Baseball: Burdick, Vikings Blank Columbia to Stay Unbeaten

Written by Braydin Adams 

Adams is a senior at Northern Lebanon High School.

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Burdick, Vikings Blank Columbia to Stay Unbeaten

Northern Lebanon kept its unbeaten season rolling on Wednesday, edging Columbia 2-0 behind a strong start from Blake Burdick and a dominant finish from Andrew Via. In a game where runs were hard to come by, the Vikings got just enough offense in the 4th and 6th, while Burdick and Via combined on the shutout to push Northern Lebanon to 14-0.

Burdick set the tone early on the mound, striking out two in a clean 1st inning and helping Northern Lebanon settle into a tight pitchers’ duel. The sophomore worked six scoreless innings to earn the win, allowing five hits, striking out six, and walking two. With the victory, Burdick improved to 4-0 on the season and lowered his ERA to 0.74.

Northern Lebanon threatened in the 1st when Owen Fahringer and Adrian Gonzalez each singled, but Columbia worked out of trouble to keep the game scoreless. The Vikings also missed an opportunity in the 2nd after Christian Anspach moved into scoring position and Ryan Clemmer reached, but the deadlock held through two innings.

After Gonzalez picked up another hit in the 3rd, Burdick continued to keep Columbia off balance. The Crimson Tide threatened in the 4th, but Burdick pitched out of the jam and kept the game at 0-0, preserving the chance for Northern Lebanon to finally break through in the bottom half.

The Vikings did just that in the 4th. Connor Stoltz reached on a bunt and moved into scoring position after a wild throw, then Anspach laid down a sacrifice bunt to move him to 3rd. Clemmer followed with an RBI single to score Stoltz and give Northern Lebanon a 1-0 lead.

Northern Lebanon added an insurance run in the 6th. Anspach singled to begin the inning, Clemmer moved him up, and Via delivered an RBI single to make it 2-0. Clemmer and Via each drove in a run for the Vikings, while Stoltz, Clemmer, Fahringer, Burdick, Via, and Gonzalez all recorded one hit apiece.

With three outs to get in the 7th, Northern Lebanon handed the ball to Via, who closed it out in emphatic fashion. Via struck out all three batters he faced, including getting McClair swinging for the final out, to record the save and complete the two-pitcher shutout. Northern Lebanon pitchers combined for nine strikeouts, while Columbia’s staff struck out seven.

Northern Lebanon also backed its pitching with clean defense, finishing the afternoon without committing an error. Stoltz led the way defensively with 10 chances in the field.

For Columbia, Owen Musser went 2-for-2 to lead the Crimson Tide in hits. Cameron McClair took the loss after pitching four and two-thirds innings, allowing one run on five hits while striking out seven and walking five.

After the game, Burdick offered a simple thought on the performance: “You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.”

Northern Lebanon head coach Thome praised the effort but also pointed to where the Vikings still need to improve.

“Burdick threw a good enough game to win,” said Thome. “Defense kept us in it and we got just enough offense to get it done. But if we want to keep having continued success we gotta get better tomorrow.”

Gonzalez summed it up a little more briefly: “14-0, baby!”

Northern Lebanon (14-0) will host Blue Mountain on Saturday for an 11 a.m. showdown.

Northern Lebanon 2, Columbia 0

Northern Lebanon Leaders

Andrew Via: 1-3, RBI, BB
Adrian Gonzalez: 2-2, BB
Connor Stoltz: 1-3, R
Ryan Clemmer: 1-1, RBI, BB
Owen Fahringer: 1-4

Pitching
Blake Burdick (W): 6.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
Andrew Via: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Columbia Leaders

Owen Musser: 2-2, 2B
Nick Boyer: 1-3
Dougie Rhoads: 1-3
Avery Gamby: 1-3
Chase Marley: RBI

Pitching
Cameron McClair (L): 4.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 5 BB, 7 K
Nick Boyer: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

Full Box Score

Last Game: Long Throws Shutout as Northern Lebanon Extends Winning Streak to 13