Iowa Wesleyan baseball falls to Kansas Wesleyan

SALINA, Ks. — The Iowa Wesleyan baseball team dropped a trifecta of games in Salina, Kansas, over the weekend, as the Tigers traveled west to take on Kansas Wesleyan.

Kansas Wesleyan took Saturday’s Game 1, 11-1, in eight innings. The Tigers fell 11-2 in the second game, and Kansas Wesleyan completed the sweep with a 13-5 win on Sunday.

The Tigers’ offense struggled in Game 1, collecting just two hits on the day. One of those hits, however, was a solo home run by former New London standout Holvin Catala in the fifth inning.

Luis Ayesa stared Game 1 and gave up six earned runs on six hits and four walks, while striking out three batters.

Iowa Wesleyan had a two-run lead in Game 2. Julian Figueroa scored one run on an RBI double, and Sage Bonner knocked him home with a sacrifice fly in the first inning. The Tigers, however, didn’t score another run, and Kansas Wesleyan rattled off 11.

Iowa Wesleyan once again led early in Game 3. The Tigers scored three runs in the first inning, including two on a two-RBI single by Riley Rankin.

The Tigers had a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the seventh, but that was when the Kansas Wesleyan bats got hot. Kansas Wesleyan scored six runs in the seventh inning and three in the eighth.

Cuay Massner pitched three innings in the loss. He gave up 11 earned runs on eight hits and one walk, while striking out five batters.

Jackson Van Roekel took the loss on the mound in Game 3, giving up four runs over 1.1 innings. P Ramirez started the game and gave up just three runs (two earned) over five innings. Ramirez struck out nine batters.

Iowa Wesleyan is now 3-7 on the year. The Tigers will play at Southeastern University in four games this weekend.