By Jim MashekSporting Times
They hit for average and some power, but more important, they know how to advance the runner.
They’re talented, across the board, but just as important, they’re steady, and they’ve definitely built some momentum over the last five or six weeks.
But they can bring it on the mound.
Can they ever.
And that’s where you start when you’re evaluating the Bowling Green High School baseball team, which extended its winning streak to 17 games with a methodical 8-1 victory over homestanding Greenwood at Corey Hart Ballpark on Tuesday night.
The Purples (22-3 overall) are nothing if not fundamentally sound, and with senior left-hander Carson Myers on the hill, they were on top of their game in completing a two-game sweep of crosstown rival Greenwood.
“We have a good team,” fourth-year BGHS coach Nathan Isenberg said afterward. “The kids are very determined. We thought we were in position to have a really good team last year, but COVID-19 wiped it out. That motivated our guys coming back. They’re hoping to make the most out of this opportunity.”
Bowling Green swept Greenwood in resounding fashion, winning Game One 10-1 at BGHS on Monday night. Senior right-hander Eli Burwash scattered five hits over seven innings to remain unbeaten in six decisions, all while going 2-for-5 at the plate with a run scored against the Gators’ pitchers.
Burwash plans to play at Frontier Community College in Fairfield, Illinois, next season. His numbers for his final year with the Purples are off the charts, Mr. Baseball kind of stuff.
To wit:
Burwash has allowed just 27 hits in 40 innings pitched, including the six he worked against the Gators on Tuesday night. Even more impressive, he’s struck out 59 batters while allowing just seven walks. At the plate, Burwash is usually the Purples’ leadoff hitter, and he’s batting .405 with five home runs and 26 RBIs. Burwash has stolen 20 bases in 24 attempts and struck out only nine times in 84 at bats.
“We just want to come out and establish ourselves, try to get ahead early,” Burwash said. “If that doesn’t happen, you feel like you’re in pretty good shape because of our pitching and defense. We usually have enough offense to win.”
The Purples certainly did against Greenwood.
On Tuesday night, Bowling Green took control with four runs in the top of the third inning. Second baseman Maddox Burr had an RBI double to center field, and Meyers delivered a run-scoring hit through the right side. But the Purples also scored on a wild pitch, a Greenwood error in the infield, and a delayed double steal.
Isenberg likes to stress the fundamentals, and the Purples, the Commonwealth’s seventh-ranked KHSAA team, have posted a 5-1 record in games decided by two runs or less.
Myers, who also competes for the BGHS golf team, struck out six consecutive Greenwood batters at one point and allowed just three hits in six innings pitched. Myers, a 6-foot-2 left-hander, also picked off a Greenwood base runner at first base in the sixth.
Cade Thornton scored the Gators’ only run on a seventh-inning wild pitch, when BGHS reliever Campbell Bush was challenging the Greenwood batters by throwing strikes and trusting his defense.
That’s a big part of the Purples’ persona, as Burwash pointed out.
Meyers, who is batting .342 with four homers and a team-high 33 RBIs, is quick to agree with his teammate.
“It gives you a lot of confidence, when you know guys behind you can play good defense,” Meyers said.
Meyers is 5-1 on the mound and has allowed just 16 hits in 34 innings pitched. He’s struck out 59 batters while walking only 11. Right-hander Brady Key is 5-0 with a 1.35 ERA, and Bush is 4-0 with a save and a dazzling 0.74 ERA.
Simply put, these guys are pretty solid across the board.
Meyers will continue his baseball career at Alabama-Birmingham — one of Western Kentucky University’s rivals in the Conference USA Eastern Division — and he believes the Purples are trending in the right direction.
“It’s always been a dream of mine, to play college baseball,” Meyers said. “Like Coach (Isenberg) said, not having a season last year really got us motivated. The guys really put in the work … Right now, we just want to build off every single game.”
The Purples are on the road to play Glasgow High School on Thursday, with first pitch scheduled for 5:30 p.m. They figure to be a team to be reckoned with come the KHSAA state tournament in June.
