Croghan, HCHS shut out Falcons, 2-0

 HARLAN -- Hitting in tough luck for nearly six innings, the Harlan Community baseball team mustered up just enough late offense to back a solid pitching performance from Brett Croghan Tuesday night and beat St. Albert, 2-0, at Jim Goeser Field.
 The Cyclones’ two-run sixth was more than enough support for Croghan (4-2), who pitched a four-hit shutout and struck out 10 to outduel St. Albert’s Brandon Williams for the second time this year. Neither pitcher issued a free pass in the cleanly-played Hawkeye 10 matchup as HCHS assured itself at least a tie for second place in the conference standings with three league games to go.
 The third-ranked (3-A) Cyclones improved to 14-3 in conference play (16-4 overall) while the Falcons slipped to 8-9 and 11-14, respectively.
 HCHS head coach Steve Daeges said it was good to win a game where the team had to scratch out some late offense to get over the hump. The Cyclones squared up several balls during the night that were hit right at defenders, including a few nice plays turned in by Falcon shortstop Eli Finn.