The Ankeny baseball team took a big step forward on Wednesday.
The Hawks opened CIML Conference play with a 3-1 loss to visiting Johnston, the No. 2 team in Class 4A. The Dragons (5-1) scored the go-ahead runs in the sixth inning.
“It was a very well-played high school baseball game,” said Ankeny coach Joe Balvanz, whose team dropped to 0-5 on the season. “I thought our guys showed tremendous growth. I’m not satisfied with the loss by any means, but I’m seeing some growth every day. When the bats start going, this group is going to win some baseball games.
“We’re going to weather the storm and keep grinding,” he added.
Will Davies (0-2) went the distance in the loss. He allowed three earned runs on six hits and had nine strikeouts.
“Will had a tremendous effort on the mound,” Balvanz said. “He pitched his tail off. He pitched well enough to win.”
Unfortunately, the Johnston duo of Adam Callen and Sam Kemmer was just as good. They combined on a two-hitter with nine strikeouts.
Evan Irlmeier tripled and scored the tying run for Ankeny in the first inning. Kinnick Vos had a double for the Hawks’ only other hit.
“Tip of the cat to (Callen),” Balvanz said. “He did a really nice job of mixing up his pitches. We just have to do a better job of getting on base.”
Will Nuss went 2-for-2 and had a solo homer for the Dragons. Max Mincks doubled and drove in two runs.
The Hawks will host a conference doubleheader against No. 4 Waukee (7-0) on Thursday. The Warriors opened league play on Wednesday with a 6-3 win over Ankeny Centennial.