BASEBALL INDIANS PICK UP FOUR MORE WINS IN 10 GAMES THIS WEEK, GIVE UP JEFF HOUG TOURNEY TITLE TO KEE HIGH

The Waukon Indian baseball team played a full slate of 10 games within a week's time this past week, also having an average amount of success during that full slate with four wins in those 10 games. The Tribe took a pair of games from Independence, 12-5 and 7-1, in a tournament turned doubleheader Saturday, July 1, dropped a doubleheader at top-rated Oelwein Monday, July 3, 10-0 in five innings and 9-2, and fell at Starmont by a 6-3 final Wednesday, July 5.
The Indians then dropped both ends of another doubleheader at home against New Hampton Thursday, July 6, falling by identical 6-1 finals in both games, and swept a pair of games from MFL/Mar Mac at home Friday, July 7 by 10-6 and 9-5 finals before dropping a 3-2 decision to Kee High in the rescheduled championship game of the Tribe's own Jeff Houg Memorial Tournament Saturday, July 8 at Lansing.
The week's results left the Indians with an overall record of 7-28, including a mark of 2-14 in the Northeast Iowa Conference.

NEIC Team Standings
Through July 8 games
                        NEIC      O'all
Oelwein                  16-0      31-0
Charles City            11-4      20-9
Waverly-Shell Rock      9-7      15-13
Decorah                  7-6      19-11
New Hampton            9-9      17-14
WAUKON                  2-14      7-28
Crestwood                  1-15      5-23

The baseball Indians will wrap up their regular season and begin postseason play this week. The Tribe will host Crestwood of Cresco in a Northeast Iowa Conference doubleheader Monday, July 10 to wrap up its home and NEIC season before playing at Maquoketa in a non-conference doubleheader Wednesday, July 12 to bring its regular season to a close. The Indians will then open district tournament play Saturday, July 15 at and against Decorah, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

at Independence ...
What was slated to be the annual Independence Tournament Saturday, July 1, turned out to be a varsity doubleheader between the baseball Indians and Independence. The bowing out of two of the four teams scheduled to play in the tournament left the Indians matched up against the host school for a last-minute doubleheader, but that was alright with the Indians, as they came away with a pair of victories, 12-5 and 7-1.
The Indians used a late comeback effort to turn a 5-4 deficit into a 12-5 victory in game one, scoring eight runs in the final two frames of the ballgame. A combined six Indian hits in innings six and seven were complemented nicely by a three-up, three-down defensive effort by the Tribe in those same two frames to preserve the Indian triumph.
The Tribe opened the game by building a 3-0 lead in the first two innings, starting the scoring with a run in the first frame on a two-out single by freshman right fielder Kenny Hansmeier that scored sophomore left fielder Chad Bakkum after he reached on an error. Three Indian singles in the top of the second tacked on another two runs to the Tribe total, junior catcher Andy Snitker leading the inning off with one of those hits and senior Eddie Frick and Bakkum swatting back-to-back singles two outs later, Snitker scoring on Frick's hit and Frick doing likewise on Bakkum's rap for a 3-0 Indian lead.
The next two innings were silent on the offensive end for the Orange and Black, but between the two Indian turns at the plate, Independence managed a four-run bottom of the third to overtake the Tribe. Two hits, two free passes, an Indian error and a ground ball resulted in the 4-3 Mustang lead that stood until the fifth inning of play.
That fifth saw the two teams exchange runs, the Tribe striking first with a lead-off solo homer off the bat of junior second baseman Chris Kamm, his second round-tripper of the year. Independence countered with a pair of singles in the bottom half of the fifth to keep its one-run margin at 5-4.
The Tribe's final surge began in the top of the sixth with three runs. Senior center fielder Craig Stott was hit by a pitch before a two-out error allowed Bakkum to join Stott on the basepaths. A walk issued to Kamm loaded the bases with Indians before Hansmeier collected his second hit of the game, a single that scored both Stott and Bakkum and gave the Tribe a 6-5 advantage. Junior designated hitter Jared Jones took the Indian eruption one step further with a single of his own, driving in Kamm to boost the Indian advantage to 7-5.
The final touches were tacked on in the top of the seventh, when five more runs were added to the Indian total. A lead-off walk by Snitker got the ball rolling, as he was then driven in by a deep triple by junior first baseman Josh Johnson. An ensuing single by Stott brought Johnson home, with Frick also joining Stott on the basepaths with his own single.
Back-to-back fielder's choice plays followed by back-to-back Mustang errors put Bakkum and Kamm on base and scored both Frick and Bakkum, putting Kamm on third. A ground ball by Hansmeier then brought Kamm home to finish off the Indian scoring, having boosted the Indian lead to 12-5.
Four ground balls and two fly balls in innings six and seven turned away any and all efforts by Independence to regain the lead from the Tribe. The flawless Indian defensive effort sealed the 12-5 Tribe victory.
Indian sophomore Seth Kelly picked up the pitching win, finishing off the game by allowing four hits, walking no one and striking out no one in four and two-thirds innings. Hansmeier started the game, allowing just two hits, walking three batters, hitting another and striking out no one in the first two and one-third frames. Independence's O'Laughlin suffered the pitching loss, giving up 13 Indian hits, walking three batters and striking out two.

Another late-inning surge by the Tribe opened up an otherwise close battle in game two, leading to a 7-1 Indian victory. A four-run sixth inning for the Indians turned a narrow, 2-1 advantage into a more comfortable, 6-1 affair, the Tribe getting two hits and taking advantage of two walks and two Independence errors to aid its cause.
The two teams traded runs to open the game, the Indians striking first in the top half of the initial frame with a two-out single from junior second baseman Chris Kamm directly followed by a run-scoring double from freshman right fielder Kenny Hansmeier. Independence answered with its own first-inning run on a one-out walk followed by a two-out, run-scoring double to knot the score at 1-1.
The Indians struck for another run in the top of the second inning to take the lead once again. Junior first baseman Josh Johnson rapped a lead-off double, advanced to third on a single by freshman left fielder Tyson Farley, and then stole home to give the Tribe a 2-1 lead.
Independence had no answer for that Indian run, not in the bottom of the second frame or any of the game's remaining frames, as the Indian defense shut the Mustangs down. Following the first inning that produced the lone Independence run, the Indians allowed no more than one Mustang baserunner in each of the game's final six innings, allowing just four total baserunners in those six frames, none of those advancing past second.
Although the 2-1 advantage would have been enough to get the Indian win, the Orange and Black added another four runs in the sixth frame and a final run in the seventh. Junior catcher Mike Searcy got the sixth frame off to a good start with a lead-off single, with senior designated hitter Jason Manning drawing a walk to join Searcy on the basepaths. A sacrifice bunt by Johnson moved both runners up a base before Searcy scored on an error in Farley's at-bat.
A walk issued to senior center fielder Craig Stott loaded the bases with Indians before another Mustang error brought Manning in for a 4-1 Indian lead. Sophomore shortstop Chad Bakkum then stepped to the plate to deliver both Farley and Stott home with a single that boosted the Tribe to a 6-1 lead.
Searcy also started the seventh frame off with a lead-off single and was followed by back-to-back singles from Manning and Johnson to push the final Indian run of the ballgame across the plate, Searcy scoring on Johnson's offering to finalize the game's 7-1 end result.
Senior Eddie Frick secured the pitching win for the Tribe, going the full seven innings and allowing Independence just four hits, while walking two batters and striking out five. Independence's Robinson also went the distance in suffering the loss, the Indians taking him for 12 hits and three walks, while striking out just twice.
Oelwein doubleheader...
The top-rated Oelwein Huskies were less than hospitable to the baseball Indians in hosting the Tribe in a varsity doubleheader Monday, July 3. The Huskies blanked the Indians by a 10-0 result in five innings in game one and handed the Tribe a 9-2 defeat in game two to complete the sweep.
The Indians managed a baserunner in each of game one's five innings of play, but none of those baserunners were allowed past first base in the contest. The Indians managed just three hits off Oelwein ace Kyle Jepsen, drawing one walk and having one batter get hit by a pitch to complete the Tribe's limited offensive production.
The host Huskies began their offensive output with a three-run first frame on a hit batsman, a single, an error and a sacrifice fly. After being held silent in the second frame and limited to just a single run in the third on a single and double, the Huskies busted out the whoopin' sticks in the bottom of the fourth to belt a a solo homer and a grand slam to complete the 10-0 final result.
Senior Eddie Frick suffered the pitching loss for the Indians, giving up five hits and hitting two batters in three and one-third innings on the mound. Sophomore Seth Kelly came on in relief in the fourth inning, giving up one hit - that grand slam - and walking two batters.
Game two saw more offensive production from the Tribe, the Indians again managing baserunners in each of the game's seven frames, including multiple baserunners in four of those frames. The only inning that provided scoreboard evidence of that improved Indian offensive effort was a two-run third frame in which junior second baseman Chris Kamm drew a one-out walk and was driven into scoring position by a double from freshman left fielder Kenny Hansmeier before senior center fielder Eddie Frick scored both runners with a two-out single.
Prior to those lone Indian runs of the ballgame, Oelwein had already put five runs on its side of the scoreboard, stringing together five singles and a three-run homer in the first frame for four quick runs and adding another in the second on a pair of singles. A lone single and Indian error in each of the fourth and fifth frames added a single tally to the Oelwein total in each inning, with the final two Husky runs being added on back-to-back solo homers in the sixth frame to complete the game's scoring at the eventual 9-2 final.
Junior pitcher Heath Hesse suffered the loss on the mound for the Tribe, allowing 13 hits, striking out four batters, walking two and hitting another. Oelwein's Nick Gabriel secured the pitching win, giving up six hits, walking two batters and striking out one in three innings. Chris Felder came on in relief in the final four innings, allowing two Indian hits, striking out six batters and walking one.

at Starmont ...
A three-run bottom of the sixth inning helped the host Starmont Stars to a 6-3 win over the baseball Indians Wednesday, July 5. A dropped foul pop-up that should have retired the side in the sixth inning, instead allowed Starmont to stay alive long enough to belt a single to right field that allowed those three decisive runs to score.
The Indians trailed by a 3-2 tally prior to that sixth-inning surge by Starmont, trading a run with the host Stars in the opening frame to begin the game's offensive production. The Indians struck first with a lead-off double from junior left fielder Heath Hesse, with Hesse eventually scoring on a ground ball and throwing error. Starmont countered immediately with a nearly identical scenario, knotting the score at 1-1.
Another Indian run in the top of the second frame from a lead-off single from senior shortstop Eddie Frick followed by a Starmont error and fielder's choice that scored Frick was more than countered by a two-run Starmont homer in the bottom of the second, leaving the host Stars with a 3-2 advantage.
The score remained at 3-2 until that fateful bottom of the sixth, as neither team produced anything in frames three through five. That fate carried over into the top of the sixth for the Tribe, and should have done the same for Starmont in the bottom of the frame if not for that second-wind single that produced three runs and gave Starmont a 6-2 lead.
The Indians got off to a good start in their final opportunity at the plate in the top of the seventh, junior first baseman Josh Johnson getting on base with a one-out single and junior pinch hitter Jared Jones joining him with a walk. Another out later, sophomore right fielder Chad Bakkum drove Johnson in to pull the Tribe within a 6-3 margin. A ground ball, however, halted any Indian comeback hopes, finalizing the game's 6-3 final result.
Sophomore Seth Kelly absorbed the pitching loss for the Tribe, allowing five Starmont hits, walking four batters and striking out one. Starmont's Bushaw secured the pitching win, allowing seven Indian hits, walking three batters and striking out one.

Varsity reserve ...
The varsity reserve Indians managed just two hits against Starmont pitching, getting some help from four walks, but not being able to take advantage of that help in falling by a 1-0 final. Indian pitching was even more stringent against the Starmont line-up, Indian junior Jared Jones allowing just one Star hit in the contest.
That one hit, a two-out double in the first frame, was followed by back-to-back wild pitches that scored the Starmont baserunner, giving the Stars the 1-0 edge they needed to secure the win. Jones struck out eight Stars, walking two and hitting one batter in suffering the loss.

New Hampton doubleheader...
The baseball Indians dropped both ends of a home varsity doubleheader to New Hampton by identical totals of 6-1 in both games Thursday, July 6. Big second-inning spurts by New Hampton in both games, coupled with ineffective Indian offense that produced just a single run late in each contest, proved to be the Indians' undoing.
Game one saw the Tribe manage just four baserunners in the first six innings of play, with none of those runners being able to find home. Finally, in the Indians' final turn at the plate in the bottom of the seventh, three singles off the bats of junior second baseman Chris Kamm, senior pitcher Eddie Frick and junior catcher Andy Snitker produced the lone Indian run of the ballgame, Kamm scoring on Snitker's offering.
That one tally was too little, too late, however, as New Hampton already held a 6-0 advantage. Three runs on two hits, a walk and an error gave the Chickasaws their first lead in the second inning. Three consecutive hits, including two doubles, produced another run in the third inning, with the finishing touches on the Chickasaw scoring coming in the fourth inning on two singles and two Indian errors.
Frick took the pitching loss for the Tribe, allowing 10 New Hampton hits, walking two batters and striking out two. New Hampton's Nick Humpal held the Indians to just five hits, walking one batter and striking out five for the win.

Game two was much the same as its predecessor, New Hampton getting out to an early lead with a big second inning. This time, however, the Chickasaws pounded out a pair of run-scoring doubles and a two-run homer to jump to a 5-0 early advantage over the Tribe. The sixth and final New Hampton run was tacked on in the bottom of the fourth on a lead-off walk followed by an Indian error, a single and a sacrifice fly.
Through the first four frames, the Indian offense consisted of just a pair of doubles off the bat of junior pitcher Heath Hesse, with no evidence of offense ending up on the Tribe's side of the scoreboard. A pair of fifth-inning singles on each side of a walk finally got the Indians on the board, as sophomore left fielder Chad Bakkum led the inning off with a hit, junior right fielder Mike Searcy drew the walk, and junior catcher Andy Snitker drove Bakkum in with his single.
Neither team managed any more offensive production in the final two innings of play, leaving the Indians on the short end of the 6-1 final result.
Hesse suffered the pitching loss for the Indians, allowing six New Hampton hits, walking one batter and striking out four. New Hampton's Ryan Murray claimed the win on the mound, allowing five Indian hits, striking out three Indians, walking two and hitting two more.

MFL doubleheader ...
The baseball Indians stepped outside of the Northeast Iowa Conference to pick up a pair of wins in a varsity doubleheader at home with MFL/Mar Mac Friday, July 7. The Tribe got off to good early starts in both contests, building early leads, but then had to hang on in both to secure the victories, 10-6 in game one and 9-5 in a five-inning second game.
The early Indian lead in game one was provided by a four-run bottom of the second inning off four hits and a walk. Freshman pitcher Kenny Hansmeier started the second frame off with a lead-off single, and his courtesy runner, junior Brandon Wilder, was then driven in by a two-out double from junior catcher Andy Snitker for a 1-0 Indian lead.
Junior designated hitter Mike Searcy joined Snitker's courtesy runner, senior Jason Manning, on the basepaths before junior third baseman Bill Van Gorp ripped a double to score both runners and improve the Tribe to a 3-0 lead. An ensuing double off the bat of junior left fielder Heath Hesse then drove Van Gorp in to finalize the Tribe's early scoring surge for a 4-0 Indian advantage.
The Tribe tacked on another run in the bottom of the fourth inning on a bases-loaded walk issued to junior second baseman Chris Kamm that pushed Van Gorp across for a 5-0 Indian margin. The two teams then traded runs in the fifth to maintain that five-run Indian edge, MFL getting two singles and an Indian error to tally its first two runs of the ballgame, but the Indians striking back in a big way with a two-run homer off the bat of Snitker.
The round-tripper was the first for Snitker in his varsity baseball career, and it came after junior first baseman Josh Johnson opened the inning with a lead-off double, giving the Indians a 7-2 lead. The Indian celebration was short-lived, however, as MFL came bounding back in the top of the sixth inning, pounding out four singles and taking advantage of an Indian error and a walk to pull within a run of the Tribe at 7-6.
A solo homer to lead off the bottom of the sixth by Kamm gave the Tribe a bit more breathing room, with the Indians following Kamm's blast with another pair of runs to complete their scoring in the ballgame. Hansmeier and senior shortstop Eddie Frick followed Kamm directly with back-to-back singles, with Johnson sacrificing both runners up a bag. A Bulldog error scored Hansmeier before Frick blazed home on a wild pitch to complete the Indian scoring at their 10-6 advantage.
A three-up, three-down final turn at the plate in the top of the seventh kept the Bulldogs at that four-run deficit. A ground out, a strike out and a fly ball to left field secured the 10-6 Indian victory.
Hansmeier picked up the pitching win for the Tribe, the first of his young varsity career. He allowed seven hits, walked three batters and struck out six. Van Gorp faced just two batters in the sixth inning, allowing one hit and walking the other batter before giving way to Frick, who recorded the save in pitching the final two innings, allowing no hits and striking out three Bulldog batters.

The early Indian lead in game two came only after the Tribe overcame a 2-0 deficit in the initial inning of play. MFL did strike first in the contest with three singles and a sacrifice fly for a pair of runs, but the Tribe answered in a big way with five runs in the bottom half of the frame.
Junior second baseman Heath Hesse started the Indian surge with a lead-off walk, and was driven in by an ensuing double from sophomore shortstop Chad Bakkum. A one-out double by freshman right fielder Kenny Hansmeier then scored Bakkum before a single by senior shortstop Eddie Frick and a walk issued to junior designated hitter Jared Jones filled the bases with Indians.
Hansmeier proceeded to score on a wild pitch, making room for junior catcher Mike Searcy to re-load the bases with yet another walk, but there was no more room for Indians when senior third baseman Jason Manning drew his walk, forcing Frick home for a 4-2 Indian lead. A fielder's choice play in senior Craig Stott's at-bat then brought Jones home to score, finalizing the Tribe's offensive production for that inning at a 5-2 Indian advantage.
After a scoreless second inning, the Tribe got back on track in the bottom of the third, adding four more runs to its run total after setting the Bulldogs down in order in the top half of the frame. Two more walks issued to Searcy and Manning were followed by a single from Stott and a run-scoring fielder's choice in Hesse's at-bat that brought Searcy's courtesy runner, junior Bill Van Gorp, home. Bakkum then stepped to the plate to deliver himself, Hesse and Manning home with a three-run blast over the outfield fence, his first varsity career homerun and the finishing touches on a 9-2 Indian advantage through three innings.
The Bulldogs had one more run left in them in the top of the fifth inning, rapping out three hits and taking advantage of a walk and Indian error to post three more runs on their side of the scoreboard and pull within a 9-5 margin. That three-run fifth was not enough, however, as the Tribe retired the side before any further damage could be done, clinching the 9-5 victory.
Junior Chris Kamm picked up the first varsity pitching win of his career, allowing eight MFL hits, walking four batters, hitting another and striking out three in going the full five innings. MFL's Neuhaus suffered the loss on the mound, giving up three hits and four walks in allowing five earned runs in just one-third of an inning. Rose came on in relief to pitch two innings, allowing four hits, walking three batters, hitting another and striking out two. Converse then took over for the final inning, walking one of the four batters he faced and hitting one.

Jeff Houg Tourney final ...
A champion was finally decided for the baseball Indians' Jeff Houg Memorial Baseball Tournament, and it took all seven innings of the tournament's championship game between the Indians and Kee High Kee Hawks to decide that champion. The original championship game between the two clubs had been rained out June 24, and could only be rescheduled for Saturday, July 8 at Kee High's Lansing baseball field, perhaps taking some of the home field advantage away from the Indians as they surrendered the tournament championship with a 3-2 loss to the Kee Hawks.
Despite not finalizing their own tournament on their own field, the Indians made themselves feel at home with a stellar defensive effort that retired the Kee Hawks in order in the first four innings of play. Indian sophomore pitcher Seth Kelly threw a perfect first four innings at the Kee Hawks, finally surrendering his first hit of the contest in the fifth frame, a harmless, two-out single.
Meanwhile, the Indians also made themselves feel fairly comfortable on offense in the ballgame, managing baserunners in each of the first four frames and getting two of those runners to cross home for a 2-0 Indian advantage through four complete innings. The initial Indian run got its start when senior center fielder Craig Stott was hit by a pitch to lead off the third inning. A single by junior left fielder Heath Hesse moved Stott to third base, from where he scored on a wild pitch to get the Indians on the board first.
A Kee Hawk error to lead off the fourth inning allowed senior shortstop Eddie Frick to reach safely. A sacrifice bunt by junior designated hitter Mike Searcy advanced Frick to second, from where he scored on a single by junior first baseman Josh Johnson to double the Indian lead to 2-0.
The Kee Hawks finally got themselves on the board in the sixth frame, getting to Kelly with back-to-back hits to start the inning before a sacrifice fly to left field brought their first run home. The Indians were unable to get that run back in their final at-bats in the top of the seventh frame, getting a lead-off single from junior third baseman Bill Van Gorp, but having him retired on a double play to end the Tribe's half of the inning and set up the final dramatics.
Those final dramatics in the bottom of the seventh got off to a troublesome start for the Indians, as Kee High shortstop Dustan Duffy drew a lead-off walk and a fly ball to right field was dropped. On the dropped fly, however, Duffy was thrown out at second base, leaving just one baserunner on with one out. Another walk added a second Kee Hawk baserunner before Kee second baseman Jacob Mohn belted a single to knot the score at 2-2.
With runners on the corner bags, an infield fly ball put the second Kee Hawk out in the books, but Kee first baseman Tom Becker pounded out the Indian killer, a single that scored the runner from third, ending the ball game and giving the Kee Hawks the Jeff Houg Tournament title with a 3-2 defeat of the Indians.
Indian junior Heath Hesse suffered the pitching loss, coming on for the game's final two-thirds of an inning and giving up two hits - including the game winner - and walking one batter. Hesse had replaced Kelly on the mound, Kelly allowing just three Kee Hawk hits, walking one batter and striking out three in the first six innings of play.
Kee High's Justin Shepard claimed the win on the mound, allowing just two hits and striking out two batters in the final two innings of play. Mark Becker had pitched the first five innings, giving up three hits, striking out two batters, walking one and hitting another.