HCHS holds off Creston comeback

 CRESTON (July 6) -- The Harlan Community baseball team wrapped up Hawkeye Ten Conference play with an 11-8 win at Creston Monday night, finishing 8-2 in the league standings and tying Kuemper Catholic for third place.
 The Cyclones nearly let a 9-2 third-inning lead slip away before scoring two sixth-inning runs - both on steals of home - to provide some insurance for relief pitcher Joey Moser (1-1), who finished the game with three and a third innings of hitless relief.
 HCHS outhit Creston (3-7 overall, 3-6 H-10) just 7-6 and committed three errors in the field while also issuing seven walks. Panther pitchers, meanwhile, combined to walk 11 and hit four batters.
 Trailing 2-0 after one, the Cyclones scored six runs on just three hits in the top of the second, getting an RBI single from Moser and a big three-run triple by Brenden Bartley. They added a three-spot in the third as Bartley (walk), Isaiah Ahrenholtz (hit-by-pitch) and Luke Musich (walk) all worked free passes with the bases loaded. The inning began with one-out hits by Teagon Kasperbauer, Cade Sears and Connor Bruck.
 Bruck started on the mound and pitched just one inning - by design - allowing two unearned runs. Trey Gross went the next two innings and allowed five hits and three runs as Creston’s Brayton Chesnut, Tristan Barncastle and Gage Skarda all hit RBI singles in the third to make it 9-5.
 Franz Reisz recorded two outs in the fourth but fought his control while walking five and allowing two runs. Moser gave up an unearned run in the fifth but was otherwise in command, walking one and striking out four in a 10-out stint to earn the win.
 Sears scored three runs while Bruck and Moser both scored twice. Bartley drove in four runs and Ahrenholtz added a double. Stolen base leaders included Moser and Sears with three apiece.