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North Boone falls to Byron in regional play
The North Boone Vikings baseball team had their best season in more than a decade before it all came to a heartbreaking end. The Vikings ended the regular season with a record of 18-8. That set them up for a regional matchup against a familiar opponent in the Winnebago Indians. Back in the regular season, North Boone beat the Indians by a score of 10-5. Although their postseason matchup was much closer, the Vikings found a way to come out on top once again.
A big reason the Vikings managed to come out on top was JJ Ford’s electric pitching performance. Ford, who was just a sophomore at the time, tossed six and two third innings with just two runs allowed off six hits. Ford struck out nine on his way to collecting the win on the mound.
Although Ford was unable to get the complete game, senior Chandler Alderman came in to get one final out, securing the 4-2 win for the Vikings.
At the plate, the Vikings were led by sophomore RJ Wolski, who went two for three with two runs batted in. Wolski drove in a pair in the bottom of the third that helped give the Vikings the advantage. Alderman was also two for two with one run scored in the win.
The victory catapulted North Boone into their next regional game, where they faced off with another familiar opponent in the Byron Tigers. These teams faced off twice in the regular season, with the Tigers and Vikings splitting the series.
On Saturday, May 20, both teams met up for the third time, with their respective seasons on the line.
The Vikings found themselves trailing early on as Byron scored a run in the bottom of the second. North Boone struggled to get anything going against Byron’s ace, B Smith. The Vikings had just two hits in the game, leaving them with minimal scoring opportunities.
Alderman did his best to keep the Vikings in the game, however. On the mound, Alderman tossed six innings with twelve strikeouts and just three hits allowed. Alderman walked four, however, and those free bases would cost the Vikings as they eventually fell by a score of 3-0. Two of those walks eventually made it in to score, allowing Byron to extend their lead in the later innings.
Lopez and Wolski were the only Vikings to tally a hit on the day.
With the loss, the Vikings send off a class of three seniors in Adrien Raabe, Jimmy Gibbs and Alderman. The trio helped lead the way to a turnaround that the program hopes to continue in 2024, without them.
The good news for the Vikings is they will return a majority of the roster that helped them get to nineteen wins.
