The Iola Mustangs had a roller coaster split with Pioneer League rival Prairie View Tuesday.
Passersby may have mistaken the opener’s scoreboard for a football game after the Mustangs took the contest 21-11, but they collapsed in the finale as Prairie View scored 11-unanswered runs to split the series.
Freshman starter Haidyn Desmarteau picked up the Game 1 win, but without a single strikeout she heavily relied on her defense while allowing only a pair of walks.
Catcher sophomore Addie Wacker deserves plenty of praise for her six-RBI performance while hitting in 2 of 4 at-bats.
Wacker plated a pair of runs in the opening frame, then spurred a six-run second inning with a two-RBI double. Following Wacker’s lead, freshman first baseman Breighlyn Rutherford freshman shortstop Kinzley Fountain and freshman third baseman Kailyn Rodriguez knocked in RBIs of their own — giving Iola an 8-0 lead before the third inning.
Aside from a six-run flare-up in the fourth inning, the Mustangs maintained control throughout the contest. A seven-run sixth inning, capped off by a Fountain RBI fly ball, secured the mercy-rule victory and the Mustangs’ second win in the Pioneer League after splitting their previous series against Burlington.
Wacker tied for the team lead in hits with junior outfielder Brooklyn Holloway, Rutherford and Fountain. Rutherford was second in RBIs with four, followed by Holloway with three and Fountain with two.
In Game 2, Iola seemed on track for their first sweep of the season but fell apart in the later innings. Capitalizing on a struggling pitcher, a bases-loaded walk put Iola on the scoreboard. Second baseman Bayleigh Scheibmeir then drove in the first of her team-leading two RBIs, followed by a pair of scores off an infield error to give Iola a 4-2 lead.
The Buffalos rebounded by going on a 5-1 run in the second and third innings. Iola tied the game in the second inning with a bases loaded walk. They deadlocked the game 7-7 in the fourth with a Desmarteau double driving in a pair of runs only to see Prairie View score 11 unanswered runs.
Fountain took the loss tallying three strikeouts over six innings but allowing 18 runs on 10 hits and 10 walks.
Desmarteau had the team lead in hits with two and tied Scheibmeir for the team lead in RBIs with two each.
The Mustangs have a 3-5 record and are 2-2 in the Pioneer League. They will take a step away from Pioneer League play Friday to play a doubleheader against the Lady Cubs in Humboldt.
First pitch for the opener is at 4:30 p.m.
