OTTAWA Monday evening saw the AA Iola Indians head to Ottawa as a neutral site for a matchup with the Eagles from Lawrence. The Indians were looking to rebound from their first loss of the season last Wednesday against another undefeated team in Emporia.
From the get-go Iola started off hot and took care of the side from Lawrence comfortably 14-3.
We didnt come out flat, head coach Jason Bauer said. We are here to have fun and yes they have a lot of fun, but sometimes we are going to have to hit the serious button. But its summer ball and they have fun and I enjoy it. I was happy with their effort and they all competed.
Jackson Aikins and Isaac Vink, the first two Iola batters, would reach via a walk and hit by pitch to start off the top-half of the first inning. The next two Indians both struck out, but that is when the two-out rally started.
Cal Leonards RBI single brought home the speedy Aikins from third base. Blake Ashmore followed that with an RBI double scoring Vink and Leonard to start the game.
The Indians added another run in the second inning after an Eagle error, but gave up three in the bottom half of the inning. Big Bird Vink was chosen to man the mound for the second time in less than a week, with go-to ace Derek Bycroft on a summer vacation until midweek.
Vink allowed six hits and a walk in the second inning, but allowed only three runs to halt the damage keeping Iola in the lead 4-3.
In the fourth inning, Aikins found his way on the base paths once again and eventually in scoring position on third base after swiping a couple bags. Zane Whitney brought home the Iola shortstop for his first RBI of the afternoon to make it 5-3 Iola.
I always like to be aggressive and one of the more aggressive players on the field, shortstop Jackson Aikins said. I steal bags. I like it a lot, and running out the catchers and sliding into the bag.
In the bottom half of the fourth inning, Vink had runners on first and second with one out as the Eagles looked to get back in the game. This time on the defensive side, Aikins made a smart play by catching the line drive driven his way to short, and tossed it over to Ashmore at second base to earn the double play.
Iola would add to its two-run lead in the fifth inning. Ashmore earned his third RBI of the day scoring Kane Rogers, but the Indians failed to score more than one run despite loading the bases to make it only 6-3 Iola.
Our offense put the ball in play, but I still dont like the strikeouts and think it is too many, Bauer said. Id rather see us put the ball in play and see other teams make a play. We drove the ball and worked the count and probably had six or seven hit by pitches.
The Indians once again loaded the bases in the sixth inning and this time made the most of it. Two Indian runners scored after Leonards ground ball was mishandled by the Eagles shortstop to make it 8-3 Iola. Later in the inning, the scoring party got hotter. Zach Beckmans RBI double cleared the bases and scored all three Indian runners. Beckman eventually was brought home after the ball ended up in the dugout to propel Iola to a 12-3 lead.
Vink found his rhythm after a slow start. Big Bird struck out four in six innings of work while allowing three runs off six hits. Beckman came in to close out the Eagles in the seventh inning as the Indians ran away with this one via run rule after seven innings, 14-3.
The Indians will be off for the rest of the week, with a game against Burlington in the works for early next week.
