The Atlantic Trojans (7-17) baseball team will open up the postseason tonight against the Harlan Cyclones (23-7). The game is the second half of a doubleheader in the Class 3A District 15 Semifinals. Winterset takes on Carroll in the first game that will start at 5:00pm, the Trojans and Cyclones will follow at about 7:00pm. We’ll have coverage of that 2nd game of the night with pregame at about 6:45pm depending on the finish of the first game.

The Trojans and Cyclones split their meetings in the regular season. Harlan won the first meeting in Atlantic 7-5 on June 4th and the Trojans won at Harlan on June 24th 3-2.  The Trojans got a strong performance from Chase McLaren on the mound in that last meeting as he went 6 2/3 innings allowing the 2 runs on 7 hits with 9 strikeouts and 2 walks. Brody O’Brien came on for the save in that game and got the final strikeout after getting into a bit of a jam with walks.

The Trojans are led by McLaren on the mound and at the plate. His season batting average is at .500 and he leads the team with 37 hits and 16 RBI. McLaren is 4-5 in 10 starts on the mound with a 3.40 ERA. He has 50 strikeouts on the year compared to just 10 walks. Brody O’Brien (.343) and Collin Mullenix (.323) are the next two top hitters for the Trojans.

Harlan finished the season ranked #5 in Class 3A by the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association. The Cyclones’ top hitter is Brett Sears who has a .474 average with 46 hits and 43 RBI, both of which lead the team. The Cyclones have 4 more players batting above .300 on the year. Connor Bruck and Sears have been two strong arms for the Cyclones this year. Bruck is 7-0 in 7 starts with a 1.11 ERA, 60 strikeouts, and 9 walks. Sears is 7-1 in 8 starts with a 1.23 ERA, 60 strikeouts, and 8 walks.

Tune in tonight for the season rubber-match between the Trojans and Cyclones. Once again pregame at approximately 6:45pm and first pitch scheduled for 7:00pm.