A.J. Puk said his tender left elbow felt fine after pitching two innings in the Bob Vrbicek Metro Tournament Tuesday night.

Now Puk is looking forward to helping Cedar Rapids Washington win more games and he's also looking forward to a pair of special baseball trips this summer.

Puk was the starting pitcher Tuesday night as the Warriors held off Jefferson, 10-9, in a consolation game of the Metro Tournament at Linn-Mar.

Puk threw nothing but fastballs during his two-inning stint and switched to first base in the third inning with a 3-1 lead.

Puk, a 6-foot-4 junior who has committed to the University of Florida, struck out four batters, walked two and allowed one hit and one earned run.

"I strained my elbow during the spring league at Perfect Game and I'm just taking it slow to get back into it," he said. "It was just a strain. It feels really good right now. I should be all right."

Puk has reached the low 90's on the radar gun, but threw mostly in the mid-80's Tuesday as he recovers from his minor injury. He did not throw any curveballs and did not want to throw more than 50 pitches in the ballgame.

"I got to 48 so I shut it down," he said.

Puk plans to spend most of the season with the Warriors, but will be gone for about a two-week period in June for two special events. He'll play in the Perfect Game National Showcase at the Metrodome in Minneapolis June 14-18 and also will play in the prestigious Tournament of Stars in Cary, N.C., from June 20-24.

Puk plans to play in a few tournaments this summer for the Canes, an elite travel team that's based in Virginia, but he said those events will be held after the high school season.

Puk slugged an RBI triple Tuesday night and reached base four straight times with two walks and a hit-by-pitch.

Washington built a 10-2 lead after 4 1/2 innings, but Coach Tony Lombardi put eighth grader Johnny Dobbs on the mound in the bottom of the fifth and Jefferson scored seven runs (six against Dobbs) to pull within 10-9.

Noah Dostal pitched two shutout innings for the Warriors in the sixth and seventh innings to protect the 10-9 lead and get the save.

"The kids didn't panic. It was good," said Lombardi, who collected his first win as Washington's new baseball coach.

Dylan Jellison went 3-for-4 for the J-Hawks with a double, home run, two runs scored, two stolen bases and three RBIs. He also pitched two shutout innings.

Washington will play Marion in the consolation game for fifth place Wednesday at approximately 7 p.m. at Marion. Jefferson will face Mount Vernon in the consolation game for seventh place at 5 p.m. at Marion.

WASHINGTON (10)
N.Dostal, ss/p, 4 2 2 0, Troendle, cf, 4 1 0 1, Puk, p/1b, 1 3 1 1, G.Dostal, lf, 1 2 1 1, Gilles, 1b/3b, 2 0 0 2, Dobbs, cr/p, 0 0 0 0, Rogers, 3b/2b, 1 0 0 0, Burdt, rf, 3 1 1 1, Thorson, dh, 4 0 0 0, Christensen, 3b, 0 0 0 0, Hand, p, 0 0 0 0, Rings, c, 3 0 0 0, Harrington, cr, 0 0 0 0, Hogg, 2b/p/ss, 2 1 1 0. Totals 25 10 6 6.

JEFFERSON (9)
Jellison, 2b/p, 4 2 3 3, Koering, ss/2b, 1 2 0 0, Knox, cf, 5 0 0 1, Dee, 1b, 4 1 3 2, Techau, 3b, 3 1 1 0, Gruwell, lf, 2 1 0 0, Goodell, rf, 4 1 1 2, Kramer, p/ssm 2 0 1 0, Wright, cr, 0 0 0 0, Sullivan, p, 2 1 1 1, Jourdan, c, 2 0 0 0, Kloubec, cr, 0 0 0 0, Colbert, ph, 0 0 0 0. Totals 29 9 10 9.

Washington   303 310 0 - 10  6 1
Jefferson       101 070 0 -  9 10 3

Puk, Hand (3), Dobbs (5), Hogg (5), N.Dostal (6) and Rings. Kramer, Sullivan (4), Jellison (6) and Jourdan. W - Hand. L - Kramer. S - Dostal. 2B - Burdt, Jellison. 3B - Puk. HR - Jellison. SB - N.Dostal, G.Dostal, Hogg, Jellison 2, Koering, Sullivan.