Imperial Juniors rout Sterling in doubleheader

    Imperial’s Junior Legion team put the rout on Sterling, Colorado’s 14s in a double header there Monday, July 1.  
    In the opener, the juniors scored 13 runs in the top of the first inning. They came back with another 11 runs in the top of the second for a 25-1 rout that ended after three innings.
    In the nightcap, the juniors needed just five innings to put Sterling away 18-0.
    The juniors were set for another double header at Sterling Sunday but it was cancelled due to wet field conditions.
    Coach Bruce Peterson said they may still get the games in before the juniors open district tournament play in Overton this weekend.
Game 1
    The Longhorns batted around twice before Sterling was finally able to pick up the third out in the inning.
    During the first inning rally, Carter Leibbrandt and Colin O’Neil hit back-to-back triples. Tysen Lempke added a pair of doubles, along with a double by Ryan Bernhardt.
    Berhardt added a triple to start off the second inning with Jake German adding a double. Aided by five more singles, three walks and one batter hit by a pitch, the juniors scored 11 more runs.
    Sterling’s lone run came in the bottom of the second.
    O’Neil scored the lone run in the top of the third while the juniors  held Sterling scoreless in the third inning for the 25-1 win.
    The juniors finished with a total of 18 hits with Morel Jurado picking up five RBIs.
    Jaret Peterson pitched the first two innings, giving up one run on two hits and striking out three with no walks.
    O’Neil came on in the third to finish duties on the mound.
Game 2
    Morgan Peterson shut down Sterling’s batters, throwing a two-hit shutout and going the distance in the 18-0 win.
    Longhorn batters teed off  again the first inning, scoring five runs.
    Bryder Hickey led off with a single. After a fly-out to left, the Longhorns hit four successive doubles by O’Neil, Liebbrandt, Morgan Peterson and Jurado. Lempke got left on third after adding a triple.
    The Longhorns added three more in the second. German jacked a one-out triple and scored on a single by O’Neil.
    He reached home on an error that put Morgan Peterson at first. She later scored on a single by Jurado.
    In the third, the Longhorns scored two more runs with doubles by Nolan Burrell and O’Neil.
    The Longhorns added two more runs in the fourth on a two-out rally spurred by singles from Bernhardt, Hickey and Leibbrandt
    They got five more insurance runs in the top of the fifth for the eventual 18-0 win.

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