The Indianola softball team stayed unbeaten on the season after a doubleheader against Grinnell Friday, winning a pair of 10-0 games while the Indians baseball squad split their doubleheader with the Tigers winning 5-2 in game one and falling 7-3 in game two in a game heard live on 94.3 KNIA.
The Indians baseball got ahead early in game one against the Tigers, with leadoff hitter Will Young hitting a leadoff double followed by an RBI single from Tyce Johnson to put Indianola up 1-0. The Indians struck again in the third, scoring three runs off of hits by Young, Johnson, a double by Kael Kolarik, and a single by Carter Erickson. Ethan Ellsworth added insurance in the fifth with a solo homerun to cap off the day. Nick Piper earned the win, with Matt McKnight picking up the save. Game two saw the Tigers scoring seven runs in the first five innings before the Indians could get a run across in the bottom half of the fifth. A leadoff single from Erickson followed by a fielder’s choice, an error, and a single from John McGinnis as well as an RBI groundout by Brady Blake put two on the board. Indianola added another in the sixth with an Ellsworth sacrifice fly to make it 7-3, and loaded the bases in the seventh but couldn’t convert. Head coach Casey Aldridge tells KNIA Sports the pitching depth of the team continues to improve as the season goes on.
“There are steps in the right direction. Nick Piper pitched a great game for us today, Ethan Ellsworth gave us 3 great innings earlier this week. Those are the type of guys we are going to depend on. Obviously Tyce (Johnson) is our go-to guy going forward, but we are seeing improvements.”
The split puts the Indians at 5-5 on the season, and they will next play Monday in a doubleheader at Oskaloosa.
The Indians softball team jumped all over Grinnell early and often in both contests. Indianola scored four runs in the first inning, another in the third, two in the fifth, then three in the bottom of the sixth inning to end the game early. Brynn Ortlund and Destiny Lewis each had three hits in the contest, with Lewis hitting a pair of homeruns. Kate Kralik got the win in the pitching circle, with 10 strikeouts. In game two, Alley May and Macie Mays hit RBI singles to start the scoring in the third for a 3-0 lead, then Mays hit another RBI single in the fifth to push the lead to 4-0. In the sixth, the Indians blew up for six runs off of an Alley May grand slam, and Destiny Lewis and Macie Mays back-to-back solo home runs to end the game early. Kylee Tucker picked up the win in the circle in game two.
The Indians are now 9-0 and play a doubleheader against Winterset this morning at 10am on their home field.