Nelson strikes out 13 as Tri-Center blanks Vikings 5-0

 AVOCA (June 11) -- The Tri-Center baseball team completed a season sweep of AHSTW here Friday night as senior Leyton Nelson pitched a three-hitter with 13 strikeouts in the Trojans’ 5-0 win over the Vikings.
 Prior to the night cap, T-C put the finishes touches on a 23-1, four-inning victory over AHSTW - a game that was suspended by inclement weather on May 25.
 Friday’s full game saw Nelson (2-0) hold the Vikings to three hits: a double by Nick Denning and seventh-inning singles by Blake Holst and Brayden Lund. He issued only one free pass as Jake Kelly was hit-by-pitch.
 Viking pitchers Lund (1-2) and Holst kept their team in the game as T-C was only able to muster single runs in the first, third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Justice Weers led the Trojans’ 11-hit attack, going 4-for-4 with a double and one RBI. Trent Kozeal was 2-for-4 with a triple and Jaxon Johnson’s 2-for-3 effort included an RBI double in the fifth.
 The Trojans, now 11-1 overall and 8-1 in Western Iowa Conference play, also stole nine bases in 10 attempts, including four bags for Michael Turner.
 Lund took the loss for AHSTW, allowing seven hits and three runs in three and one-third innings. He walked two and struck out one. Holst worked the final three and two-thirds, giving up four hits and two runs while walking two and striking out three.
 The Vikings (3-7, 3-7 WIC) played at Riverside Monday and will host Treynor on Tuesday night before finishing the week at Underwood Thursday night.

Audubon 6, AHSTW 5
 AUDUBON (June 10 -- Trailing 6-1 after two innings, AHSTW nearly completed a valiant comeback Thursday night before falling a base hit short in a 6-5 loss at Audubon.
 The Vikings scored single runs in the fourth and fifth innings to pull within 6-3, then got a two-run triple from Blake Holst in the top of the seventh. AHSTW was able to load the bases before Gavin Larsen - Audubon’s second pitcher of the inning - struck out the final two batters to earn the save.
 “We showed a lot of resilience in this game as it could have been easy for the team to pack it in when they found themselves down 6-1 after the second inning,” stated AHSTW head coach Jason Holst. “To their credit, they did not and got back into the game.”
 Blake Holst finished 3-for-4 with four RBI at the plate for the Vikings and was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle. Brayden Lund, Jordan Ratzlaff and Jace Peterson (1 RBI) added singles while Nick Denning and David Johnson both scored two runs.
 Denning (0-2) took the loss, allowing eight hits and five earned runs in three and two-thirds innings. He walked three, hit a batter and struck out six. Jacob Coon pitched two and a third innings of scoreless relief, striking out four. He allowed one hit, walked a batter and also hit one.
 Audubon, which scored three runs each in the first two innings, got a combined seven hits and six RBI from Ethan Klocke (4-for-4, one double) and Aiden Alt (3-for-3).
 Winning pitcher Braden Wessel went six full innings with eight strikeouts, allowing five hits, three runs and walking four.