John I. Leonard Strikes Again, Knocks Off Seminole Ridge

Michael Cuellar led the Lancers with three RBIs.

The John I. Leonard Lancers pulled off another stunning upset on Wednesday night, handing the Seminole Ridge Hawks just their second loss of the season.

After a 1-7 start, Wednesday’s game marked the third in a row where the Lancers took it to a club that, on paper at least, seemed superior. Last week it was the 7-3 Falcons of Forest Hills and the 8-4 Atlantic Eagles that fell victim to the surging Lancers. This time, it was the Hawks, whose only previous loss had come at the hands of perennial Palm Beach County powerhouse Park Vista.

Four different batters enjoyed multi-hit nights as the Lancers racked up 10 team hits, but none where as effective as Michael Cuellar, who was a perfect 2-for-2 with a pair of walks and three RBIs, the first of which staked Leonard to an early 1-0 lead in the first.

Cuellar and the Lancers went for the jugular in the second. Geraldo Soriano bashed a one-out solo shot over the left-field fence and Cuellar piled on with a two-run double to right later in the frame.

Seminole Ridge cut the lead in half with two unearned runs in the third but Leonard kept the pressure with a big fourth inning. A lead-off double by Daniel Hernandez, one of Cuellar’s free passes, and a single by Jason Garcia loaded the bases for Jose Garcia, who was hit by a pitch to bring the lead baserunner home. An Angel Hoyas RBI single brought the second run in and the Lancers scored twice more on an error later in the inning, running the lead to 8-2.

The teams traded unearned runs in the fifth and sixth to make it 9-3 and, with the game out of reach, the Hawks tacked on two runs in their last at-bats. Cato Sinkus hit an RBI double after a pair of walks opened the inning and Andrew Attaway, who went 2-for-3, followed with a run-scoring single.

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