Opposing coaches noticed virtually no weakness, team peaking at right time
By Tim Wester
Sports Correspondent
As miraculous as Burlington’s comeback victory WIAA Division 1 Championship game against Arrow-head was, it hardly surprised many Southern Lakes Conference coaches.
After all, Lakes teams were unwilling witnesses to a Demons team that was as deep and talented as any in the state, and perhaps the most patient.
“They didn’t have a weakness or an Achilles heel,” Elkhorn baseball coach Jon Anzalone said. “They were patient too and never panicked when they were behind in a game.”
Westosha Central was one of the first teams to learn this lesson after the Demons battled back from a two-run seventh inning deficit to knock off the Falcons 9-8 on a bitterly cold and wet April 12 afternoon.
“They are a bunch of kids that have played with each other a long time, and it showed,” Westosha Central coach Jacob Morman said. “Their lineup, 1 through 9, is deep and they can put a lot of runs on you at any point in the game, which we saw early in the season.”
Although the Falcons avenged the bitter loss the following game with a 2-1 home victory over the Demons, Morman was trying to find a way to avoid playing the potential rubber match in the postseason.
“The team that we saw early in the season was talented, but we saw them when it was cold and miserable,” Moorman said. “When we got them in the playoffs, I didn’t think anybody would be able to beat them. I was just hoping to avoid them in the playoffs because I could tell by their wins late in the regular season that they were playing their best ball when it mattered most.”
Union Grove baseball coach Mike Arendt also saw the Demons play their best baseball later in the season.
In two consecutive games in early May, Burlington out-scored Arendt’s Broncos 43-1.
“They solidified a lot of things toward the back end of the season and continued to improve,” Arendt said. “I think they were playing their best towards the end of the season and obviously when you can go on a run like that late where everyone was clicking offensively, you are going to be tough to beat.”
The Demons certainly proved Arendt’s point to perfection with commanding playoff victories over Westosha Central, Racine Horlick, and Kenosha Bradford to earn their first trip to state since 2005, and third overall.
While at state, the Demons continued to roll through the competition, knocking off defending state champion Janesville Craig 5-3 in the quarterfinals, followed by a dominating 9-0 semifinal victory over Green Bay Preble.
Just when it seemed Burlington’s run had come to end at the hands of Arrowhead, the Demons hit another gear with six combined runs in the sixth and seventh innings to turn a 4-0 deficit into an unforgettable 6-4 victory.
“This is a team that had kids that had a taste of success when they advanced to nationals as a youth baseball team, so they clearly weren’t afraid of success,” Anzalone said. “They were confident, but not cocky, which helped them in big games like their game with Arrowhead.”
Now Anzalone and the rest of the Lakes coaches will look to develop a plan to overtake the Demons next season. It certainly won’t be an easy task with the likes of Jacob Lindemann, Zach Campbell, Aaron Sturdevant, Dale Damon and Grant Tully all returning to the Demons next season.
“They do have a lot coming back next season,” Anzalone said. “But the one thing about it is now they have shown us what this conference is capable of producing. We will all be trying to match what they’ve done.”
The only other SLC teams to win state titles were Westosha Central in 2002 and Wilmot in 1970.
2016 Burlington Demon baseball
Season leaders
Hitting
Batting average: Bryan Studevant .495. Dale Damon .494. Aaron Mutter .438. Aaron Sturdevant .438. Zach Campbell .429. Cal Tully .385. Tanner Strommen .366. Grant Tully .288. Jacob Lindemann .286. Derek Morrow .286. Hits: B. Sturdevant 52. Mutter, Damon 44. A. Sturdevant, Campbell 42, C. Tully 37. RBI: Mutter 42. A. Sturdevant 35. Damon, C. Tully 32. B. Sturdevant 23. Doubles: Mutter 17. C. Tully 11. A. Sturdevant, B. Sturdevant 10. Home runs: Mutter 5. Walks: C. Tully 14. Damon 12. Mutter, Campbell 11.
Pitching
Record: Lindemann 10-1. Mutter 5-1. Houston Cowan 4-0. Derek Koenen 2-1. Campbell 2-2. Innings: Lindemann 64. Mutter 43. Cowan 23 1/3. Campbell 19 1/3. C. Tully 17 1/3. ERA: B. Sturdevant 0.00. Tully 0.82. Lindemann 1.20. Campbell 2.95. Cowan 3.00. Mutter 3.91. Koenen 5.73.
Team stats
.394 batting average, 2.70 ERA, 25-5 overall record.
Postseason awards
Aaron Mutter: SLC Player of the Year, All-District, All-State 2nd team, WBCA All-Star
Bryan Sturdevant: All-State 1st team, All-SLC first team, all-district, WBCA All-Star
Jacob Lindemann: All-State 3rd team, All-District, All-SLC first team
Dale Damon: State Tournament MVP, All-SLC 1st team, Academic All-State
Cal Tully: All-SLC 1st team, Academic All-State
Zach Campbell: All-SLC 1st team
Aaron Sturdevant: All-SLC 2nd team
Tanner Strommen: All-SLC honorable mention
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