MOUND CITY — The Post 15 Indians Single-A team salvaged a split with an extra-inning, 5-4, victory in game two in Mound City Wednesday.
Linn County Post 248 was able to win the opener, 8-2, but the Indians responded quickly in game two during a two-run first inning with Logan Dillow singling in Drake Sellman and Blake Ashmore coming around to score on an error on the same play.
Linn County was able to even the margin after picking up runs in the second and third innings, and recapture the momentum.
The Indians turned to Briar Orth out of the bullpen to readjust that momentum again and silence the Linn County bats.
Orth did his job, recording all three outs in the third inning to end that threat. He maintained the mastery with a pair of shutout innings in the fourth and fifth to keep his offense in the game.
Unfortunately, so did Linn County’s pitchers, forcing the game into extra innings.
The Iola bats eventually reawakened, as the Indians started connecting against the Linn County pitchers in the top of the sixth inning.
Ashmore was able to get the scoring started with a double to score Orth and Dillow gave the team a pair of insurance runs with a one-out single to score Sellman and Ashmore.
Those insurance runs ended up paying huge dividends the Indians as Orth began to tire in his fourth inning of work.
Linn County got a run early in the inning then cut the score to 5-4 with a two-out triple, which prompted the Indians to turn to their bullpen and bring in Kole Rogers to try and get the final out of the game.
Rogers was able to make it a quick outing by getting a ground out to shortstop on just four pitches and Iola escaped Mound City with a 5-4 victory and a split.
Dillow finished the game with a 3-for-3 game with three RBIs.
GAME ONE
Iola got off to a good start in game one as well.
They scored one run in the second inning with Noah Ashmore executed a squeeze-play for an infield single and scoring Xavier Bauer on the play.
That lead grew to 2-0 in the top of the fourth inning with Dillow picking up his first of his four RBIs on the day. He drove in Hunter Baughn with a one-out single to left field.
After Blake Ashmore began the game with three shutout innings, he began to wear down in the fourth inning gave up three runs in the fourth inning.
