Comets’ offense comes to life to defeat Waukon 7-5 for 1st win of the season

Charles City senior Jack Hanson watches the flight of his 2-run home run during the Comets’ 7-5 win over Waukon on Friday — the first victory of the season for the Comets.
By John Burbridge
sports@charlescitypress.com
CHARLES CITY — When offenses struggle to put runs or points on the board, they are sometimes — optimistically — compared to an open jar of olives turned upside down yet with none of the olives spilling out due to them being locked in place at the opening.
But when you pluck one out, the rest will be released in water-fall fashion.
For the Charles City Comets baseball team, hopefully that analogy will apply if it hasn’t already.
After getting shut out for the fifth time in seven games with a 9-0 loss to Northeast Iowa Conference rival Waukon in the first game of Friday’s doubleheader, the Comets were trailing 5-1 after two and half innings into the second game.
But then in the bottom of the third, the winless Comets’ offense finally came to life.
It started with sophomore Holden McInroy’s double that just got inside the left-field line to chase a runner home. Then senior Jack Hanson, the next batter, got around on a Jack O’Neil pitch to drive it over the right-field fence for a 2-run home run to suddenly tie the game at 5-5.
It was the Comets’ first HR of the season.
The following inning, sophomore Luke Jacobs hit a clutch two-out single to send home 2 more runs to put the Comets up 7-5.
The lead held for Charles City’s first win of the season while improving its record to 1-7 overall and 1-3 in the NEIC.
But even while nursing their 2-run lead, the Comets still needed some more clutch performances to seal the victory.
The Indians loaded the bases in the top of the fifth. With two outs, Comet freshman Noah White got behind 2-0 while facing Indian senior Mason Wasson. White eventually got the count to 3-2, and on the “pay-off” struck Wasson out with a sharp-breaking curveball.
Hanson came on to pitch two shutout innings of relief while earning the save and preserving the pitching win for White.
McInroy, who started the second game for the Comets, was 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored in the second game.
Senior Kaden Buseman hit safely in both games for Charles City, which will host Crestwood on Wednesday in another NEIC doubleheader.
Game One
WAUKON 9, CHARLES CITY 0
WAUKON AB R H BI CHARLES CITY AB R H BI
Jack O’Neill 4 2 0 1 Kaden Buseman 3 0 1 0
Colton O’Neill 4 1 3 5 Holden McInroy 3 0 0 0
Shawn Martin 5 0 0 0 Carter Cajthaml 3 0 0 0
Gaberiel Weighner 3 0 0 1 Jack Hanson 3 0 0 0
Zach Perkins 3 0 1 1 Colton Andregg 3 0 1 0
Brody Gress 3 0 1 1 Noah White 2 0 0 0
Mason Wasson 3 2 1 0 Jordan Foster 1 0 0 0
Jacob Jones 3 1 0 0 Luke Jacobs 1 0 1 0
James Stigler 3 2 2 0 Logan Knapp 2 0 1 0
*Sawyer Breitsprecher 0 1 0 0 V inny Benning 2 0 0 0
TOTALS 31 9 8 9 TOTALS 23 0 4 0
WAUKON 030 005 1 — 9
CHARLES CITY 000 000 0 — 0
LOB–WAUKON 9, CHARLES CITY 2. ERR–Holden McInroy. 2B–Zach Perkins, Colton O’Neill. 3B–Colton O’Neill. HBP–James Stigler, Colton O’Neill. SB–Jack O’Neill, Zach Perkins (2), Sawyer Breitsprecher, Mason Wasson (2), Colton Andregg.
WAUKON IP H R ER BB SO HR
Gaberiel Weighner (W) 7.00 4 0 0 0 8 0
CHARLES CITY
Sawyer Hanson (L) 2.00 2 3 3 2 3 0
Jordan Foster 5.00 6 6 2 4 5 0
Game Two
CHARLES CITY 7, WAUKON 5
WAUKON AB R H BI CHARLES CITY AB R H BI
Jack O’Neill 4 1 1 0 Carter Cajthaml 2 0 1 0
Colton O’Neill 4 2 4 0 Kaden Buseman 2 2 1 0
Shawn Martin 4 0 0 1 Holden McInroy 3 2 2 1
Gaberiel Weighner 4 2 2 2 Jack Hanson 4 1 1 2
Zach Perkins 3 0 0 1 Colton Andregg 2 1 0 0
Brody Gress 2 0 0 0 Luke Jacobs 3 0 1 2
Mason Wasson 3 0 0 0 Noah White 2 0 0 1
Jacob Jones 3 0 0 0 Logan Knapp 1 0 0 0
James Stigler 2 0 0 0 Jordan Foster 2 1 0 0
TOTALS 29 5 7 4 TOTALS 21 7 6 6
WAUKON 302 000 0 — 5
CHARLES CITY 014 200 x — 7
LOB–WAUKON 6, CHARLES CITY 9. ERR–Carter Cajthaml, Holden McInroy. 2B–Gaberiel Weighner (2), Holden McInroy. HR–Jack Hanson. HBP–Kaden Buseman, Carter Cajthaml, Colton Andregg. SACB–Kaden Buseman, Noah White. SB–Jack O’Neill, Connor Cahoon, Colton O’Neill, Kaden Buseman (2), Colton Andregg,
Jordan Foster.
WAUKON IP H R ER BB SO HR
Jack O’Neill 2.33 3 5 5 2 0 1
Sawyer Breitsprecher (L) 1.67 3 2 2 2 2 0
Ashton Monroe 2.00 0 0 0 4 3 0
CHARLES CITY
Holden McInroy 1.00 3 3 3 0 1 0
Noah White (W) 4.00 3 2 1 3 6 0
Jack Hanson (S) 2.00 1 0 0 0 4 0
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