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MHS marauded by Maroons

No. 7 Dowling Catholic delivers doubleheader sweep of Bobcat baseball team

T-R PHOTO BY ANNE VANCE - Marshalltown's Nate Vance slides around Dowling Catholic second baseman Sam McMurray, left, while successfully stealing second during the first game of Monday's CIML Iowa Conference doubleheader at the MHS diamond. The seventh-ranked Maroons emerged from the twinbill with a pair of wins, beating the Bobcats 10-6 and 3-1.

Learning the lessons is necessary, even though that often means suffering hardship to experience them firsthand.

The Marshalltown baseball team saw how critical issuing free bases can be when Class 4A No. 7 Dowling Catholic cashed in for a CIML Iowa Conference doubleheader sweep on Monday night at the MHS diamond.

The Bobcats, who fell from the rankings for the first time in three weeks, fell back to .500 for the first time this season with losses of 10-6 and 3-1 to the Maroons.

Marshalltown (15-15, 6-10) hadn’t scored seven runs in a twinbill since June 4 in a sweep of Mason City, but couldn’t make the offensive turnaround worth even one win on this night. Dowling (25-7, 13-5) ran its win streak to seven games thanks to a seven-run inning in Monday’s opening contest and some much-needed charity in the nightcap.

“I thought we were better offensively tonight, especially in game one,” said MHS head coach Steve Hanson. “We had some really good approaches at the plate. Tonight I thought we made strides, especially considering who we faced.”

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Marshalltown's Sam Irwin, right, slides safely back to first base on a pickoff attempt as the throw gets away from Dowling Catholic's Charlie Johnson during the second game of Monday's doubleheader at MHS.

The Bobcat bats faced the cream of Dowling’s hearty crop in pitchers Carter Baumler, Luke Yacinich and Sam McMurray during the doubleheader and represented themselves well enough, Hanson said, that at least one win was a possibility.

“In game two we left seven guys on base and didn’t have bad approaches at the plate, but we’ve got to make three or four runs stand up,” Hanson said. “We didn’t pitch it very well. In game one we walked five, and in game two we walked three, and all three scored. Each guy that we walk scored and that gets you beat.”

The Bobcats opened the conference twinbill with a 2-0 lead through the first inning, thanks to an error that allowed leadoff batter Kody Ricken to reach base. Nate Vance’s sacrifice bunt moved Ricken up 90 feet, a Dru Dobbins single drove him home, and back-to-back walks for Wade Canaday and Joseph Harris loaded the bases. Sam Irwin was then hit by a pitch to force home the second run, but Baumler escaped with jam without further damage.

By the time Marshalltown scored again, Dowling had posted 10 runs on the scoreboard. The Maroons sent 12 batters to the plate in the third inning alone, scoring seven times courtesy of six hits and three walks, one of which chased MHS starting pitcher Joseph Harris from the mound.

Lucas Duff walked Dowling’s leadoff batter with the bases loaded to force in a run, McMurray followed with an RBI single, Adam Brauch lofted a sacrifice fly and Dowling was suddenly on top 8-2.

T-R PHOTO BY ANNE VANCE

Duff settled in and didn’t walk another batter for the last four innings of his relief stint, but Marshalltown’s offense didn’t find life again until the seventh. Ricken led off by reaching safely on a dropped third strike, Vance singled and Dobbins walked to load the bases, but a wild pitch brought in the first run of the inning.

Canaday walked to load the bases again, and McMurray replaced Yacinich and retired the first two batters he faced. But Tate Kuehner singled home a run, Brian Trowbridge did the same, and Dylan Eygabroad stepped into the batter’s box as the potential tying run. His hard-hit liner was gloved, however, by Brauch at short to end the rally and the game.

Vance finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored, Dobbins also scored twice and the Bobcats became only the sixth team to score six runs against the Maroons this season. Yet on this occasion it wasn’t enough to win.

“If we pitch it better we have a chance,” Hanson said. “If we score six we’ve got to win, and we didn’t pitch it well enough to hold them under six so we didn’t deserve to win.”

Harris took the loss, allowing eight runs — seven earned — on six hits and four walks while striking out three. He spun a four-hit shutout to beat Dowling in their first meeting this season, but couldn’t match the performance this time out.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE

In the second game, Marshalltown managed to outhit the Maroons 5-4, but three walks issued by Bobcat pitching accounted for all three runs Dowling scored. Canaday took the loss, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks over four innings, striking out four, while Ricken allowed just one run on one hit and one walk over three innings of relief.

Connor Erps walked twice to lead off an inning and scored both times, while his RBI triple in the first inning gave Dowling a lead it never gave back.

“You want a tournament baseball lesson, that’s it,” said Hanson. “You can’t walk people. You have to be efficient, and I hope when we get that opportunity we’re better than that because today we didn’t pitch it well enough to win. We didn’t give ourselves a good enough chance against a good team.”

The Bobcats racked up just five singles against Dowling right-hander Sam Young over six innings. He walked six but struck out seven, forcing the Bobcats to strand eight runners on base by wriggling out of a number of tough spots.

Marshalltown’s lone run came in the fifth when Kuehner walked, was balked to second and moved up to third on Eygabroad’s bloop single to left. After Eygabroad was caught stealing, Ricken’s grounder down the third-base line forced Kuehner to retreat to the bag until Yacinich threw wide of first, allowing Kuehner to score uncontested.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE

Dobbins walked with two out to put two runners on base, but Young escaped and the Maroons managed to hold the Bobcats the rest of the way.

Marshalltown closes out the home portion of its regular-season schedule tonight, entertaining Des Moines Hoover for a cross-CIML doubleheader starting at 5 p.m. The Bobcats will recognize their seniors as well as Iowa High School Athletic Association “Friends of the School” award recipients Kevin Lageschulte, and Tim and Angie Kuehner for their support of MHS athletics.

At Marshalltown

Game One

Dowling Catholic 10,

Marshalltown 6

DC 017 200 0 — 10 12 1

MHS 200 010 3 — 6 6 3

Carter Baumler, Luke Yacinich (4), Sam McMurray (7) and Hunter Simpson; Joseph Harris, Lucas Duff (3) and Kody Ricken. W–Baumler (4-2). L–Harris (2-2). 2B–MHS: Duff. 3B–DC: Nate Steenblock. LOB–DC 9, MHS 9.

Game Two

Dowling Catholic 3, Marshalltown 1

DC 100 101 0 — 3 4 1

MHS 000 010 0 — 1 5 1

Sam Young, McMurray (7) and Simpson; Wade Canaday, Ricken (5) and Will Van Buren. W–Young (4-1). L–Canaday (2-3). Sv–McMurray (3). 2B–DC: Charlie Johnson, Connor Erps. LOB–DC 5, MHS 8.

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