Red Devils fall to KCK

The Allen Community College baseball team had a tough afternoon against first-place Kansas City Kansas Thursday. The Blue Devils erupted late in both games of a doubleheader to sweep past ACC in the first two games of their weekend series.

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March 22, 2024 - 2:41 PM

Allen Community College second baseman Logan Martin (2) turns a double play against Kansas City Kansas Thursday. Photo by Richard Luken / Iola Register

Late rallies by Kansas City Kansas spelled all the difference in the world for Allen Community College Thursday.

Kansas City turned it on in the late innings of both games of their doubleheader, turning a 3-1 lead into a 14-1 romp in the first game, followed by breaking a 3-3 deadlock with eight runs over the final three innings of an 11-3 victory to complete the sweep.

The losses dropped Allen to 15-14 on the season with the final two games of the four-game set scheduled for Saturday afternoon in Kansas City.

Allen was victimized by KCK’s Jase Wota in the first game. He blasted two home runs and drove in six in the opener. The Blue Devils’ Frankie Santiago almost replicated the feat in the second game. He, too, went 3-for-4, including a tie-breaking two-run blast in the top of the seventh inning. Santiago hit a pair of homers while driving in five.

Allen had its chances in both games offensively, but Kansas City’s pitching stymied those opportunities.

After spotting Kansas City an early 3-0 lead in the opener, Allen got a run back when Cale Clark hit a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first.

But that was it for the Red Devils in terms of offense the rest of the way. Anthony Talpa’s single was the only other hit allowed by KCK starter Maclane Finley.

Saul Bolivar got the start, and allowed six hits with two strikeouts. Elias Muller struck out two over 1.1 innings, before Iolan Brandon McCarnin wrapped things up with a scoreless inning of relief, allowing a hit with a strikeout.

Allen Community College’s Cale Clark, who hit a home run earlier in the day, bats Thursday against Kansas City Kansas.Photo by Richard Luken / Iola Register

ALLEN jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second game, by taking advantage of four walks and an infield single by Garrett Rusch, but left the bases loaded in the process. Carson Shepherd and Logan Margin earned RBIs, each by drawing a walk to force in a run.

Kansas City responded with three in the top of the second to take the advantage, a score that stood until Allen’s Collin Godfrey tied the score with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth.

The Red Devils’ Jack Bland kept the potent KCK lineup in check from there, until tiring in the top of the seventh. He allowed a leadoff single before Santiago’s blast gave Kansas City the lead for good.

The Blue Devils scored once more in the seventh, four in the eighth and one in the ninth.

Rusch had two of the Red Devils’ singles; Clark had the other.

Bland scattered nine hits for 6.1 innings. Ethan Payne and Anthony Padron pitched in relief.

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