As Iola’s Cooper Riley strode to the plate with the bases loaded Tuesday evening, AA Indians head coach John Taylor had a thought.
“He had hit the ball really well in our first game,” Taylor said. “When the bases got loaded, I said, if we want anybody up to bat, it’s Cooper.”
Sure enough, Riley blasted the first pitch he saw over the left field fence for a grand slam, the key blast in the Iola Indians’ 13-3 victory over visiting Ottawa.
The win offered a bit of redemption for Iola, which held a 2-0 lead in the opener, but a key two-out hit in the sixth and a run-scoring error in the seventh turned into a 3-2 defeat.
“I’m doing a lot better now than I was after the first game,” Taylor chuckled.
Leading the charge was Riley, who reached base all six times he came to bat in the doubleheader with two singles, a double, the grand slam, a walk and a hit-by-pitch.
“Cooper’s always been a good hitter,” Taylor said. “He just didn’t get many opportunities this high school season.”
That’s because Riley, a first-baseman, plays the same position as Iola’s Dillon Bycroft, a second-team all-Pioneer League performer.
However, with designated hitters allowed in American Legion play, it allows Taylor to have both in the lineup.
“I really like hitting him and Dillon back-to-back,” Taylor said. “We have two great power hitters.”
And with Bycroft graduating this season, Taylor predicts Riley will make an immediate impact on the Mustangs in 2022.
“He’s gonna surprise a lot of people,” Taylor said.
TAYLOR admitted being a bit worried about Iola’s pitching heading into Tuesday’s matchup.
That’s because four of Iola’s primary pitchers were at their limits after playing four games over the weekend in Topeka.
And Iola’s fifth key pitcher, Ryker Curry, was available only for relief duties against Ottawa.
He needn’t have worried.
Hurlers Aiden Jones, Titan Michael and Casen Barker showed just how deep the Indian pitching staff goes.
