Panthers struggle in doubleheader loss

A rough outing Monday left Panthers baseball with two losses after a doubleheader against St. Albert, bringing their season record to 16-12 and their conference line to 11-8, sitting at third place in the Hawkeye Ten.

Game 1

Patience was how the Panthers were able to nab three runs in the first inning, drawing four walks in the stretch.

Bases were loaded after senior Tyler Riley and freshman Logan Stehr walked and sophomore Tom Mikkelson hit a single. Freshman Brady McDonald brought Riley home on a walk, with senior Parker Varner drawing a walk of his own to get Stehr home.

Senior Mattias Schultes hit a sacrifice fly allowing Mikkelsen to tap an end total of three runs to the start of game one.

St. Albert pitcher Lance Betts may have struggled early, but by the end of his four-inning stretch would end his time on the mound with 97 pitches.

Three pitchers rotated through the Creston side, with Tom Mikkelson starting and Landyn Scherer relieving, each pitching three innings, with Rhett Driskell closing on the seventh. The Falcons delivered a steady stream of hits across the game to earn ten runs across 15 hits.

“They caught a lot of gaps and executed well on their offensive end,” head baseball coach Brandon Phipps said. “Offensively, we left too many runners on base and did not get timely hits.”

Panthers after the first inning struggled to make home again. Sophomore Cason Scarberry, courtesy running for Mikkelsen in the fourth inning, was able to make home after a fielding error. Senior Camden Smith hit a single to allow Varner to run home from second in the fifth inning, but five runs wasn’t enough to stop St. Albert’s ten.

Game 2

A tempo change boosted by a pitching performance from sophomore Tanner Ray which Phipps called “outstanding” wasn’t enough to win as the Panthers would lose 2-1 against the Falcons.

Ray finished the game with 90 pitches across seven innings, striking out nine.

Game 2 was marred by fielding errors, with two errors in the third inning allowing Betts to score for St. Albert.

Panthers answered back when Riley capitalized on one of St. Albert’s errors in the third. The game remained tied until St. Albert added another run in the sixth.

The seventh inning offered a chance for the Panthers to tie or potentially win the game, but an error resulting in a runner passing runner out damaged a crucial moment. Creston would go on to lose 2-1.

“As a team we did not execute well enough to win,” Phipps said. “We have to learn from our mistakes and improve as a baseball team.”

Creston ended the doubleheader with a total of nine hits across both games.

The Panthers have two road games this week, the first on Wednesday against Van Meter and the second against Clarinda on Thursday, the final conference game in the Panthers’ schedule.