Lee County baseball tops Lowndes in region opener

LEESBURG — The Lee County Trojans looked sharp in the new baseball season. Friday night they defeated Lowndes 6-1 for their eighth win of the season and their first win in Region 1-AAAAAA.

Head coach Brandon Brock said it was a good win for the team.

“We’re just glad we got the win,” he said. “We haven’t beaten Lowndes in years, and they’re tough to beat always…we’ll take the win, it was a complete win.”

LSU signee Nick Bush was the winning pitcher as well as one of the top hitters for the Trojans. In four innings of work, he struck out eight. It was Bush’s RBI single in the bottom of the first that gave Lee County an early 1-0 lead. He’d add to that in the bottom of the third with a two-run homer over the right field wall to give the Trojans a 4-0 lead.

Lowndes scored in the top of the fourth off one of Lee County’s two errors in the game. But the Trojans continued to coast from that point.

Though it’s just their first region game, Brock said he hopes the region win is a step in the right direction.

“It’s huge,” he said. “It’s a new region for us even though we’re very familiar with the guys because we’ve always played them non-region, but we haven’t had a lot of success against this region in the past.

“We’ve just stuck at it and guys are buying into their roles, but it is early. We’ve got a long way to go. It doesn’t matter what happens in February and March if you’re not playing in April and May.”

He added this year there’s a lot of parity within their region and the key to getting through the remaining 11 region games will be steady, consistent play. So far, they’re 8-1 on the season and have won seven in a row.

“I think the biggest thing is they’re just enjoying the game more,” Brock said about his team’s start. “Last year everybody was a little scared, a little tense, a little timid to do things. They’re just playing, they’re just enjoying the game. It’s just fun when you go up there believing in yourself and that’s the biggest change that’s happened over the years, it’s happened in their hearts more than anything.”

Their next challenge will be on the road against Valdosta Tuesday night at 7 p.m.