Legion Juniors add three to win column

Imperial’s Junior Legion team ran its record to 8-3 with three wins and one loss last week.
The Horns started the week with a June 8 game at Hershland.
Imperial got off on the right foot with each of its first four batters reaching base. Camron Lempke led off the game with a single. Lempke scored on a single by Jaret Peterson and Cooper Dillan scored on a single by Mason Wallin.
Double plays ended Hershland threats in the first and second innings.
The juniors added to their 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning. Dillan and Wallin singled and came around to score, but Imperial squandered the bases loaded.
Imperial entered the sixth inning still holding a 4-0 lead. Tristan Jablonski moved himself around the bases and scored on a triple by Dillan. Dillan would score on a double by Peterson with two outs.
Colin O’Neil struck out three Hershland batters in the sixth inning, but gave up two hits and Hershland’s only run of the game.
Carter Leibbrandt singled to start off the seventh and scored, as did Thomas Reeves and Morel Jurado to round out the 9-1 win.
C. O’Neil pitched six innings before Jurado came on in relief. O’Neil struck out eight and walked three in Imperial’s 9-1 win.
The juniors had a couple days to catch their breath before a busy weekend of games beginning Friday at Gothenburg.
After a scoreless first inning, singles by Jurado and Tristan Hite and a double by Wallin helped Imperial plate runs by Leibbrandt and Jurado in the second and Hite in the third innings.
With no runs in the fourth, Imperial led 4-0 after Leibbrandt scored on a Nolan Foster single in the fifth.
Runs by Dillan and Hite in the top of the sixth inning were matched by Gothenburg in the bottom half of the inning.
Jurado singled to start the seventh inning and scored. Gothenburg took advantage of two walks in the bottom of the inning to add a run, but it was too little, too late.
Imperial took the game 7-3.
Peterson pitched all but the last out of the game. Peterson allowed five hits and three walks, while striking out six.
The junior’s only blemish on the week came at the hands of Holdrege Saturday.
Played at Holdrege, Imperial fell behind 0-3 by the end of two innings.
The Horns took advantage of Holdrege errors in the third inning. Tyler O’Neil walked and moved around to third base on an error and passed ball before scoring on a second error. Dillan was hit by a pitch then stole second before coming around to score.
Imperial only had four base runners over the game’s final four innings and was unable to score any more runs.
Holdrege added one run in each the third and fourth innings, then added three in the bottom of the fifth to win the game, 8-2.
Dillan and Jurado pitched for the Horns. Dillan gave up all four of Holdrege’s hits, walked seven and struck out four. Jurado also struck out four batters and walked three.
Hite singled and Jurado doubled for Imperial’s two hits.
Imperial rebounded Sunday with a beat down of Cozad.
After holding Cozad scoreless to start the game, Hite started the Horns off with a homer to center field.
Two hits helped Cozad tie the game in the second, but the Reds’ pitching struggles set Imperial up to regain the lead.
After Jurado was hit by a pitch to start the bottom half of the second, C. O’Neil, Foster and Jablonski walked. Stolen bases and wild pitches kept Horns’ base runners on the move. Dillan reached base after being hit by a pitch and scored Imperial’s fifth run of the inning.
Both teams were scoreless in the third inning.
Cozad took advantage of a walk and error to plate a run in the fourth inning, but Imperial blew the game open with 10 runs in the bottom of the inning.
Every Imperial batter scored in the fourth, including Hite twice, in the 16-4 win.
Lempke came on in relief of C. O’Neil in the fifth to give up two hits and two runs while striking out three batters.
C. O’Neil walked three and struck out six in four innings.
Seven batters had hits for the Horns.
Up next
The Horns travel to Lexington Friday for a junior/senior doubleheader.
Saturday the team returns home for a junior/senior doubleheader with Gothenburg.
Imperial will have another home game Sunday, another junior/senior doubleheader against Broken Bow.
The Horns will head to Ogallala Tuesday for junior/senior matchup.