The Iola Mustangs picked up their first win of the season while splitting Monday’s doubleheader with Pioneer League rival Burlington.
After falling in extra innings 3-1 in the opener, the Mustangs found their footing in the finale with a 6-2 victory, putting their conference record at 1-1.
“It’s been a long time since we beat Burlington,” Iola coach Chris Weide said. “That’s a high-caliber team over there. I’m definitely proud of the girls.”
In the opener, sophomore pitcher Zoie Hesse provided much of Iola’s defensive and offensive production. On the mound, she threw a complete game while tallying 15 strikeouts across eight innings. On the bases, she scored Iola’s only run after reaching first on an error, stealing second and advancing to third on a passed ball before reaching home in the same fashion.
With the game tied at 1-1, the only RBI came when senior Burlington pitcher Grace Birk plated two runners with an eighth-inning double to take the opener 3-1.
After falling in a pair of contested games against Chanute in the season opener, then dropping the conference opener, the Mustangs were eager to start anew. Iola senior pitcher Elza Clift, however, kept a calm composure as she stepped on the mound to start the finale.
“Whatever happens at school or the game before doesn’t matter,” Clift said. “I’m going out to do the best I can for my team. If I walk a batter, I shake it off and try to not let it get in my head. I’ve grown a sort of confidence and don’t get super nervous.”
Tallying six strikeouts along the way, Clift kept the Lady Wildcats scoreless through the fifth inning. The Mustangs’ bats came to life in the third inning, when a hard chopper from senior second baseman Kinsey Schinstock drove in senior pinch-runner Baylie Crooks, then Iola added another run on a bases-loaded walk drawn by senior third baseman Reese Curry. With the wind constantly blowing dirt in the batters’ faces, every hit had the potential to dramatically shift the momentum.
“Every day we practice, it might be windy or different conditions,” Weide said. “We tell them ‘I guarantee you’re going to play in it.’ On a cold day, we’ll throw them out here for practice. They might not enjoy it, but on nights like this it pays off.”
Senior pitcher Elza Clift throws a strike while keeping Burlington scoreless through the sixth inning.
Leading 2-0 going into the fifth inning, Curry’s line-drive single drove in a pair of runs. Senior outfielder Kyndal Bycroft followed with a line-drive down the right-field line, advancing to third base and in the process plating Hesse and Curry to take the Mustangs’ lead to 6-0. Clift added an insurance run in the sixth.
“I was struggling a lot, personally. I was fouling the ball off,” Bycroft said. “I knew I could hit the girls (pitching) but I was struggling with the wind and all of the conditions. It felt so good to get a hit. I was due.”
Looking for a change of pace after Burlington added runs in the sixth and seventh innings, Coach Weide opted for Hesse to close the game.
With the bases loaded, Clift added one more K to her stats before giving way to Hesse. On the next at-bat Hesse recovered a hard grounder, then lobbed it to senior catcher Harper Desmarteau for a force-out at home. Moments later, Hesse forced a 2-2 pitch into a pop-out to Clift, who shifted to shortstop following her duties on the mound.
“I felt like our lineup all night had good at-bats. Burlington has great pitchers,” Weide said. “You get to the point where you’re down two strikes, and you start fouling pitches off. I feel like they battled their butts off tonight.”
The Mustangs return to the diamond Friday for another doubleheader, this time hosting the Baldwin Lady Bulldogs. First pitches for both games are 4:30 and 6 p.m.
Burlington 3, Iola 1
Iola High School’s Brooklyn Holloway advances a runner in a doubleheader Tuesday at Riverside Park.
