The Humboldt Cubs will play for a chance at high school athletic immortality as they head to the state tournament as regional champions after rallying past Burlington in a 6-4 victory Tuesday.
After upsetting Pioneer League champion Iola in the semifinals, the Cubs came back from a 4-0 deficit with six unanswered runs to take the regional title.
“I’m so happy for these guys. I was telling them I wanted this for them,” Humboldt coach Mike Miller said. “We came up short in the championship game last year, but I knew these guys had it in them to get back there.”
The Battle for Allen County
After not playing throughout the regular season, the coveted match-up between the Iola Mustangs and the Humboldt Cubs lived up to expectations. The majority of the semifinal contest was a pitchers’ duel between Iola senior Grady Dougherty and Humboldt senior Logan Page.
The game ended in extra innings on a walk-off RBI single by Humboldt senior Cole Mathes.
Both Dougherty and Page reached double-digit strikeouts through the first seven innings before pitch-count limitations forced them from the mound. Page picked up the win with 15 strikeouts while Dougherty tallied 10 and both giving up two earned runs.
“The first inning was not as good as I hoped it would be, but then I figured out what was going wrong,” Page said. “I fixed my mechanics and I was trying to throw strikes, hit corners, mix it up and try to keep them on their heels.”
Iola jumped on the scoreboard in the opening frame after junior catcher Tre Wilson stole home on an errant throw. A bases-loaded walk gave Iola a 2-0 advantage.
Humboldt senior first baseman Avery Works pulled the Cubs within a run in the second inning with an RBI single. A fifth-inning RBI grounder by senior outfielder Colden Cook deadlocked the game 2-2. Once Page hit 107 pitches, Coach Miller opted for reliever Kyler Isbell, who tallied a pair of strikeouts over three innings. It was far from the only time Humboldt placed their trust in the senior reliever’s arm.
Both teams traded punches, but neither could land a blow as the contest reached the bottom of the 10th inning.
With two outs, Mathes hit a hard chopper up the middle and just out of reach of Iola junior shortstop Nick Bauer’s glove. As the ball careened into the outfield, junior second baseman Mason Sterling rounded third for the game-winning run.
“That at-bat, I wasn’t really there,” Mathes said. “Once I made contact, I bolted, hoping I’d make it to first base. It worked out.”
Iola ends its season 16-8. Iola Coach Levi Ashmore looked at the outcome philosophically.
“The longer a season goes, the harder it is to win. Everybody goes down fighting. I knew tonight was going to be a good game.” Ashmore said. “The wind was howling all through the afternoon, so I knew it was going to equalize the offense. We had a hard time getting anything going offensively. Pitching and defense were our strengths.”
Cubs come from behind to edge Wildcats 6-4
