- DMACC opens with a 11-10, 11-inning loss to Kellogg CC
- Bears stay alive with a 16-7 win over Heartland CC, the defending national champion
- DMACC will face Westchester CC in an elimination game today
The DMACC baseball team came away with a loss and a win in its first two games in the 2024 National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II Baseball World Series at Enid, Okla.
The Bears, seeded ninth, opened tournament play with an 11-10 11-inning loss to eight-seeded Kellogg Community College (KCC) on May 25 but kept their tournament hopes alive with a 16-7 decision against defending national champion and fourth-seeded Heartland Community College (HCC) on May 27.
The Bears will take a 37-25 record into an elimination game later today against 12th-seeded Westchester Community College (WCC). The DMACC-WCC winner will move on to face the loser of the LUS-Eunice (LSUE)-St. Johns River State College (SJRSC) on May 29. The DMACC-WCC loser will be eliminated from the tournament.
KCC got a 10-10 tie with a run in the bottom of the ninth and then got the win with a run in the bottom of the 11th in defeating DMACC in the tournament opener for both teams.
The Bruins led 4-1 after one inning, 5-2 after two innings and 5-3 after three innings. They scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth for a 7-3 advantage only to see DMACC tie it with four runs in the top of the sixth. KCC took a 9-7 lead with two runs in the seventh and then fell behind 10-9 as DMACC tallied three runs in the top of the seventh.
Sophomores Cael Boever of Sioux City and Kannon Coakley of Maquoketa paced the Bears at the plate with three hits apiece, including a double from Coakley. Sophomore Noah Thein of Dewitt had just one hit but drove in three DMACC runs and freshman Sam Hesselmann of Johnston drove in two runs. Thein drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the second inning and hit a two-run single in the sixth. Hesselmann singled in a run in the third and got another RBI with a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning.
Sophomore Chance Key of Waverly started on the mound for DMACC and went five innings. He allowed seven runs on seven hits, struck out four and walked six. Sophomore Max Martin of Franklin, Wis., pitched one inning and allowed two runs on two hits with four strikeouts and a walk and sophomore Jacob Sjuts of Humphrey, Neb., went one inning and walked two batters. Freshman Brennan Haman of West Fargo, N.D., threw three innings, allowing one run on one hit with five strikeouts and a walk and sophomore Eli Lehrman of Anamosa pitched two-thirds of an inning, allowing one run on one hit with two walks. He suffered the loss to fall to 1-5 for the season.
Coakley had four hits, including a double, and Boever had three hits, including a triple, and five RBIs for DMACC in the win over HCC. The Bears got a two-run home run from sophomore Camden Kaufman of Waukee in the first but fell behind 3-2 when HCC scored three runs in the bottom of the inning. DMACC used a six-run rally in the third to take an 8-3 lead and led 8-6 after HCC scored two runs in the bottom of the bottom of the third and one run in the bottom of the fourth. The Bears opened up a 12-6 lead with two runs in the sixth and two in the seventh and HCC made it a 12-7 game with a run in the bottom of the seventh before DMACC closed it out with four runs in the top of the eighth. The game was called because of the mercy rule after HCC batted in the bottom of the inning.
Boever drove in a run with a single in the third and got another RBI with a bases-loaded walk in the seventh. He capped the win with a bases-loaded triple in the eighth. Thein, sophomore Jaylen Ziegler of Urbandale and freshmen Jackson Manning of Keosauqua and Kaden Frommelt of Marion had two hits apiece and Ziegler, Kaufman and Frommelt each drove in two runs.
Freshman Carter Woollums of Johnston pitched the first seven innings for DMACC and improved to 5-3 with the win. He allowed seven runs on 10 hits, struck out two and walked one. Sophomore Alex Berends of Story City went one inning and allowed one hit.
WCC is 32-18 on the season. The Vikings opened the tournament with a 12-0 loss to SJRSC on May 25 and then eliminated KCC from tournament play with a 10-6 win on May 27.