WATERLOO – The Region XI baseball title will be decided at noon on Tuesday.
Iowa Central (37-15) topped NIACC 7-5 to force a second and final game for the Region XI baseball championship at Riverfront Stadium on Monday.
“The sun will come up (Monday) and we’ll get it done,” NIACC coach Travis Hergert said.
Iowa Central had moved to the title game with a 9-2 in its first game Monday to advance to the championship round out of the consolation bracket.
The winner of the Region XI championship plays in the North Plains District championship in Miles City, Montana on Saturday and Sunday.
The North Plains district will consist of three teams and the winner advances to the NJCAA Division II World Series in Enid, Oklahoma on May 25-June 1.
Miles City Community College (31-11) was the Region IX champion and Dakota County (18-18) of Minnesota won the Region XIII championship.
In Monday’s game, Iowa Central pushed across five runs in the first inning of NIACC starter Nick Veale, who walked three, hit one and allowed two hits.
Ean McNeal relieved Veale in the second inning and kept the Trojans in the contest. McNeal pitched 6 2/3 innings and allowed one run.
NIACC (25-16) clawed back into the contest with one run in the third inning, two runs in the fourth inning, one run in the fifth inning and tied it at 5-5 with one run in the seventh inning.
“I’m proud of our guys,” Hergert said. “You get down a 5-spot, Ean McNeal pitches his butt off, we battled back to tie that ball game.”
Iowa Central regained the lead with a single run in the eighth inning and added an insurance run in the ninth inning.
NIACC loaded the bases with one out in the ninth inning but Hunter King grounded into a double play to end the contest and force the win or go home contest on Tuesday.
“We had a good chance to tie it or possibly win it in the ninth,” Hergert said. “That’s all you can ask for in this tournament.
“One more day.”
Hergert said sophomore ace Lucas Bakker will start Tuesday’s contest against Iowa Central. Bakker topped Kirkwood 2-1 in the opening round of the tournament on Friday.
Iowa Central 7, NIACC 5
Iowa Central 500 000 011 – 7 10 3
NIACC 001 210 100 – 5 9 2
Nolan Webster (6K, 4BB), Quinn Johnson (6) (2K, 3BB) and Matthew Molbury. Nick Veale (1K, 3BB), Ean McNeal (2) (1K, 1BB), Jeremy Cronk (8) (2K, 1BB) and Robert Swenson. W – Johnson; L – McNeal. 2B – Dalton Parrott (IC), Brett Guba (N). Multiple hits – Parrott 2, Tyler Peyton (IC) 2, Dan Potempa (IC) 2, Guba 3, Alex Stuart (N) 2, Hunter King (N) 2. Multiple RBIs – Spencer Mallonee (IC), Guba 2.
