Iola High’s Mustangs kept up their undefeated roll into the postseason Monday, even overcoming a 16-day layoff to do so.
Iola opened the Pioneer League tournament with wins of 11-5 over Prairie View and 6-1 over Wellsville to set up a titanic matchup to decide the league champion.
The Mustangs will take on unbeaten Central Heights tonight at about 7 o’clock. The teams were scheduled to face off within the past two weeks but were rained out.
The ongoing miserable weather — Iola hadn’t played a varsity game since April 19 — left Mustang head coach Mark Percy concerned the extended layoff would affect his pitchers.
“We’d done a little throwing indoors, but it’s really not the same as outdoor practice,” Percy said. “I had no idea how we would do, or if we could throw strikes.”
Starting pitchers Aaron Barclay and Mason Coons provided the affirmative answers.
Barclay wobbled a bit at times with the strike zone — he hit the first batter he faced and walked two others in five-plus innings of work — but still was able to contain the Prairie View offense in the opening game.
He allowed single runs in the first three innings before allowing the first two batters in the sixth to reach base.
The Mustang offense, meanwhile, benefited from Prairie View’s inability to find the strike zone. Iola scored five in the first on just one hit, to go with six walks and a wild pitch. Coons drilled a run-scoring single. Tyler Clubine, Drew Faulhaber and Eric Heffern each drew bases-loaded walks. Heffern’s walk put Iola on top 5-1.
Levi Ashmore and Trent Latta connected on one-out doubles in the bottom of the fourth to trigger a four-run inning to put the game out of reach. Derrick Weir smacked a sacrifice fly before Barclay aided his own cause with an RBI single. Cole Morrison’s single put the Mustangs on top 9-3.
The lead stood at 9-5 when Latta had his second straight RBI double, this one scoring Heffern. Coons followed with a single to score Latta.
Barclay allowed seven hits while striking out seven. Faulhaber pitched two innings, allowing two hits with two strikeouts.
Latta went 3-for-3 with two doubles. Coons had two singles. Ashmore, Barclay, Morrison and Heffern each had singles.
COONS WAS even sharper in the second game.
He allowed only three hits in six innings of work — only one in the first five innings — while striking out three. Ashmore pitched a hitless seventh, striking out two.
