Falcons' Season Ends in Region 11 Title Game

Centerville, IA -- Indian Hills battled to stay alive in the Region 11 tournament with a victory against Marshalltown CC on Sunday, but the momentum was short-lived as region champ Iowa Western CC scored 12 runs in the 1st inning of the championship game and ended the Falcons' season with an 18-4 win.

It was Indian Hills' second loss in the three-day tourney to Iowa Western and the win against MCC was the second time during the weekend and the 9th time in 10 games this spring they had defeated the Tigers.

The Sunday win against MCC came after Indian Hills overcame a 5-4 deficit with two runs in the 7th inning and one in the 8th to advance with a 7-5 victory.  Taylor Ostrich doubled home the tying run and scored the go-ahead tally on a single by Guillermo Cruz.  Yuliecer Arias -- who enjoyed an outstanding tournament with nine hits and six runs scored -- singled to score an insurance run in the next inning. 

Starter Jake Stalzer went six solid innings for the Falcons and left with a runner on and a 4-2 lead.  The Tigers pushed across three more runs against two IHCC relievers.  A.J. McElderry came on to throw two innings of scoreless relief and he got the save.

Marshalltown took a 1-0 lead in the 1st.  The Falcons scored two in the 2nd and two more in the 6th using doubles by Cruz and Tyler Hermann to get on the board in the 2nd and four singles for their two runs in the 6th. 

Arias, Cruz and Levi Grassley had two hits each for the Falcons.

But things quickly went south in Sunday's second game.  No. 1 ranked Iowa Western erupted for their dozen runs in the 1st and tacked on six more after that.  The Falcons didn't help themselves with some poor defense, causing ten of the runs to be unearned.

IHCC got a run in the 1st and was scoreless after that until the 9th when Jason Bonilla slugged his team-leading 8th homer of the season, a three-run shot.

The tournament got off to a very good start for Indian Hills on Friday when Cashtyn DeLeeuw went 6 2/3 strong innings and his teammates backed him with some timely hitting in a 6-1 win.

Jake Stalzer pitched the final 2 1/3 innings in relief and he and DeLeeuw spaced eight hits and  four walks to hold the Tigers to a lone run.

IHCC got single tallies in the 1st, 3rd and 4th innings and scored three in the 6th.

Jeremy Delgado and Arias each had a pair of hits and Delgado and Adam Deneke scored twice.

On Saturday, Iowa Western broke a scoreless tie with a  run in the 4th, added two more in the 6th and then scored six times over their final three at-bats on the way to a 9-4 victory over the Falcons.

Jordan Piche pitched the first eight innings for IHCC and McElderry finished up.

Indian Hills couldn't generate much offense against IWCC starter Tanner Krietmeier until the 7th when Zach Sims singled and scored.

They scored another run in the 8th and used four singles to plate two in the 9th. 

Arias had a three-hit game and Ostrich and Sims had two safeties each.  IHCC outhit the Reivers,  12-11, but all 12 Falcons hits were singles.

Indian Hills, which entered the tourney with the No. seed after going 20-12 in conference play, ends the season with a 35-24 record.