BURLINGTON — Perhaps the only thing hotter than the weather these days is Iola’s Senior American Legion baseball squad.
The Post 15 Indians extended their winning streak to 10 games Tuesday with a sweep of host Burlington, winning 6-3 and 12-3.
The Indians racked up 13 hits against a pair of Burlington pitchers in the opener, while Iola’s Trey Sommer and Brandon McKarnin kept the opposing batters in check from start to finish.
Sommer tossed 5.2 innings, scattering six hits and striking out eight. McKarnin allowed one hit while facing seven batters with a pair of strikeouts.
Logan Page doubled in Iola’s first run with a second-inning double and scored two batter’s later on an RBI single from Avery Blaufuss.
The Indians came up empty despite having runners at second and third in the fourth, but rebounded nicely with a two-out rally in the fifth. Grady Dougherty worked a bases-loaded walk before Kyler Isbell smacked a two-run single, making it 5-1.
Rogan Weir doubled to lead off the sixth and scored on Dougherty’s single for Iola’s final tally.
Dougherty went 3-for-3 with two RBIs. Isbell had a pair of singles and two RBIs. Korbin Cloud singled and doubled, Weir added a double, Ryan Golden singled twice and McKarnin and Blaufuss both singled.
IOLA scored an early run with Isbell’s bases-loaded walk in the top of the first of Game 2, and put the game away with a seven-run third. Cloud got things started with a leadoff triple, scoring on a Blake Ellis sacrifice fly. Weir singled, Sommer walked and Dougherty reached on catcher’s interference to load the bases for Isbell, who responded with a three-run double, making it 5-1. Page walked and McKarnin tripled to right for two more runs. Golden’s follow-up double scored McKarnin.
The Indians tacked on two more runs in the fourth on a pair of walks and an error.
Cloud’s roped his second triple of the game with one out in the fifth. He kept on running when Burlington misplayed the relay throw for an error. Ellis singled, stole second and scored on Weir’s RBI single for Iola’s 12th and final run.
That was more than enough for Cloud’s dominant pitching. He allowed two hits and one earned run over four innings, with six strikeouts. Gavin Jones pitched an inning of relief.
Cloud aided his own cause by going 3-for-4 with the two triples. Weir singled twice. McKarnin chipped in with a triple and Isbell and Golden each added doubles. Ellis had Iola’s other single.
The victories give Iola (16-3) 12 wins in its last 13 games with another tough doubleheader set for Thursday at Fort Scott.
