By Anthony Schulte
Sports Contributor
ORION TWP. — The Lake Orion varsity baseball team came into the second week of action ready to continue their winning ways. They did just that, only losing one game out of five.
The Dragons first had a series against the Rochester Falcons, who entered the string of contests undefeated on the season, sitting at three wins and no losses.
Lake Orion started the series with a convincing win on the road. The second inning proved pivotal with the Dragons scoring eight runs in that frame, including Ryan McCartan hitting a three-run home run.
The Dragons would tack on two more runs across the fourth and fifth innings and earn a 10-0 win. Two Dragon pitchers, Kael Gahan and Evan Dempsey, combined to garner the shutout.
Game two against Rochester was another road victory for Lake Orion, pulling away 10-9. Lake Orion won off another big inning, scoring eight runs in the fourth. Rochester got going early, scoring four runs in the second inning. The Falcons would attempt to come back with a three-run fifth inning, but it ultimately was not enough.
The Dragons would head home for the final game of the series, where they would surrender the first loss of the season. The game was scoreless through two full innings, then the Falcons offense exploded in the top half of the third. Rochester scored five runs against a rather lackadaisical Dragon defense.
Lake Orion would produce a valiant comeback effort, scoring six runs in the fifth inning and Korbin Smith hitting a two-run home run in the sixth. The comeback would fall just short, with Lake Orion losing 11-8. Dragon second baseman Joey Bruno had three hits in four at-bats.
After a day off, Lake Orion traveled to Dow Diamond to take on the Midland Chemics in a Saturday double-header.
Game one saw Lake Orion stealing the win late in the game.
The Dragons entered the sixth inning down 4-3 and had yet another big scoring inning, tallying five runs off multiple walks and a double from the bat of Casey Robertson.
The Dragons would then add three more runs in the seventh, securing an 11-4 victory. Carson Womack had four hits in five at-bats.
Directly after, the Dragons and Chemics squared off for game two. Robertson got Lake Orion going with a first inning two-run home run to left field. Midland would tie the game at two in the second frame, but that is all the offense they would produce for the game. Lake Orion added three more runs in the fourth and two more in the seventh to achieve their sixth win of the season, 7-2.
“I felt confident up at the plate. I was looking for anything in the zone and I found my pitch.” Robertson said after the double-header regarding his home run. “Overall, good team wins today.”
Lake Orion’s record now sits at 6-1. The Dragons are set to play the Detroit Catholic Central Shamrocks on Monday in a rare weekday double-header. The first pitch is slated for 4 p.m.