DES MOINES — One day after making statewide news of a positive kind, the Woodward-Granger baseball team found themselves on the opposite end of the spectrum as they became the first squad to lose to Des Moines North in three seasons.
North ended a 119-game skid with two runs in the bottom of the seventh for a 10-9 victory. The win came exactly three years from their most recent victory — a June 10, 2013 6-0 blanking of Des Moines Roosevelt.
W-G head coach Eric Evans was brief and to the point in his remarks: “One word … errors.”
Defensive miscues have cost the Hawks (6-5) dearly in several games this season, and Friday was no exception, as the final two Polar Bear runs — indeed, eight of their 10 — were unearned.
Cole Theisen threw five innings in which he allowed seven hits and struck out two. He was roughed up for eight runs, but six of those were caused directly by, or was the aftermath of, errors by the defense.
Jackson Larson was saddled with the loss after 1.2 frames of work. He allowed two hits and struck out two and was on the mound when the tying and winning runs scored.
W-G scored twice in the first, but North answered with three runs to take a 3-2 lead. Five tallies in the second gave the Hawks a 7-3 advantage, but the Polar Bears responded in the fourth with a five-spot of their own to surge to an 8-7 lead.
The Hawks tied the game in the sixth with a single run, then moved in front, 9-8, with a run in the top of the seventh before the hosts brought an end to the longest losing streak in the state.
Race Brant was 2-for-4 with two doubles and two runs scored to lead the Hawk attack, with Brady Aunspach 1-for-4 with four RBIs and two steals. Larson was 2-for-4 with Jordan Pierce 1-for-2 with a pair of RBIs while Reese Jamison had a hit and scored twice.
Also aiding the offense was Nick Brummond, who was 1-for-3 with a run and a RBI while Marcus McConahay had a hit and crossed the plate twice.
W-G hosts Des Moines Christian Monday before visiting Earlham Tuesday. They will host Panorama Thursday for a varsity doubleheader.
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