Savages come up short against Eagles in extras

For the second time this season the Savages had a rollercoaster game in a battle of endurance against the Keota Eagles. Their first game was in late May in which they almost pulled off a big comeback but wound up losing 14-18. On June 22 the two teams met again, this time Sigourney took the lead early and Keota had to stage the comeback. The Eagles managed to score when they needed it most and Sigourney took a tough 6-9 loss after playing 10 innings.

    Sigourney gave up a single run in the first three innings of play while getting some run support for starting pitcher Josh Mohr. Carson Crawford led off the bottom of the second inning with a single which was followed by a hard line drive from Payton Schauf which came up feet shy of being a home run, instead it turned into a double. Kyle Weber brought in their first run with a single and Nick Goad did the game to give Sigourney the lead. A double steal on a passed ball gave the Savages a chance to put up a big number but Weber was picked off at third base to end the inning.

    “I wanted to see us play as a team and to see their grit,” Sigourney coach Lee Crawford said. “We lost by four in the first game and we should’ve won it, I wanted to see how they’d respond from it.”

    The Savages tacked on another three runs in the third to push their lead to four runs and fully take momentum and control. Mac Conrad was hit by a pitch and after a strikeout, two consecutive walks loaded the bases. Colton Clarahan was brought in to relieve Austin Waterhouse and try and get Keota out of the jam. A run was brought in after Schauf was walked and Weber hit a double to score two more runs.

    “We’ve got kids stepping up in the dugout and out on the field,” coach Crawford said. “Make no mistake these kids know baseball and they know what they need to do. We rushed some plays with a couple bad throws in the middle of the game but we’re not going to hang our heads about it.”

    Keota would counter with four runs in the fourth to tie the game at five and Sigourney finally got back on the board in the bottom of the sixth with a crucial run late. Goad walked and then Conrad was intentionally walked after a pop out from Brett Striegel. Cade Molyneux brought home the runner from second with a hit that made it out to the fence. Conrad was caught between bases and eventually tagged out at second and a pop out by Mohr ended the inning.

    The Eagles scored a run in the top of the seventh to tie the game for the second time and force Sigourney to bat in the seventh with a chance to either win or send the game into extras. Crawford gave his team some early hope with a leadoff double and Schauf was intentionally walked. Dustin Haines popped out and Weber struck out but both runners advanced. Goad flew out to right field to end their scoring threat and keep the game going.

    “Our guys played as a team, they were backing each other and wanted to win,” coach Crawford said. “That’s something we’ve been doing well recently and it showed throughout this game.”

    Sigourney wouldn’t score another run in the game while Keota put up three in the top of the 10th which provided the difference in the 6-9 loss. Sigourney had their best chance in the bottom of the 10th after Conrad hit a double to the fence with one out. Molyneux got on base after being hit but a strikeout and groundout ended the game.

    “I can’t hang my head after 10 innings the way we played,” coach Crawford said. “We gave a pretty gritty effort in terms of defense, hitting the ball and being aggressive on the bases. We had chances in those last innings, but we couldn’t get a hit to advance those base runners. I hope we look back on this game and start to put some more things together and make a deep tournament run.”

    Savage leaders: Carson Crawford – 3 hits, Mason Dye – 2 runs, Kyle Weber – 3 RBIs, Payton Schauf/Kyle Weber/Nick Goad – 1 SB, Mac Conrad – 2 Ks

    Sigourney hoped to bounce back and continue some of their best baseball of the season when they traveled to Iowa Valley on June 25 and hosted Belle Plaine on June 27 to end their conference schedule.