Marion baseball takes two from Canton-Galva

Nathan Baldwin lays the tag on Connor Farnham at home plate during the bottom of the sixth inning of Game 2 at Canton-Galva Friday. Farnham hit a triple but was thrown out stretching. Janae Rempel / Free Press

The Marion baseball team swept two doubleheaders last week to improve to 10-6 for the season, 7-3 in Heart of America play.

Canton-Galva?Marion won two games Friday, despite a furious seventh-inning rally by the Eagles in Game 2.

In the nightcap, Marion won, 12-11, despite leading 12-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh.

In the final half-inning, Ethan Loyd coaxed a leadoff walk off Marion reliever Jared Barney, then Tanner Klingensmith recorded the Eagles? only hit in the frame. From there, Nick Bray walked to load the bases and two more walks each scored a run, prompting Marion to bring Garrett Hoffner to the mound, who promptly gained a strikeout.

But with two errors, a walk and a hit-by-pitch, the Eagles drew within 12-9, and Jacob Baldwin was called in to pitch. Klingensmith reached base on the fielder?s choice and Bray walked, scoring two more runs.

Marion brought Dylan Pippin to the mound with runners on first and third with two outs. He earned the save with a fly out.

?We didn?t throw strikes and we didn?t catch the baseball?it?s as simple as that,? Schroeder said. ?When we did put a ball over the plate, it got booted. It was just unreal. It snowballed, and that snowball almost ran us over.

?We wanted to get some guys some looks that hadn?t got a lot of time?in a non-pressure situation?and they couldn?t do what we asked them to do.?

Marion built its lead with one run in the second and three in the third before the Eagles scored in the third.

Canton-Galva drew within 4-2 with a run off three hits in the fourth before Marion scored four runs in the fifth without a hit. In all, seven Warriors were either walked or hit by a pitch in the inning.

The Eagles added one run in the fifth, and Marion scored four off two hits in the seventh, including an RBI double by Peyton Heidebrecht and a two-run single by Mason Pedersen, setting up the final half-inning.

Heidebrecht was 2-for-3 and had three RBIs and earned the pitching win, scattering seven hits and three runs (two earned) over six innings while walking two and striking out three.

Connor Farnham absorbed the pitching loss. At-bat, he was 3-for-5, including a triple, and had two RBIs. Ethan Loyd was 2-for-2. Pearson was 2-for-3 and had one RBI.

Marion won the opener in five innings, 16-6.

The Warriors plated a run off two errors in the first inning. In the bottom half of the inning, Farnham and Loyd hit back-to-back singles. Both scored to give the Eagles a 2-1 lead.

Marion added two runs in the second inning, which was highlighted by doubles by Corbin Wheeler and Cole Srajer.

Wheeler keyed a six-run third inning with a two-run double. Heidebrecht also hit a double, and by the end of the inning, Marion led, 9-2.

The Warriors tallied three runs in the fourth inning, and the Eagles matched scoring with three runs in the inning, which included an RBI double by Hunter Pearson. That brought the score to 12-5.

Marion scored four runs in the fifth inning. Srajer hit a two-run double.

Canton-Galva scored once more in the bottom of the inning.

Heidebrecht was 3-for-4 and had two RBIs.

Bret Voth (5-0) went the distance to earn the pitching win. He walked no one and struck out four.

Bray was 2-for-2, including a double, and had one RBI. Farnham was 2-for-3. Klingensmith took the pitching loss.

Inman?Marion rode its pitching to a doubleheader sweep on the road Tuesday.

?We did a good job on the mound, limiting free bases for the most part, making them earn their way on, but then we weren?t holding up our end of the bargain on defense,? coach Roger Schroeder said. ?When you can win a game and you don?t really play particularly well outside of one area, that?s a good thing.?

Some ongoing offensive struggles and defensive miscues aside, Schroeder said he was pleased with the outing.

Marion won Game 1, 8-5, despite taking its foot off the gas as the game progressed.

The Warriors built a 7-0 lead through three innings. After scoring one run in the first inning and two in the second, Marion cycled through the order in the top of the third, using three walks, two errors, a hit by pitch and one hit?an RBI single by Corbin Wheeler?to score four runs.

Slowly, however, Inman crept back into the game, plating first one run in the fourth, then, after Marion scored its final run in the fifth, scoring three runs in the bottom of the inning to close the gap to 8-4.

Inman added a final run in the sixth, launching a leadoff double off starter Dylan Pippin. In the seventh, the Teutons loaded the bases with the tying run at first with two outs, but reliever Bret Voth got safely out of the inning with a fly out to earn the save.

Five Warriors each had one hit: Wheeler, Voth, Cole Srajer, Pippin and Remington Putter.

Pippin (1-3) earned the pitching win. Over 61?3 innings, he scattered four hits and five runs (three earned). He walked three batters and struck out seven.

Marion won Game 2, 3-2.

Inman took the lead, 1-0, and held it through three innings. Marion tied the game in the fourth and took the lead, 3-1, by adding two runs in the sixth when Peyton Heidebrecht led off with a double and Trevor Kruse drove in a run with a triple and later scored.

Inman roughed up starter Mason Pedersen for a double to lead off the final half-inning. One run scored, making it a one-run game. Inman then launched a one-out triple to put the tying run on third base. Pedersen struck out the next batter he faced but then lost a base-runner with a hit by pitch. Pedersen struck out the next batter to escape the inning.

?(Mason) was getting up in pitch count, but I couldn?t go take the ball from him,? Schroeder said. ?That?s his game to win or lose at that point. Just did a great job.?

Kruse was 2-for-2 at-bat and had one RBI.

Pedersen (1-0) went the distance to earn the win. He gave up four hits and two runs (one earned), while walking three batters and striking out six.

Coming?Marion (7-3, 10-6) was scheduled to host Moundridge Tuesday and will travel to Little River Thursday.

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