2016 Northeast Kansas League Legion Baseball Standings - click here

2016 McDonald's "Players of the Game" on KNZA - click here

2016 AAA Zone Tournament Assignments - click here
    (Area Teams: Zone 3 & 4 - hosted by Ottawa (Atchison, Leavenworth, Oskaloosa))

2016 AA Zone Tournament Assignments - click here
    (Area Teams: Zone 1 & 2 - hosted by Sabetha (Seneca, Doniphan County, Corning, Silver Lake, Marysville, Linn) 

2016 A Zone Tournament Assignments - click here 
    (Area Teams: Zone 1 & 2 - hosted by Marysville (Doniphan County, Atchison, Hiawatha, Holton, Lansing, Manhattan) 

Six of the eight Northeast Kansas League legion teams hit the field on Wednesday night in League play and two of the three double headers saw one team earn the sweep, while the other was a split.

Both Seneca and Atchison each secured sweeps on the night as Seneca took a pair at home 5-4 & 10-2 in five innings over Silver Lake, while Atchison won two on the road 6-3 & 8-6 over Oskaloosa. Sabetha traveled to Corning for the other League action on Wednesday and it was a tale of two different games as Sabetha won 17-1 in five innings in game one, but Corning bounced back for a 10-6 game two win.

Legion baseball season rolls along Thursday night with non-league play for Doniphan County who hosts Falls City and Leavenworth who welcomes McLouth to town for a double header. 

Sabetha and Corning Split League Twinbill In Two Different Games

It was a tale of two games in Corning on Wednesday night as Corning hosted Sabetha for NEKL legion baseball action and each team walked away from the evening with a win. Sabetha claimed game one in dominate fashion winning 17-1 in five innings, while Corning responded in the nightcap to win 10-6 for the split. 

Sabetha took the lead in the first game 1-0 in the top of the second on a RBI sacrifice fly but in the bottom of the third Corning tied the game at 1-1 with a solo home run by Colton Buessing. It didn't stay tied very long as the game firmly shifted in Sabetha's favor in the top of the fourth with an eight run inning using four hits, three walks and an error to score the eight runs with a three-run homer by Kaid Allen highlighting the inning. The lead grew even further for Sabetha in the fifth as they again had four hits, three walks and an error by Corning helping them score eight runs, led by a grand slam by Joe Gruber in the inning. The eight run fifth lead to a 17-1 score and Sabetha went on to finish the game in the bottom of the fifth grabbing the victory. 

Dustin Gruber earned the win on the mound tossing five innings giving up just one run on four hits, two walks and struck out eight, while only allowing six base runners against him in the game. His younger brother, Joe Gruber led the offense going 2-3 with a grand slam, five RBI's, three runs score and a walk. The brother duo earned co-McDonald's "Players of the Game" on KNZA with their performances. While, Allen went 2-3 with a three-run homer, four RBI's, a walk and two runs scored and Preston Bruning had a two-hit game. Corning in the loss had Braden Deters go 2-3 at the plate, while Buessing had a solo homer and Brice Koch had a hit. 

Game two proved to be a far more competitive matchup between the two teams. Sabetha again struck first plating a run in the first inning and then four more in the third on RBI singles from Brett Stallbaumer and Joe Gruber, along with a two RBI single by Seth Burdick making it 5-0. Corning responded with one of their best offense outputs in a single inning this year scoring seven runs on three hits, three walks and a hit batter, as Dustin Talley led the way with a two RBI single in the inning. Sabetha drew within one run in the top of the fifth but Corning responded with a run in the bottom of the inning and two more in the six to secure the 10-6 win. 

Colton Buessing picked up the win on the mound going all seven innings giving up six runs on seven hits, two walks, two hit batters and struck out six, while Collin Holthaus led the offense going 2-2 with two RBI's, a run scored, walk and was hit by a pitch. Brett Stallbaumer led Sabetha in the loss going 2-4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI.

The split moves Sabetha to 19-13 on the season and 9-7 in League action, while Corning moves to 4-15 and 3-13 in League play. Sabetha will be back in action on Saturday when they host Marysville, while Corning won't take the field again until July 8th when they travel to Silver Lake. 

Seneca Picks Up Sweep of Silver Lake in League Action

League action continued in the NEKL for Seneca and Silver Lake on Wednesday as Seneca play host and ultimately earned the sweep, winning 5-4 and 10-2 in five innings. 

Seneca established an early 4-0 lead in game one just two innings into the contest but Silver Lake scored a run in the third and added three more in the fifth to tie the game. In the bottom of the fifth Seneca regained the lead as Kurtis Niehues took a round trip on the bases with a solo home run and Seneca lead 5-4 going on to earn the win. Neil Sudbeck held the Silver Lake offense in check over seven innings surrendering four runs on five hits, two walks and struck out seven to earn the win. Niehues led the Seneca offense going 3-3 with a home run, two doubles, RBI and run scored. Silver Lake in the loss had a two-hit game from Drake McMillian who was 2-3, while Jake Lindstrom took the loss in five innings. 

Game two saw an early lead for Seneca also as Niehues blasted his second homer of the night a two-run shot in the first and Seneca added to that with a five-run third that included a Dylan Schraad solo homer and two RBI double by Austin Gerety. Silver Lake broke through offensively in the top of the fifth with a pair of runs, but Seneca answered in the bottom of the fifth with three runs to end the game via run-rule and pick up the 10-2 win.  

Cody Rottinghaus was strong on the mound for Seneca in the win giving up only two runs on just three hits, three walks and a hit batter, while striking out 13, while hitting a home run in the contest. Offensively, Niehues led Seneca again going 2-2 with a two-run homer, three runs scored and two RBI's, while Gerety was 2-2 with a double and two RBI. 

Seneca now is off for a while as they are not have another game until July 10th against Marysville on the road, while Silver Lake hosts Rock Creek on Friday in non-league play. 

Atchison Earns Sweep of Oskaloosa in League Play

It was a pair of close ballgames in Oskaloosa on Wednesday as Atchison traveled to Oskaloosa for NEKL play. Atchison snagged a pair of close wins winning 6-3 in game one and 8-6 in game two. 

Oskaloosa took an early 1-0 lead in the game one but RBI singles from Logan Wahwahsuck and Kevin Scott gave Atchison the 2-1 lead in the second. Hunter Ostertag blasted a home run and Marcus Denton notched an RBI single in the third as Atchison extended their lead to 4-1. The lead grew again in the fifth as Adam Smith had an RBI double to make it 5-1, but a two-run homer in the bottom of fifth for Oskaloosa drew them to within two runs. Atchison added a run in the six and ultimately secured the win as Austin Bonnel picked up the win on the mound going six innings giving up three runs and striking out nine, while Smith earned the save pitching the seventh. 

Game two saw Oskaloosa jump up 2-0 early, but both teams got plated runs in the third as Atchison scored a run and Oskaloosa tallied two making it a 4-1 game. Atchison took the lead in the fourth behind five runs put on the board including an RBI single by Bonnel. Oskalloosa didn't go away as they scratched a run across in the fifth and sixth to tie the game at 6-6 going into the seventh. In the top of the seventh Atchison used two walks, two hits and an error to score two runs and earn the 8-6 win. 

Atchison with the wins improved to 8-6 on the year and 7-5 in League play, while Oskaloosa fell to 7-15 and 5-9 in League action. The season continues for Atchison on Friday at home against Leavenworth in a League double header, while Oskaloosa is set for tournament action at the Alma Tournament which start on Saturday, July 2nd.