Every win is critical for the Ankeny baseball team as the eighth-ranked Hawks battle No. 6 Urbandale for the top seed in Class 4A Substate 7.
That’s why Ankeny’s 9-8 loss to North Scott in the Brent Prange Classic on Saturday could be damaging for the Hawks, who jumped out to an early 7-0 lead only to see it slip away.
Ankeny is now 17-10 on the season. Urbandale has a 19-11 record after splitting a doubleheader with No. 1 Johnston on Wednesday.
The Class 4A substate pairings are expected to be decided early this week.
“I’m going to volunteer to take the 2 seed,” said Ankeny coach Joe Balvanz. “I have a lot of respect for Urbandale and coach Evans, and they have played a much tougher schedule than we have.”
If that happens, Ankeny would have to win three games in order to reach the state tournament, assuming Urbandale wins its substate opener. The J-Hawks would receive a bye in the semifinal round.
“I think our young guys will be just fine playing Friday, Monday, Wednesday,” Balvanz said. “If we can get to the substate final, we’ll give Urbandale our best shot.”
North Scott (19-12) rallied for six runs in the third inning and two more in the fifth to take an 8-7 lead. After Ankeny tied the game in the top of the sixth, the Lancers scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the frame.
“It was the same story, different day,” Balvanz said. “We just had some defensive inconsistencies.”
Easton Dunwoody (3-4) took the loss. He allowed three earned runs in 2 2/3 innings and had two strikeouts.
Isaiah Otten doubled and had two RBIs for the Hawks. Jamison Patton also drove in two runs.
Tamden Webb-Tate went 2-for-4 and knocked in a run. Reid Johnson doubled and had one RBI.
Earlier on Saturday, the Hawks posted a 4-3 victory over Sioux City Heelan (19-12). The Crusaders tied the game at 3-3 with two runs in the fifth inning before Ankeny walked off with the win in the bottom of the seventh.
“Heelan is a good team,” Balvanz said. “I will be shocked if we don’t see them deep into the 3A state tournament. They threw their ace–he’s a lefty–and he was tough.”
Max Watson went 2-for-4 and drove in a run. Patton and Webb-Tate each hit a double, while Dylan Schlee and Otten each had one RBI.
Alex Griess (6-0) tossed a four-hitter to remain unbeaten. He allowed just one earned run and had five strikeouts.
The Hawks will host a CIML Iowa Conference doubleheader against Marshalltown (3-27) on Monday.
