Big bats, pitching help Monti run streak to 13
Thirteen straight.
The combination of big run production and strong pitching that has led the Monticello High School baseball team to a No. 8 ranking in Class 2A was in evidence again last week, as the Panthers won four more games to extend their winning streak to 13.
Three of the four were River Valley Conference games, leaving the Panthers 12-1 in the North Division, one-half game behind top-ranked Cascade. Those two were scheduled for a showdown in Monticello June 25, after this newspaper went to press.
Meanwhile, the Panthers (16-3 overall) racked up a combined 45 runs and 48 hits in last week’s four contests, beating West Liberty 10-6, sweeping North Cedar 7-1 and 15-5, and downing Springville 13-1.
The West Liberty game came closest to snapping the Panther streak, as the Comets took the back-and-forth battle into the seventh inning with a 6-5 lead.
But the Panthers erupted for five runs in the top of the seventh to steal away the victory. A pair of two-run doubles, by Ryan Manternach and Avery Martensen, were key hits in the inning.
“We didn’t play well at all, defensively or pitching,” Monticello coach Josh Soper said. “Thankfully our bats came around as the game went along. I’m really proud of how we competed for all 21 outs, though. We never gave up as a team.”
Andrew Mescher was the winning pitcher. He worked the first three innings, was relieved by Tyler Blattner because Mescher’s pitch count was getting high, but came back in to get the final six outs.
Jon Mootz and Alex Nealson both went 3-for-4 at the plate; Nealson had two runs batted in, and Mootz had two doubles. Martensen finished 2-for-5 with three RBIs.
Early leads helped Monticello sweep North Cedar June 19 at Dailey Field in Monticello. The Panthers led 4-0 after three innings of the first game, and pulled away as they collected 11 hits in all. Getting two hits apiece were Kyle Sperfslage, Kegan Arduser, Mescher and Nealson; the latter also had two RBIs. Mescher and Arduser had doubles.
Sperfslage pitched a complete game four-hitter with 11 strikeouts and just one walk.
“Over the last couple of weeks Kyle has pitched extremely well,” Soper said. “We left some runners on base, but we have to give some credit to North Cedar for making some great plays defensively.”
Monticello also jumped ahead in the second game, leading 8-1 after three innings. The Panthers closed out the game in five innings by adding seven runs in the bottom of the fifth to invoke the 10-run rule. Arduser had a two-run double, while Gavin Cooper and Mescher had RBI singles. Cooper finished 3-for-4 with four RBIs and three stolen bases. Mescher and Arduser had two hits apiece.
Arduser worked 4 1/3 innings on the mound to get the win; Ryan Manternach recorded the last two outs.
“We played well except for one bad inning in the top of the fifth,” the coach said. “We were fortunate to have Ryan available to come in and get us out of a bad situation. We hit the ball well again.”
Following a June 21 rainout against Durant, the Panthers returned to action June 23, in a non-conference home game against Springville. A nine-run second inning settled the issue early, on the way to a 13-1 win. Arduser hit a two-run double in the inning; Mescher and Avery Martensen hit two-run singles. Mescher, Blattner and Hunter Kramer shared pitching duties, with Mescher getting the win.
“It was nice to get back out and play after a few days off with the rain,” Soper said. “We pitched well and the defense made the plays. We also hit the ball well, top to bottom. Avery once again had a big game for us.”
District assignments
The Iowa High School Athletic Association has announced the district baseball assignments; pairings and sites had not yet been established at press time.
The Panthers were placed in Class 2A, District 7, which also includes Dyersville Beckman, Bellevue, Camanche, North Cedar and Northeast. The winner will play in a sub-state game against the District 8 champion; Wilton is the highest-ranked team there (Cascade was placed in District 6).
June 18
Monticello 10, West Liberty 6
MONTICELLO AB R H BI
Mescher p 3 1 1 1
Sperfslage ss 3 1 1 0
Manternach, J. c 3 2 1 0
Manternach, R. 3b 4 2 1 2
Mootz dh 4 2 3 0
Sauser 2b 0 0 0 0
Blattner p 0 0 0 0
Martensen 1b 5 1 2 3
Nealson rf 4 0 3 2
Arduser lf 3 0 0 0
Cooper, G. cf 4 1 2 0
Totals 33 10 14 8
Monticello 101 021 5 – 10 14 2
West Liberty 003 201 x – 6 6 2
2B – Mootz 2, R. Manternach, Nealson,
Martensen.
Monticello IP H R ER BB SO
Mescher (W, 4-0) 5 3 4 1 6 2
Blattner 2 3 2 2 0 2
Totals 7 6 6 3 6 4
June 19
Monticello 7, North Cedar 1
(first game)
MONTICELLO AB R H BI
Mescher ss 4 1 2 0
Sperfslage p 4 0 2 0
Manternach, J. c 2 1 1 1
Manternach, R. 3b 2 2 1 0
Mootz dh 4 2 1 0
Sauser 2b 0 0 0 0
Martensen 1b 2 1 0 1
Nealson rf 4 0 2 2
Arduser lf 2 0 2 1
Kraus rf 0 0 0 0
Luensman rf 0 0 0 0
Blattner ph 0 0 0 0
Cooper, G. cf 3 0 0 0
Totals 27 7 11 6
North Cedar 000 001 0 – 1 4 1
Monticello 103 021 x – 7 11 2
2B – Mescher, Arduser.
SB – Mescher, Sperfslage, Nealson,
Arduser.
Monticello IP H R ER BB SO
Sperfslage (W, 4-1) 7 4 1 1 1 11
Totals 7 4 1 1 1 11
Monticello 15, North Cedar 5
(second game, five innings)
MONTICELLO AB R H BI
Mescher ss 3 2 2 1
Sperfslage 2b 0 2 0 0
Manternach, J. c 2 1 0 1
Manternach, R. 3b 3 1 1 1
Mootz dh 3 2 1 1
Kraus rf 0 0 0 0
Martensen 1b 2 1 1 0
Arduser lf 4 1 2 3
Sauser lf 1 3 1 0
Cooper, G. cf 3 2 3 4
Jacobs cr 0 0 0 0
Totals 21 15 11 12
North Cedar 100 04 – 5 5 2
Monticello 323 07 – 15 11 1
2B – Arduser.
SB – Cooper 3, Mescher 2, Sperfslage 2,
Mootz 2, Martensen 2, Jacobs 2, Sauser,
J. Manternach, R. Manternach.
Monticello IP H R ER BB SO
Arduser (W, 2-1) 4 1/3 4 5 3 4 3
Manternach, R. 2/3 1 0 0 0 2
Totals 5 5 5 3 4 5
June 23
Monticello 13, Springville 1
MONTICELLO AB R H BI
Mescher p 3 2 2 2
Henderson ph 1 0 0 0
Sperfslage ss 2 0 1 1
Carlson ph 1 0 0 0
Manternach, J. c 1 2 0 0
Jacobs ph 1 0 0 0
Manternach, R. 3b 3 1 1 1
Mootz dh 2 3 1 0
Martensen 1b 3 2 3 4
Nealson rf 2 0 1 0
Kraus rf 0 0 0 0
Arduser lf 2 1 2 3
Cooper, G. cf 2 2 1 1
Sauser 2b 0 0 0 0
Blattner p 0 0 0 0
Kramer p 0 0 0 0
Totals 23 13 12 12
Springville 000 01 – 1 3 1
Monticello 094 0x – 13 12 0
2B – Mootz 2, R. Manternach, Nealson,
Martensen.
Monticello IP H R ER BB SO
Mescher (W, 5-0) 2 1 0 0 0 1
Blattner 2 0 0 0 0 0
Kramer 1 2 1 1 1 1
Totals 5 3 1 1 1 2