William Penn Falls Twice at Rival Grand View
William Penn University Athletics
Des Moines–The Statesmen baseball team led in both of Saturday’s matchups, but could not hold on as it was swept by Grand View in a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader.
William Penn (19-17, 9-12 Heart) fell by scores of 5-4 and 6-4. The teams will finish their four-game weekend set Sunday with another doubleheader that will begin at noon.
The afternoon opened with three scoreless frames before the visitors finally broke through with one run in the fourth on a single by Cory Russell (Jr., El Cajon, Calif., Education) that brought in Robert Phiakeo (Sr., San Diego, Calif., Business Management).
Unfortunately, the Vikings (20-10, 16-6 Heart) answered with five runs in the bottom half and did not relinquish the advantage.
Still down 5-1 entering their final at-bats, Colton Johnson (Jr., Westminster, Calif., Physical Education) cut the deficit to one on a three-run double. Johnson, representing the tying run, did not come home, however, as GVU claimed the opener.
The navy and gold nearly pulled out the win despite being outhit 9-4. Dylan McDonald (Jr., Chula Vista, Calif., Industrial Technology), who was saddled with the loss, struck out six with one walk in the complete game effort.
WPU came out strong in the nightcap as well, putting three on the board in the first and one more in the third for a 4-0 lead. Anthony York (Jr., Chula Vista, Calif., Physical Education) doubled in two runners for the first runs, while Johnny Valdez (Jr., San Jacinto, Calif., Business Management) tallied RBI singles in both the first and third innings. The juniors recorded two base knocks apiece in the loss.
The Vikings slowly chipped away with two runs in the third and one in the fourth and fifth, before taking the lead for good with a two-run sixth frame. The hosts owned an 11-8 edge in hits.
Logan Overly (Sr., Oakley, Calif., Secondary Education) was unable to keep Grand View at bay, striking out two with two walks in his own complete game.
