CHANUTE — Down, but not out — the A Iola Indians never seem to quit. Trailing by seven in the final inning, the Indians rallied for seven runs to complete the sweep over Chanute in Thursday night’s doubleheader.
After dropping two games to Chanute earlier in the year, head coach John Taylor knew the boys wanted to even the score.
“Our big goal is to win the season series, and we have two more games against them,” Taylor said. “We came here to play, and completed the goal to head back home 2-2 against them.”
Before the dramatic comeback in game 2, the Indians took care of business to start off the night. The Indians tallied four runs in the first inning of game 1, with Carter Hutton opening the scoring with a two-RBI single.
Eli Smith featured on the mound, with the big No. 99 on his back in honor of Charlie Sheen’s character in the movie “Major League.” Smith channeled his inner “Wild Thing,” collecting eight strikeouts while allowing six hits. All three of Chanute’s runs were unearned for Smith.
“Eli pitched an awesome first game,” Taylor said. “We gave up three runs, but they were all unearned runs.”
Chanute scored two runs in the fifth to come within two, but the Indians quickly regathered in the sixth. Two runs scored off two Chanute errors gave the Indians a 6-2 lead.
The Indians continued to stretch their lead in the seventh. An RBI single from Gavin Page, and a two-RBI single courtesy of Ryker Curry, gave the Indians a seven-run lead entering the final half-inning. Iola allowed one run in the seventh, cruising to the 9-3 victory.
After losing the opener, Chanute’s attitude changed for game 2. Chanute scored three runs in the first and four in the third to lead 7-2 entering the fourth. Taylor went with youngster Eli Adams’ right arm for the first three innings. He finished with two strikeouts, three walks, and allowed five hits.
Avery Blaufuss relieved Adams in the fourth. Chanute extended its lead to seven on two unearned runs for Blaufuss. Now trailing 9-2, and down to their last three outs — the Indians’ bats came to life.
A two-RBI double from Curry brought the Indians within four, and RBIs from Cooper Riley and Blaufuss made the score 9-7 with only one out on the scoreboard.
The Indians caught a break when Drake DeLaTorre reached first on a dropped third-strike call, putting runners on the corners for Landon Weide. Chanute’s self-destruction continued, with DeLaTorre and courtesy runner for Blaufuss (Adams) scoring on wild pitches to tie the game at 9-9.
Mac Leonard brought home Weide with a perfectly placed bunt, giving the Indians their first lead of the game. Smith and Hutton gave the Indians two more insurance runs with an RBI each, putting the Indians in control 12-9.
Chanute failed to rally any offense together in the fifth as the Indians held on for the stunning victory. Even Taylor admits he had his doubts about the Indians’ chances of coming back to win.
“Honestly, I didn’t,” Taylor said. “But as soon as our first three kids got on base, I thought they were in trouble. That is how we have been all season, when somebody hits, everybody hits. They don’t care what the score is, and they expect to win no matter if they get behind.”
