After winning the NCHSAA 2A title, here's what Burns baseball plans for an encore
No matter how predictable, spring weather has a knack for altering plans and bending schedules to its will. Alex Leonhardt understands this all too well, the Burns baseball coach doing patch work to create a manageable schedule for his team following a recent spate of rainfall.
“We caught a good break the (season’s first week), but after that the weather’s been getting everybody,” Leonhardt said. “It’s one of the things you can’t control, and we just have to do what we can do when the weather gives us an opportunity to play.”
Weather’s been the only thing able to slow down the Burns baseball team. The reigning NCHSAA 2A state champions are off to an 11-0 (4-0 Southern Piedmont 1A/2A) start to the 2024 campaign. The Bulldogs swept a unique doubleheader on Monday, defeating Thomas Jefferson 16-1 in the opener, followed by an 18-0 victory over Bessemer City in the nightcap. The matchups against Southern Piedmont 1A/2A foes had previously been postponed due to recent inclement weather.
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After taking care of business in Game 1, Leonhardt admitted he wasn’t overly pleased with how his team began its matchup with Bessemer City. The Bulldogs led 1-0 through two innings but had ample opportunity to score significantly more.
“Us playing (Thomas Jefferson) earlier, I guess we thought we still had a lead to start the second game,” the Burns High skipper said. “It felt as if we felt too comfortable. But the boys got it together and started rolling midway through.”
Such was a rare blip on the radar for Burns, which has outscored opponents 105-7 through 11 games. No team has scored more than three runs on the Bulldogs thus far, Patton giving them a scare March 14 before junior Colby Putnam’s walkoff grand slam to lift his team to a 7-3 victory.
Leonhardt ensured his team was tested early as well, scheduling Class 3A powerhouses in Crest, North Lincoln and South Point, along with those it may see down the line this postseason such as Lincoln Charter and West Lincoln. In five games, Burns has outscored those teams by a combined tally of 31-2.
“Playing tough competition is always going to make you better,” Leonhardt said. “We subscribe to the adage that ‘iron sharpens iron.’ You don’t get any better if you don’t play the best. South Point and North Lincoln in particular are great teams, and those are relationships we’d like to continue in the future as I believe we make each other better.”
Cohesion and familiarity have been reliable assets for the Bulldogs, who returned eight starters from last spring’s NCHSAA 2A state title team. Gardner-Webb baseball recruit Colby Putnam is again setting the pace, both on the mound and in the batter’s box.
As a hitter, Putnam is hitting .519 with three home runs and 20 RBIs. He’s also 3-0 as a starting pitcher, allowing no runs on five hits with 29 strikeouts in 21 innings of work.
“He’s a joy to be around. He’s a kid but he’s very mature for his age,” Leonhardt said. “He’s a great teammate as well; we’re blessed to have him.”
Ethan Guy, Hagan Hoyle, Camden Mackall, Marshall McGowan, Josh Taylor, Jackson Toney and Nick Williams have also stepped their games up this season. However, Leonhardt believes his team’s trajectory will be determined by the attitude it brings with it to the ballpark.
“We have to play our best game, no matter who the opponent is,” he said. “Crest, South Point, North Lincoln, Highland Tech, whoever we play in the Easter tournament, just playing our best. Leave all the cards on the table and see how everything turns out.
“If a team is better than us, so be it. But I want a team to beat us with our best effort, and that’s something I’m daily challenging our team to put forward.
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: NCHSAA baseball: Burns thriving despite weight of great expectations
