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Wapello edges out WB 3-2 in post-season
by Norv and Mary Coblentz · Sports · July 13, 2017
The West Branch Bears baseball team played their hearts out but fell short at Wapello July 8.
The score in their post-season game was 3-2, and the Bears’ season is over.
“A timely hit here or there (where we) put the ball in play would have made a difference,” West Branch Head Coach Rich Stout said. “I give our kids a lot of credit. They played hard, left everything out there on the field. We’re young and we grew up a lot this summer.
“I’m just really proud of the seniors, too. They were great leaders all summer. Good attitudes. Attitude-wise, this is one of the best teams I’ve ever coached.”
The Bears did not score in the top of the first. They were retired in order on a strikeout, a groundout, and a fly out.
Wapello struck first in the bottom of the first. The first Indians batter singled up the middle. The runner scored from first base on sacrifice bunt and an error. The next batter popped out to Trey Eagle at third base. An unassisted ground out to Ted Bridges was the third out of the half-inning. Wapello had a 1-0 lead.
The second inning was scoreless. The first West Branch batter struck out. Brady Lukavsky, who would go 3-3 in the game, singled up the middle. Two strikeouts ended the half-inning.
The Indians loaded up the bases in the bottom of the second, but senior pitcher Cole Tisinger got out of the jam. The first batter walked, the second reached on an error, and a single to center field loaded up the bases. Tisinger got a strikeout swinging, a strikeout looking, and a force out at third base on a fielder’s choice to end the inning.
Eagle got a two-out double to left field in the top of the third, but a fly out to right field and a nice running catch ended the inning.
In the bottom of the third, the first Wapello batter drew a base on balls. The second batter was out on a sacrifice bunt, and the runner advanced to second base. A groundout to Cade Aspelmeier at second base was the second out. The next batter lined out to Bridges at first base to end the inning.
The Bears evened up the score in the top of the fourth. Pete Espensen singled on a ground ball to right center field. Matt Paulsen singled to put runners at first and second. B. Lukavsky singled to right center field and scored Espensen. The next batter struck out. B. Lukavsky was caught stealing, and a fly out ended the half-inning. The score was 1-1.
The first Indians batter in the bottom of the fourth hit a grounder and reached safely. Tisinger struck out the next three batters to end the threat.
In the top of the fifth, the first West Branch batter worked the count full before striking out. Cale Donovan singled to right field. A fly out to left field was the second out of the inning. Tanner Lukavsky singled to right field, then Espensen drew a base on balls to load the bases. A strikeout ended the Bears’ chance at scoring.
Wapello took a one-run lead, scoring once in the bottom of the fifth. The leadoff batter got a bunt single. The runner stole second base and third base. The steal at third was close as Nick Schreiber, the senior catcher, nearly threw him out. Tisinger got a three-pitch strikeout, then a sacrifice bunt scored a run. Tisinger got another strikeout to end the inning. Wapello had a 2-1 lead.
The Bears tied the score again in the top of the sixth. B. Lukavsky doubled to left field to start the inning. With Schreiber at bat, B. Lukavsky stole third base. Schreiber singled on a ground ball to left field, and B. Lukavsky scored. Bridges hit the ball to the pitcher, and no Indians covered second base. There were Bears on the corners with no outs. But a strikeout, a fielder’s choice force out at home, and a strike out ended the half-inning.
The Indians took the lead for good in the bottom of the sixth. The first batter singled up the middle. A groundout to second base and passed ball put the runner at third. A sacrifice fly to right field scored the run. The next batter singled to left field, and Tisinger got a strikeout to end the inning.
In the bottom of the seventh, the first Bear grounded out to first base, then Espensen reached on an error when the throw to first pulled the first baseman off the bag. The next batter struck out, then B. Lukavsky drew a base on balls. A strikeout ended the game with a 3-2 Wapello win.
“(We made some key plays which) hasn’t been the story the whole season,” Wapello Head Coach Brandon Brown said. “We got a squeeze bunt down, we got a sacrifice fly. We got a bunt and run in the first inning. My runner did exactly what he should. He saw that nobody was covering third and (he took third). They threw that ball, trying to throw out one of the fastest guys in south Iowa, and we scored the first run of the game.
“It was a great ball game. That was probably as evenly-matched two teams as you could ask for.”
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R
WB 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 2
Wap 1 0 0 0 1 1 x 3
West Branch stats: Trey Eagle 1-4, 1 double; Tanner Lukavsky 1-4; Pete Espensen 2-3, 1 run, 1 walk; Matt Paulsen 1-4; Brady Lukavsky 3-3, 1 run, 1 double, 1 RBI, 1 walk; Nick Schreiber 1-4, 1 RBI, 1 walk. Pitching: Cole Tisinger pitched six innings and took the loss for the Bears. He gave up three runs, two earned, on four hits. He walked three and struck out seven.
Wapello stats: Trace Howard 2-3, 2 runs, 2 stolen bases; Logan Belzer 1 walk; Sam Short 1 RBI; Gage Witte 1-2, 1 walk; Brentin Pallister 1 RBI, 1 walk; Joseph Stewart 1-3; Joel Chaney 1 run. Pitching: Logan Belzer pitched six innings. He gave up two earned runs on nine hits. HE walked one and struck out nine. Trace Howard pitched one scoreless inning. He allowed one hit, walked one, and struck out two.
West Branch 2/7, Tipton 6/6
July 5 at West Branch
The Bears split a double-header with the Tigers. In their loss, Tanner Lukavsky was 3-4 at the plate with a run. Pete Espensen batted in a run and was 2-4 at the plate. In their win, Brady Lukavsky got the win, pitching 6 1/3 innings. He also hit a home run and had three RBIs. T. Lukavsky and Brett Schiele also had an RBI each.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R
Tip 1 0 2 1 0 1 1 6
WB 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2
West Branch stats: Trey Eagle 1-3, 1 run, 1 walk; Tanner Lukavsky 3-4, 1 run; Pete Espensen 2-4, 1 RBI; Nick Schreiber 1-4; Brady Lukavsky 1 stolen base; Ted Bridges 1 walk. Pitching: Ted Bridges pitched four innings and took the loss for the Bears. He gave up four runs, three earned, on two hits. He walked one and struck out one. Tanner Lukavsky pitched 2 1/3 innings. He gave up two runs, one earned, on one hit. He walked five and struck out four. Trey Eagle pitched 2/3 inning. He struck out two.
Tipton stats: Quinten Mesick 1-2, 2 runs, 4 stolen bases, 2 walks; Trent Pelzer 1-4, 1 stolen base; Luke Becker 1 run, 2 stolen bases, 1 walk; Daulton Mente 1-4, 1 stolen base; Logan Hoffman 1 run, 1 walk; Bryce Deerberg 1 run, 2 stolen bases, 1 walk; Ben Emrich 1 run, 1 walk. PItching: Logan Hoffman pitched three innings and got the win. He gave up no runs on three hits. Walking zero and striking out zero. Nate Kiericks pitched three innings. He allowed one hit. He walked two and struck out two. Daulton Mente pitched one inning. He gave up two runs, one earned, on two hits. He walked zero and struck out one.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R
Tip 4 1 0 0 0 1 0 6
WB 3 0 1 0 3 0 x 7
West Branch stats: Trey Eagle 1 run, 1 walk; Tanner Lukavsky 2-4, 1 run, 1 RBI; Pete Espensen 1-4, 1 run; Matt Paulsen 2-3, 1 run, 1 walk; Nick Schreiber 1-4; Brady Lukavsky 3-4, 1 run, 1 home run, 3 RBIs; Ted Bridges 1 run; Cale Donovan 1 run; Brett Schiele 1-3, 1 RBI. Pitching: Brady Lukavsky pitched 6 1/3 innings and earned the win. He gave up six runs, four earned, on five hits. He walked four and struck out five. Ted Bridges pitched 2/3 inning. He allowed one hit.
Tipton stats: Quinten Mesick 1 run, 1 walk; Trent Pelzer 1-3, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 1 walk; Luke Becker 1-4; Daulton Mente 1-4; Logan Hoffman 1 run, 1 RBI; Kael Jauron 1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI, 2 walks; Ben Emrich 2-3, 1 run, 1 double, 1 RBI. Pitching: Jacob Tschuk pitched four innings and took the loss for the Tigers. He gave up seven runs, five earned, on 10 hits. He walked two and struck out one. Logan Hoffman pitched two innings. He gave up no runs on two hits.
West Branch 12, Alburnett 5
July 6 at West Branch
The Bears won their final regular-season game. A four-run first got the Bears off to a great start. A seven-run third broke the game open for the Bears. Pete Espensen was 3-4 with two runs, a double, and three RBIs. Brady Lukavsky was 2-3 with two runs, two RBIs, and two stolen bases. Ted Bridges was 2-4 with a double and an RBI. Cale Donovan was 2-3 with a run scored, a double, and an RBI.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R
Alb. 0 0 2 0 2 1 0 5
WB 4 0 7 0 0 1 x 12
West Branch stats: Trey Eagle 1-2, 1 run; Matt Paulsen 1-3, 1 run, 1 RBI; Tanner Lukavsky 1-3, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 1 walk; Pete Espensen 3-4, 2 runs, 1 double, 3 RBIs, 1 stolen base; Brady Lukavsky 2-3, 2 runs, 2 RBIs, 2 stolen bases, 1 walk; Ted Bridges 2-4, 1 double, 1 RBI, 1 stolen base; Cole Tisinger 1-4, 1 run; Jake Evans 1 run, 1 walk; Colton Dietz 1 run, 1 walk; Cale Donovan 2-3, 1 run, 1 double, 1 RBI, 1 walk;. Pitching: Jaden Hiersman pitched 3 2/3 innings and got the win. He gave up two unearned runs on three hits. He walked eight and struck out two. Brett Schiele pitched 3 1/3 innings. He gave up three runs, two earned, on two hits. He walked six and struck out three.
Alburnett stats: Keaton Parker 2-5, 2 RBIs, 1 stolen base; Ian Boline 1 RBI, 1 walk; Luke Smith 1 run, 2 walks; Reed Stallman 1-3, 1 run, 1 double, 2 walks; Hunter Caves 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 stolen base, 1 walk; Alex Huber 1 RBI, 1 walk; Kale Rose 1 run, 2 walks. Pitching: Luke Smith pitched zero innings and took the loss. He gave up three earned runs on three hits. Hunter Cavbes pitched four innings. He gave up three runs, two earned, on four hits. He walked one and struck out three. Kale Rose pitched two innings. He gave up six runs, five earned, on five hits. He walked four and struck out one.
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