Muscatine, Iowa -- The stage is set for a big four-game series next weekend between the co-leaders in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference baseball standings after Indian Hills swept a four-game series at Muscatine CC. While the Falcons were taking all four games from Muscatine, league co-leader Iowa Western was winning four straight at Marshalltown. Indian Hills will host Iowa Western in a four-game set at Pat Daughterty Field in Centerville this Saturday and Sunday. Both teams are 13-3 in the conference.
Against Muscatine, Indian Hills (31-12 overall) got outstanding starting pitching, two clutch bullpen efforts and more than enough offense in three of the four games. They won 14-1 in five innnings in the first game on Friday, then clubbed the Cardinals 12-2 and 9-1 Saturday. The lone close contest was IHCC's 3-2 victory in Friday's second game.
Christian Torres set the tone for the IHCC starting pitchers in the five-inning opener Friday, scattering four hits with no walks and seven strikeouts. The next three Falcons starters -- Derek Kawlewski, Alsis Herrera and Nick Green -- each struck out nine in their stints.
Torres' teammates backed him with a 13-hit attack. The Falcons settled things early with four runs in the 2nd, two on a home run by Joel Booker, six more in the 4th and four in the 5th.
In the big 4th frame, Junior Santos, Paulo Montezuma and Dario Polanco had consecutive RBI singles and Mike Levar had a two-run single. Caleb Ratzman had an RBI hit earlier in the inning.
Montezuma had a bases-loaded double to bring home three of the four runs the next inning with Joel Booker also singling home a run.
Every starter scored at least one run and had at least one hit. Montezuma had four RBIs, Booker three and Levar two. Booker, Montezuma, Jake Lewis and Joel Fuentes all had two-hit games.
Edgar Lebron's sixth-inning sacrifice fly brought home Levar with the game-winning run in Friday's nightcap. Levar had drawn a one-out walk and moved to third on a throwing error before Lebron drove him in.
Muscatine scored first against IHCC starter Kawlewski in the 1st inning. IHCC went ahead with a pair of runs in the 3rd, one of them coming home on Booker's RBI groundout.
After MCC tied it in the 4th, Indian Hills pulled out the win with the run in the 6th.
Muscatine threatened against Kawlewski in the bottom of the 6th on a hit batsman and a single. After a grounout, Cody Hinson came out of the IHCC bullpen and got an infield popup for the third out.
Closer Jose Marin pitched a flawless 7th with two Ks and a flyout.
IHCC scored 21 runs on 23 hits to take both contests on Saturday.
Herrera and Jesse Anderson combined for a five-hitter in the first game with 13 punchouts. Green and Johno Rodriguez struck out 11 MCC batters in game two, while permitting three hits.
The offensive outburst started with two runs in the 1st inning of the 1st game. Montezuma had a three-run homer in a four-run 2nd and Lebron hammered a two-run round-tripper in the 3rd. Ratzman and Booker drove in runs in the 5th and Lewis contributed an RBI single in the 6th.
Booker continued his outstanding spring with a 3-for-4 performance that included two doubles, and Lebron and Luis Estevez each had two hits.
All but one of the starters for IHCC scored a run and Lebron tallied three times.
Green was solid in game two, striking out at least one hitter in every one of his six innings and giving up only an unearned run in the 1st.
IHCC had three-run innings in the 3rd and 6th and pushed across two scores in the 7th.
The big hits were run-producing singles by Booker and Lewis in the 3rd and back-to-back doubles by Fuentes and Lebron in the 4th.
Booker, Lewis and Lebron had two hits apiece and Lebron crossed the plate three times, giving him six runs scored for the day.
Indian Hills plays at Ellsworth on Tuesday before playing six straight home games -- two against Southwestern Wednesday before the battle for first place with Iowa Western this weekend.