UPDATE: With a 4-1 victory over Pewaukee Sunday at home, the Burlington Barons advance to weekend No. 2 of the Land O’Lakes Grand Championship series.
Burlington travels to New Berlin Saturday at 1:30 p.m. and faces elimination in the two-loss format.
After Burlington lost Saturday, ace pitcher Brian Henschel threw a complete-game gem on his 38th birthday. Also, he added a two-run double.
Matt Kuchenbecker added three hits for the Barons.
Team is in LOL Grand Championship for second straight year
By Mike Ramczyk
Sports Editor
The East Troy Express fans were livid.
After voicing their displeasure on a close play at first base in the previous inning, the boos became deafening for a bang-bang play at the plate in the bottom of the ninth that sent the Burlington Barons to their second straight Land O’Lakes grand championship.
Nick Uhen’s walk-off double plated Ryan Hoffman, and the semi-pro Burlington Barons edged visiting East Troy Sunday, 2-1, to win the Land O’Lakes Southwest Division title.
Uhen’s line drive down the right-field line trickled bounced past the outstretched East Troy outfielder and to the fence.
By the time Hoffman, who doubled to lead off the inning, realized the ball wasn’t caught, he had already motioned back to second base.
The Barons veteran then reversed his momentum and hustled home, barely beating the tag. Hoffman’s teammates mobbed him at home plate, including a Gatorade bucket shower, and the Express fans let the umpire have it.
“I’m pretty sure I snuck my hand in,” Hoffman said. “I started to go feet first then saw the plate between the catcher’s legs and jammed a hand in. I got almost to third base, and I thought he caught it so I went back. It was great. I got jumped on and a bucket of water. What a way to win a game.”
It was the second straight Southwest Division championship and the third in five years for Burlington.
Karl Richter, who recently pitched his 1,000th inning with the Barons, dazzled with a mix of junk and change-ups in a complete game gem.
A 17-year Barons veteran, Richter picked up his 60th career victory.
“I try to keep hitters off balance,” Richter said. “I don’t have the biggest fastball. I try to work fast and keep the ball down. It was awesome to see Ryan score. I’ve been playing with him for 16 years, and it was exciting.”
Burlington won at East Troy Saturday, 5-1, to take the first game of the three-game series.
“Over the last couple of years, East Troy has become a rival,” Richter said. “When we played them earlier this year, it got a little chippy. They’ve always been a good ball club.”
Sunday’s game was close throughout. In the bottom of the sixth, former Burlington High School star and UW-Whitewater national champion Dylan Friend’s home run put Burlington up, 1-0.
But East Troy came right back in the seventh with a Matt Lang home run to center.
In the eighth, East Troy had a runner on third base with one out, but Richter battled out of it. With two outs, an in-between hop was corralled by shortstop Mac Shepherd, whose throw was dug out by first baseman Nolan Friend.
The umpire called the East Troy runner out on a play that could’ve gone either way.
Then, in the ninth, Uhen, a 2011 Catholic Central graduate, ended the game.
“We didn’t want to play that second game, so it was nice to get out of here,” he said. “The first pitch was right down the middle, so I swung away knowing some good hitters were behind me with nobody out.”
Uhen plays at Division 3 Ripon College, and like many of the Barons’ collegiate athletes, will have to leave the team after this weekend’s Grand Championship.
“Once we get up to school and play fall ball, we can’t do both,” he said.
Burlington now advances to a best-of-three series against Cedarburg starting Saturday.
The team’s ace pitcher, Brian Henschel, will be available after missing last year’s Grand Championship with an injury.
The Barons will look for redemption after losing last year’s series.
“I think we can win,” Richter said. “We lost a lot of guys last year to college, and that might happen this year, but we’ve been battling all year. We need to keep hitting and playing good defense, and we’ll be fine.”
Burlington 5, East Troy 1
In game one in East Troy Saturday, Henschel struck out 10 batters and scattered eight hits with no walks in a masterful complete-game performance.
Paul Archambault was 4-for-4 with two RBIs, and Shepherd added three hits. Both hit home runs.
Justin Molle and Alex Hallenbeck also added hits, as the Barons cranked out 12 hits.
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