Reivers Sweep McCook

COUNCIL BLUFFS - NJCAA No. 15 Iowa Western Baseball swept McCook Community College over the weekend in a three-game series.

The Reivers (12-6) needed extra innings in game one to win 11-10 on Friday afternoon. Iowa Western scored four runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to tie the game, then a walk-off walk gave the home team the victory. 

On Sunday afternoon, it was a pitchers' duel between Aiden Lieser and Tait Anderson.  Lieser (2-0) threw 5.2 innings of solid baseball for the Reivers, giving up just two hits and one run while striking out six McCook batters.  On the otherside, Anderson (2-1) mowed down Reiver hitters all game, striking out 10, including seven through the first three innings.  

Iowa Western got to Anderson in the third inning on a solo shot from Amarensio Franka that hit the top of the left center field wall and over for his second homerun of the season.  The visitors answered in the top of the 4th after Jakoby Hamer drew a leadoff walk and Dalton Berg sent him home on an RBI double to left field.

In the bottom of the 6th, The Reivers scored the go-ahead run after a walk by Justin Rompre and Sean Schaefer stole second after pinch running; an RBI single from Jayden Nakamura scored him to take a 2-1 lead.

Casey Kowalczyk came in to relieve Lieser and struck out the final batter of the game on a 95 mph fastball for his first save of the season.

Game three saw the same scoring output as game one; Iowa Western put up crooked numbers in five of the nine innings, and McCook answered with the same.  With Iowa Western leading 12-8 in the 8th inning, the Indians'Hayden Galvin sent a frozen rope over the left field wall for a grand slam off of Luke Woltmann (1-0), tying the game.  The Reivers answered with two runs in the bottom of the frame, and Woltmann settled down to get the final outs for a 14-12 win.

Iowa Western is back in action at Doc Ross Field on Friday versus McHenry County College.