The Ankeny baseball team got a much-needed victory on Saturday at Council Bluffs before nearly pulling off an upset against one of the top squads in Class 4A.
The Hawks ended a five-game losing skid with an 11-1 win over Council Bluffs Lincoln in six innings. They then battled third-ranked Sioux City East on even terms for much of the game before dropping a 7-4 decision.
The Black Raiders (19-3) broke a 4-4 tie with three runs in the sixth inning. The game was a rematch of last year’s substate semifinal, which was also won by East, 8-1.
Ankeny (6-15) jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, but East answered with two runs in the bottom of the frame and two more in the second. The Hawks tied the game in the fifth.
Kinnick Vos went 3-for-4 with a double. RJ St. Romain went 2-for-3, while Kobe Behrens knocked in a pair of runs.
Cole Nuzum (3-2) took the loss in relief of Zach Halverson. He allowed two earned runs on three hits in two innings of work.
East’s Jax Theeler went 4-for-4, scored two runs and drove in two more. Kason Clayborne went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs.
Earlier, the Hawks routed Lincoln (5-13) behind a strong pitching performance from freshman Norman Ha. Ha (1-0) went the distance in his first start, allowing just one earned run on four hits while recording two strikeouts.
At the plate, Ankeny pounded out 11 hits–three of them for extra bases. Samuel Sandvig went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs.
Will Davies went 3-for-4 with a double and one RBI. Vos knocked in two runs.
The Hawks will play a CIML Conference game on Monday at seventh-ranked Valley (12-7).