Justin Martinez/MDN Velva-Drake/Anamoose senior Hayden Lee throws a pitch from the mound on Thursday during the Aggies’ doubleheader against Bishop Ryan at Corbett Field.

If Hayden Lee is in fact human, he did a great job of hiding it.

Surgical. That’s the best way to describe the senior’s pitching performance on Thursday at Corbett Field during Game 1 of the Velva-Drake/Anamoose baseball team’s doubleheader against Bishop Ryan. It didn’t matter who opposed him at the plate, as the 6-foot-4 menace racked up 10 strikeouts and made hits a rarity for the Lions.

By the time Lee walked off the mound in the bottom of the sixth inning, the damage had already been done. VDA cruised to a 9-0 victory and ultimately earned a split on the day after suffering a 7-1 loss in Game 2.

“I was pretty pleased, especially with Game 1,” VDA head coach Matt Weidler said. “(Lee) has gotten better and better every year, and this was his best start of the year for us so far.”

In addition to a stellar showing on the bump, Lee also made his presence known at the plate.

After the Aggies took a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, the senior doubled the lead with an RBI single during what was a three-run burst.

Lee then went to work on the mound. The senior kicked off the bottom of the first inning by getting senior Mason Hedberg and sophomore Seth Roedocker to strike out swinging. After Lee gave up two bases off a hit-by-pitch and a walk, senior Hunter Johnson also went down swinging for the aces third punch out.

The strikeouts kept coming in the second inning.

Now leading 4-0, Lee found himself in a bit of a jam with a runner on second base and two outs. Unfazed, the senior launched a fastball in the direction of Nicholas Sanders. All the sophomore could do was watch as it zipped past him for strikeout No. 5.

“I just threw it hard, I guess,” Lee said. “I was just having fun out there. The team was making plays, and we were all clicking really well.”

Lee inflicted more damage with the bat in the top of the fourth inning. Leading 6-0, the senior connected on a pitch from sophomore Logan Merck and sent it up the throat of the Lions’ defense for a double that brought in two runs.

It wasn’t until the bottom of the sixth inning that Lee ended his reign of terror, as junior teammate Michael Thomas relieved him on the mound. Lee finished with 10 strikeouts and allowed just three hits. Thomas kept the Lions off the board for the final four outs to secure VDA’s 9-0 win.

Lee recorded three RBIs and one run on 2-for-3 hitting in the win, while senior Seth Fahy and sophomore Enrique Gonzales each totaled one RBI and two runs on 2-for-4 hitting and 1-for-2 hitting, respectively.

“That first game did not go the way we wanted it to go, obviously,” Ryan head coach Ben Magnuson said. “I thought we were lethargic, and Velva honestly just outplayed us. They had a kid (in Lee) who threw a lot of strikes, and they hit the ball really well. We kind of just laid down and let it happen.”

But Murphy Lipp and the Lions got the last laugh.

In a complete 360 from Game 1, it was Ryan who got out to the hot start in Game 2. After being gifted a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the first inning to take a 2-0 lead, the Lions broke the game wide open in the bottom of the third.

Sophomores Bryson Elm and Lance Pitner both got the best of Thomas with an RBI single on consecutive at-bats in what was a three-run inning for Ryan to push its lead to 5-1.

Lipp did the rest. The senior went the distance from the mound, allowing just one hit and striking out two batters in five innings for a complete game and a 7-1 win.

“The second game was a lot better,” Lipp said. “We just had a lot more energy… I just stayed confident (on the mound), stayed up and tried not to get cold.”

Junior Kersey Harris led the Lions at the plate with two RBIs and two runs on 3-for-3 hitting in the win. Elm and Pitner each recorded one RBI on 1-for-2 hitting and 2-for-2 hitting, respectively.

Next up for VDA is a home game against Carrington today at 4:30 p.m., while Ryan will wait until Tuesday for a road game against Central McLean at the same start time.

Justin Martinez covers Minot High School sports and Class B high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @JTheSportsDude.