By Jennifer Eisenbart
Sports Editor
After losing four straight games leading into the WIAA Division 1 playoffs, the Burlington High School baseball team needed to right the ship quickly.
The Demons did just that Tuesday afternoon, holding Racine Park to just four hits and shutting out the Panthers 5-0 in a regional semifinal at Beaumont Field in Burlington.
Burlington, the No. 5 seed in the sectional, will face No. 4-seeded Badger at Lake Geneva Thursday at 4:30 p.m.
BHS head coach Scott Staude said his team gave him a good effort.
“We played very good defense and did not have an error,” Staude said.
Burlington also got a solid effort from senior pitcher Mark Wallace. He walked just two batters and struck out six, giving up three hits in five innings of work.
“(He) kept the ball down all night long,” Staude said. “That is the type of defensive effort you need to have to move on in the playoffs.”
Dane Helnore pitched two innings of relief with five strikeouts, one walk and one hit.
The Demons scored two runs in the bottom of the second inning and never looked back. The squad then added another run in the bottom of the third and two in the bottom of the fifth.
Chandler Meseberg went 2-for-2 at the plate with a walk and an RBI, while Staude said Helnore and Luke Gannon also came up with timely hits.
The Park pitchers issued six walks on the day, and seven hits. The final BHS run came in on a wild pitch.
Now comes Lake Geneva Badger – a team BHS beat at home 4-2 on May 6 and then lost to at Lake Geneva 2-1 on May 7.
“Thursday will be a tough battle against Badger, but I think this group of kids is up for the challenge,” Staude said.
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