WATERLOO, Iowa - A play at the plate in the eleventh inning ended No. 19 NIACC's season, as the Trojans lost to Iowa Central 4-3 in the Region XI Tournament on Saturday afternoon.
Pinch runner Ryan Voves (Fr., Mason City, IA) was thrown out at the plate while trying to score from first on a single by Reynaldo Sala (Fr., Santiago, Dominican Republic). Voves was caught in between third and home when the Tritons relayed the ball back to the infield from right field.
The loss dropped NIACC to a final record of 38-21, and knocked them out of the double-elimination tournament.
NIACC was out hit by Iowa Central 17-9 in the game, and didn't have an extra base hit. Nate Olin (So., Galesburg, IL) and Hunter King (Fr., Mason City, IA) had two hits in five at bats for NIACC, while Sala was 2-for-4.
Pitcher Tim Black (Fr., Mount Hope, Ontario) pitched for nine innings, struck out seven, and gave up three runs in a no decision. Ean McNeal (Fr., Cedar Rapids, IA) pitched the last two innings and received the loss after Iowa Central scored in the top of the eleventh.
Triton starter Will Kenny pitched 7.2 innings and also struck out seven and gave up three runs. Cory Ferm came in during the eighth and eventually recorded the win.
Iowa Central (39-20) scored one run in the third, sixth, eighth, and eleventh innings, while holding NIACC to one inning of scoring. NIACC scored all three runs in the sixth.
The Tritons' Scott Splett had three doubles on four hits in the game. His first double set up the first score when he doubled to right-center field. He scored on a Dan Potempa single on the next at bat.
The Tritons also took advantage of a Nate Olin error in the sixth to make it 2-0. Olin lost a fly ball from Justin Threlkeld in the sun and missed the catch. Threlkeld made it to second on the play, and scored during the next at bat.
NIACC took the lead in the sixth off of three hits and two errors. Robert Swenson (Fr., Mason City, IA) scored the first run off an error by Threlkeld on a fly ball to right field from Olin. Drew Verstegen (Fr., Mason City, IA) advanced to third on that play, and scored during Tyler Peterson's (So., Eden Prairie, MN) single moments later to tie the game. King singled two batters later to bring home Olin and put NIACC in the lead, 3-2.
After a RBI sac fly by Iowa Central's Dawson Porter tied the game in the eighth, had an opportunity to retake the lead with the bases loaded in the bottom half of the inning. After the pitching change replaced Kenny for Ferm, Ferm struck out Trojan pinch hitter Max Waletich (Fr., Fairmont, MN) to end the scoring threat.
Iowa Central stranded a runner on third in the ninth, and a pair of runners in the tenth, but put one on the board in the eleventh off a RBI single by Potempa.
Needing one run to tie the game, the Trojans couldn't get their leadoff runners on base. King and Jose Perez (Fr., Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico) both flied out to start the inning. Waletich kept NIACC's hopes alive with a single to right field. Attempting to put a little more speed on the base paths, Coach Todd Rima switched out Waletich for Voves.
In the next at bat, Sala singled to right field, and Voves moved from first to third. As the ball was relayed back into the infield, Voves rounded third, but was unable to stop momentum and was caught in between bases as Triton second baseman Spencer Mallonee brought the ball back into the infield. Voves broke for home, but wasn't able to beat the tag from catcher Taylor Peterson and was final out of the game.
NIACC went 37-21 this season, were 14-10 in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference, and were ranked as high as seventh in the NJCAA Division II polls. NIACC will lose 12 sophomores for next season: Peterson, Olin, Nick Tillo (Sioux City, IA), Nate Pilacinski (Gaylord, MN), Michael Bohl (Mason City, IA), Kyle Moses (St. Ansgar, IA), Osvaldo Marin (Carolina, Puerto Rico), Seth Harmon (Mason City, IA), Dustin Jacque (Dyersville, IA), Conor Krommenhoek (Sioux City, IA), Casey Anderlick (Riceville, IA), and Isaac Willenbring (Dyersville, IA).
Iowa Central will play again tomorrow in another elimination game at noon in Waterloo.
