Linn-Mar, the No. 6 baseball team in Class 4A, was just as good as advertised, and beat Mount Vernon, 11-2, on Wednesday, June 26, at Ash Park in Mount Vernon.
“I think it’s fun playing against these big schools,” Mount Vernon senior Miles Francois said. “It helps us see where we are in the state, where we fit in.”
Mount Vernon (15-14) has been a scrappy team trying to build towards the postseason.
“Linn-Mar is a good team, and they are going to be a No. 1 seed in 4A,” Mount Vernon coach Charles Chatman said. “Regardless, if you throw strikes and make routine plays, you can be in the baseball game.”
Linn-Mar led 2-0 after two innings, but a five-run third broke the game open. Mount Vernon starter Ethan Wood was chased from the game.
“They are good hitters,” Wood said. “But you’ve got to stay in the strike zone. I just stuck to what I do and not overthink it too much.”
The Lions (23-7) had four hits and batted around in the third. They were helped by a walk and a Mustang error.
“Coach always says it is not who we’re playing, it is what we’re playing,” Francois said. “Try to play the best baseball we can. Be the best version of ourselves. Throw strikes. Be competitive inside the box. Make routine plays. That’s what we wanted to do tonight.”
Soft-throwing lefty Landon Wilson pitched 3 2/3 innings of relief, and Brady Weaver finished things off for Mount Vernon.
Linn-Mar starter Kaleb Martin only lasted one inning before tweaking his knee. Junior Michael Burington threw six effective innings of relief, giving up just five hits and no walks.
Perhaps a little more depth for a ranked 4A club that has won seven in a row and 15 of its last 16? “They have an abundance of opportunity, for sure,” Chatman said.
Mount Vernon was led offensively by Francois, who had three hits, including a double. Eric Lamb had a pinch-hit RBI ground out.
“As a team, we’ve got to learn from this,” Francois said. “I’ll take that with a grain of salt. It is something to build on towards the end of the year.”
Mount Vernon started the week with a sweep of South Tama on Monday, June 24, at Ash Park, 10-0 and 13-3.
“We scored some runs,” Chatman said. “It doesn’t matter if you are on the top end or bottom of the conference, it comes down to execution.”
They closed WaMaC play 10-12, in fourth place in the East, with a split at West Delaware on Thursday, June 27, losing 9-7 and winning 7-4.
The Mustangs will host that same West Delaware team to open Class 3A postseason play on Friday, July 12, at Ash Park. And before that, Mount Vernon has six non-conference games scheduled.
Linn-Mar 205 102 1 – 11 12 1
Mount Vernon 001 010 0 – 2 5 2
Kaleb Martin, Michael Burington (2) and Brady Barry; Ethan Wood, Landon Wilson (3), Brady Weaver (7) and Cole Thurn. W – Burington. L – Wood. 2B – Charlie Sarsfield (LM), Jackson Mishler (LM), Miles Francois (MV). 3B – Toby Cruz (LM).