By Bruce Thein
The Clayton Ridge/Central WarEagles went 1-2 last week, opening with a dominant win over Edgewood-Colesburg before dropping a pair of Upper Iowa Conference baseball games to MFL MarMac and Kee.
The WarEagles defeated the Edgewood-Colesburg Vikings on June 23 by a score of 16-1 in a four-inning contest. The team scored four times in the opening inning before putting the game out of reach with a seven-run second inning. CRC added two runs in the third and three more in the fourth while holding the Vikings to just one run and one hit.
The WarEagle offense was efficient and aggressive, collecting 15 hits while drawing two walks and taking advantage of six hit batters. The team finished with 15 RBIs and had seven different players record at least one hit.
Junior Owen Hammersland led the attack, going 2-for-2 with a triple, three runs scored and three RBIs. Griffen Hammersland also enjoyed a big day at the plate, finishing 2-for-3 with a double and four RBIs. Dom Mast drove in four runs on a 2-for-3 performance, while Isaac Loan went 2-for-2 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Seth Kregel added two hits and scored twice, and Kasten Oberbreckling chipped in a pair of hits and two runs scored. Mason Loan scored twice and drove in a run, while Carson Ruegnitz added a hit and an RBI.
On the mound, Kregel earned the win by tossing four innings of one-hit ball, striking out seven and walking one.
MarMac scratched out just enough offense and received a strong pitching performance to edge Clayton Ridge/Central 3-2 in a tightly contested baseball game on June 24. Both teams managed only a few hits, but the Bulldogs capitalized on their opportunities while limiting the WarEagles to just two runs despite issuing six walks.
The WarEagles took advantage of patient at-bats throughout the afternoon. Mast led the offense, going 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Colton Hoeger also doubled and drove in a run, while Mason Loan, Griffen Hammersland and Oberbreckling each collected singles. CRC finished with two RBIs and left several scoring chances unfinished, striking out 11 times.
On the mound Owen Hammersland turned in a solid complete-game effort despite the tough-luck loss. The junior scattered six hits over six innings, allowing three runs, none of them earned. He struck out six and walked four. The WarEagle defense committed two errors, both of which contributed to the Bulldogs’ scoring.
Clayton Ridge/Central finished with five hits, two doubles, two RBIs and six walks but stranded several scoring opportunities in the narrow defeat. Despite the loss, the WarEagles received another quality start from Hammersland and battled until the final out in a game that could have gone either way.
Clayton Ridge/Central stayed within striking distance through the first two innings before Kee High pulled away for a 15-3 Upper Iowa Conference victory on June 25. The WarEagles scored single runs in each of the first two innings to be tied at 2-2, but the Hawks took control, scoring eight runs over the next three innings and capping the day with a five-run seventh inning.
The WarEagles collected nine hits in the loss. Mast led the way with a 2-for-3 performance, including a double. Ruegnitz also finished 2-for-4 with a double and drove in a run, while Griffen Hammersland went 2-for-3 with a double, scoring a run and knocking in another. Mason Loan, Isaac Loan and Colton Hoeger each added singles.
CRC used five pitchers during the game. Ruegnitz logged the longest outing, working two and two-thirds innings while striking out two. Colton Hoeger tossed two innings and recorded two strikeouts, while Tate Hoeger, Mason Loan and Oberbreckling also saw time on the mound.
With the loss, the WarEagles fell to 5-13 on the season. The two Upper Iowa Conference rivals will meet again as they square off on Friday, July 3 in the opening round of the Class 1A Substate 4 tournament at Starmont High School. The postseason rematch will give the WarEagles an immediate opportunity to avenge the regular season defeat. The winner of the rematch will advance to the second round of the state tournament bracket.
