For the Indianola Academy Colonels baseball team, District 1AAA competition has now arrived.
Owning a 2-1-1 record upon entering Wednesday’s final game of the Battle on the River Spring Break Tournament in Vicksburg, next Monday the Colonels will host Lee Academy of Clarksdale in a 6 p.m. matchup.
This initial all-important district game against the Colts comes on the heels of the IA squad’s Spring Break play which was hosted by Vicksburg’s new Sports Force Park.
Although the outcome of Wednesday’s game versus 6A member Terry High School were unavailable at press-time, according to IA Head Coach Clete Putnam, “We got what we went after; a lot of innings of baseball against some quality teams.”
In their days spent in Vicksburg, the Colonels’ other efforts yielded a 13-0 victory over Canton High School, a 4-2 loss to Pearl High School, and a 2-2 tie with Franklin County High School.
Most recently Tuesday night, the Colonels were only required to play four innings to dispatch the Canton High Tigers.
Using 15 hits to plate their baker’s dozen number of runs, multiple base hits were plentiful and were led by a pair of two run home runs off the bats of Wesley Lester and Spencer Roberson.
In addition to Thomas Putnam’s double and pair of singles, Josh Hill and Walker Zepponi hammered a triple and a single apiece.
Rounding out the hitting leaders was Logan White, who delivered a pair of singles.
On the mound, James Hill earned the win as his three innings of work yielded two hits while striking out six batters.
Putnam closed out the game by striking out the side during his one inning performance.
Earlier that same day, the Colonels took on the 6A member Pearl High School Pirates and suffered their 4-2 loss.
Scoring all their runs in the second inning, the Pirates used a pair of hits and a pair of IA errors to help plate their runs.
Although out-hitting the competition by a 4-2 margin, the Colonels could only record their pair of third inning runs.
Leading IA’s offense were Will Davis and Lester, both of whom drilled a double apiece.
On the mound, Josh Hill suffered the loss as his five innings of work limited the Pirates to their pair of hits while striking out five, walking two, and hitting three batters.
In their tournament opening game played last Saturday, the Colonels took on the 3A public school member Franklin County Bulldogs.
When all was said and done, leaving a dozen baserunners stranded came back to haunt the Colonels as the game ended deadlocked with both teams scoring a pair of runs.
Despite outhitting the team from Meadville by a 6-4 margin, it would be back-to-back wind-aided double and a triple in the bottom of the final inning which enabled the Bulldogs to salvage a tie against the Colonels.
Pacing the hitting attack for IA in this game was Lester, who drilled an inside the park home run and a single.
White also hammered a pair of singles while Davis contributed a last-inning double to left center field.
On the mound, the trio of Davis, Reed Junkin, and Josh Hill limited the Bulldogs to their four hits while striking out nine batters.
Starting the game, Davis worked 3 1/3 innings and yielded two hits while striking out five and walking one batter.
Junkin would follow by pitching 1 2/3 innings of hitless ball while striking out two batters. Hill then closed out the game by fanning an additional two batters while giving up two hits and one base on balls.
