said his players have made friends with squads from Kansas, Minnesota, and Illinois.
“It’s phenomenal,” Safar added. “The kids have all had a great time.
“The baseball’s great as well.”
Like the previous Burlington teams that had made it to regionals, Safar knew his players were experiencing something they would never forget.
“The kids are really just having an experience of a lifetime,” Safar said.
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