Author: Slaten Swords

Prep Softball- Two of the five champions have already been crowed for the 2024 Iowa High School Softball State Tournaments with the final three to be determined today, now seems as good as time as any to talk about the All-District Teams for the season.

Class 1A

The Southeast district named junior Emily Ross from Holy Trinity Catholic, senior Ada Boysen of Wapello, and Lilly Barre and Payton Brun of Highland to the team.

Emily Ross had a fantastic season at the plate with a 0.519 batting average to go along with a 0.581 on-base percentage and an 0.815 slugging. The junior slugged two home runs to go along with 10 doubles and 19 RBIs, which all led the Crusaders.

Wapello ended up a game short of the state tournament, losing 2-1 in extras to Sigourney—the team attempting to upset Martensdale-St Marys in the championship game tonight. A big reason for their success was the pitching prominence of Ada Boysen.

The senior started 28 games this season, achieving a 19-9 record with a 1.45 ERA to go along with 321 strikeouts, while keeping a WHIP of 0.77 from the circle. Boysen also hit for an average of 0.406 with eight triples, three home runs, 39 RBIs, and took 17 bases—all best on the team.

Highland’s season also came to an end against Sigourney in a close 2-1 final. Payton Brun batted 0.458 in her senior campaign with two home runs and 29 RBIs. The Huskies will be excited to have junior Lilly Barre return with her three triples, two home runs 16 RBIs, to go along with her 0.366 batting average and 0.521 on-base percentage.

Class 2A

Van Buren County’s Ashlynn Huff was the lone sophomore to make the Southeast All-District squad and Lily Coil of Columbus also made the team.

Huff hit an otherworldly 0.512 batting average with a 0.589 on-base percentage. She led the Warriors with 32 runs and tallied 13 RBIs of her own.

Coil played in nine less games but made her mark with a slash line of 0.623/0.706/0.887 leading her to finish second on the team in RBIs with 21, while tying for the team lead in doubles with 10 and leading the team in triples with two. She also stole 15 bases.

Additionally, the junior also posted a 2.95 ERA with 59 strikeouts in her 10 appearances.

Class 3A

There was plenty of local talent represented in the Southeast All-District team with seven local players making the squad.

For Central Lee, senior Shanna Buford and sophomore Kenna Sandoval claimed a spot. This slugging duo got the Hawks into the top 15 and were a game away from punching their ticket to the state tournament.

Sandoval led the team with a slash line of 0.588/0.634/1.021 while crushing seven home runs, 19 doubles, one triple, and 44 RBIs. Buford led the team with 20 doubles, five triples, eight home runs, and 51 RBIs. The senior hit 0.518 with a 1.000 slugging percentage.

Mediapolis’ Payton Harris, an 8^th grader, made the team. Despite just being an 8^th grader, Harris led the team with a 0.541 batting average and a 1.016 slugging percentage. Harris clobbered four home runs, three triples, and 11 doubles for 18 RBIs.

Bella and Leighton Salazar helped Washington finish with one of their best records in school history, earning them a spot on the team. Last year’s CO-SEC Player of the Year, Leighton, turned in another stellar year with a team leading slash line of 0.524/0.592/0.651. The sophomore also tabbed 10 doubles with 29 RBIs. She was also a kleptomaniac on the base path with 36 steals.

Bella was the ace for the squad with a 13-8 record, totaling 100 strikeouts for a 2.67 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. She also finished second on the team with 37 RBIs.

Lastly, seniors Logan Kelley and Lauren Krieger for West Burlington/Notre Dame claimed a spot for the Falcons. Kelley provided the power to this Falcon squad with seven home runs and 42 RBIs to go along with her 20 doubles and two triples. Her 0.481 average, 0.553 on-base percentage, and 0.906 slugging percentage all led the team.

Kelley will also be playing for the White Team tomorrow at the Waukee Softball Complex for the 2024 All-Star showcase.

Krieger ranked second on the team in just about every offensive category with 13 steals, a 0.462 average, and 0.548 on-base percentage. The senior also slapped seven doubles and two home runs to the tune of 21 RBIs.

Class 4A

Lastly, Burlington’s Saydee Plummer, the SEC Player of the Year, earned a spot on the Southeast All-District team. The senior led the team from the circle and at the plate. Plummer posted a 15-2 record with 178 strikeouts and an ERA and WHIP of 0.78 and 0.58, respectively.

Plummer also batted 0.413 for the season with an on-base percentage of 0.518. She belted three home runs and tabbed 16 RBIs.

High School Postseason Baseball

Championship Friday is now set after Class 2A and Class 4A finished their semifinal matchups last night and while Wednesday’s semifinals featured only upsets, last night kept the status quo, generally.

In Class 2A, #4 Chariton did provide #1 Underwood a scare after putting up five runs in the first half frame, which included two errors and a two RBI double by Keagan Evans. The Eagles struck in the 3rd inning after a couple errors allowed two runs to score, 5 to 2.

The Chargers responded with two runs of their own in the next half-inning to take a 7 to 2 lead. Mason Boothby opened up the scoring in the bottom of the 5th inning for Underwood as small ball took over resulting in five runs crossing home and tying the game. Underwood’s Ryker Adair had the game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the 6th inning to win 8-7.  

On the bottom half of the bracket, #2 New Hampton struck gold in the 3rd inning, scoring all seven of their runs eventually going on to win 7-3. Jaxon Eckley went 3 for 3 at the plate with an RBI and got the win on the mound for his three innings of work, tabbing a strikeout.

Class 4A had similar storylines to Class 2A as #4 Johnston kept things interesting against #1 Cedar Rapids Kennedy, scoring six runs in the top of the 7th inning to tie the game at 7. 

The Cougars needed one swing of the bat as Ty Donels swatted a solo home run for his second RBI of the game to win 8-7. 

#3 Iowa City High ran into Cole Southard, who pitched a gem of a game for #7 Dowling Catholic; pitching all 7 innings, allowing a run on five hits and fanning eight in the win. 

Class 1A will begin championship Friday with first pitch at noon with #3 Remsen St. Mary’s looking for back-to-back titles going against #4 Lynnville-Sully. For Class 2A, #1 Underwood will face off against #2 New Hampton at 2:30 pm. #4 Bishop Heelan will face off against #3 North Polk at 5 pm for Class 3A. Lastly, #7 Dowling Catholic will attempt to pull off one more upset against #1 Cedar Rapids Kennedy at 7:30 pm tonight.

High School Postseason Softball

Classes 5A and 4A officially have a state champion, while Classes 3A, 2A, and 1A will be deciding their champion today. Here’s how yesterday’s action played out. 

In a high scoring affair, #2 Pleasant Valley is the Class 5A state champion after defeating #1 Valley 14-11, scoring nine runs in the 5th inning. Jessie Clemons was a slugging machine for the Spartans, crushing two home runs and a double to the tune of four RBIs.

#6 Urbandale downed #5 Ankeny in the 3rd place match, slamming the door in the 7th inning to win 6-5. Kyra Kain slapped a home run to finish with three RBIs. 

In Class 4A, #7 Carlisle finished their Cinderella tale with a title, defeating #4 ADM 7-6. Ally Nolte swatted a two-run home run for the Wildcats.

#6 North Scott cruised to a 6-2 victory over #1 North Polk to claim 3rd place.

The Class 3A 3rd place contest will start the day between #1 Benton and #3 Wahlert Catholic at 1 pm, followed by the championship matchup against #2 Williamsburg and #4 Assumption.

Class 2A will have their 3rd place matchup at 3:30 pm with #4 East Marshall facing off against #7 Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont. The championship game is scheduled for 5 pm against #1 Van Meter and #3 Audubon.

Class 1A will round out the night with #4 St. Edmond taking on #7 Southeast Warren at 6 pm for 3rd place and #1 Martensdale-St Marys attempting to avenge their championship game loss from last season against #6 Sigourney at 7:30 pm. 

Prospect League

The Burlington Bees stung the Thrillville Thrillbillies last night with an 8-6 victory. Christian Dunn and Jayden Cummings both tabbed two RBIs in the win. The Bees will travel to take on the Normal CornBelters tonight at 6:30 pm.

The Clinton LumberKings split their doubleheader last night against the CornBelters, taking game one 16-8 and falling 5-3 in game two. Bryan Belo and Karson Grout each finished with three RBIs in game one. The LumberKings will host the Chillicothe Paints tonight at 6:30 pm.

This Day in Sports History

1933 – Joe DiMaggio ends his 61 game hitting streak in the minor league Pacific Coast League.

1948 – “Babe Ruth Story” premieres, it would be Babe Ruth’s last public appearance.

1992 – Nolan Ryan strikes out his 100th batter for the 23rd consecutive season.

Iowa City, IA- The Iowa Hawkeyes are gearing up for the 2024-2025 football season with head coach Kirk Ferentz making his Big Ten Media Day appearance with a note that both sides of the ball feature veterans of the program.

It was no secret that the Hawkeye offense was lackluster last season with 10 of their 14 games having a final score under 21 points. Amazingly, the Hawkeyes still went 6-4 in those games, ending the season with a 10-4 record and ranked in the top 25.

However, the offense struggled the worst at the tail end of the season with just 28 points combined in the final four games, including shutout losses in the Big Ten Championship and the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl against Michigan and Tennessee, respectively.

Ferentz noted that the Hawkeyes were without three of their top playmakers on offense once the team got into conference play, including starting quarterback Cade McNamara, who tore his ACL.

Ferentz is confident that McNamara will be the starter entering the season and back at full speed for fall camp; nevertheless, Brendan Sullivan, a transfer from Northwestern University, will provide ample competition even at the #3 slot in the depth chart,

“I know he’s eager to go” said Ferentz. “And eager to see Brendan too in practice. It will be fun to work with him. He’s been really impressive in the summer program and really competitive guy. He’s been impressive in a lot of ways, and seems like he’s transitioned really well to Iowa City. We’re eager to see all of our guys out there, but the quarterback position will be something of note, for sure.”

The lack of offense led to the offseason hire of Tim Lester after he spent the year as a senior analyst for the Green Bay Packers and as head coach of Western Michigan University from 2017 to 2022. Under Lester’s leadership, the Broncos won 37 games and ranked within the top 35 nationally in total offense from 2018 to 2021.

Ferentz has enjoyed Lester’s positive, energetic nature, but what really stuck out was the fact that he has had experience at the helm of the program,

“One thing I do appreciate, he’s a former head coach. That wasn’t a requisite, but also quickly in the conversation, I think he’s got a deep appreciation for how football works, how offense can complement defense, special teams. Everybody is going to be working on the same — you know, towards the same end. So that part’s all been good.”

Lester is bringing in a different style of offense, reminiscent of what San Francisco 49ers’ head coach Mike Shanahan is doing on the west coast. The style does not matter to Ferentz, what does matter is execution, and he believes has picked up quickly,

“It’s not like you’re inventing anything. It’s going to be a little bit different certainly, but I think our players took to it quickly. I went through a similar thing in 1996, I guess it would have been, when we moved to Baltimore, and Ted Marchibroda took over the offense for us. My takeaway from that was the players learned a lot faster than I did. I was the only guy that was stumbling on things that were in my memory bank. The players just move on pretty quickly. It’s kind of been that way this way too. It’s been a good transition.”

Iowa will have some time to iron things out with their season opener taking place on August 31^st at 11 am at home against Illinois State. But, before then, Kinnick Stadium will host Kids’ Day on August 10^th with the gates opening at 10 am.

Team members will sign autographs for kids around 10:30 am at the west and south stands. Additionally, the 2024 Kid Captains will join players on the field for pictures along with an “inside look” at the stadium. Admission is free for all fans.

High School Postseason Baseball

The Class 1A and Class 3A state championship matchups are now set after a trio of upsets and an epic extra innings thriller. Here’s how the semifinals played out.

Class 1A kicked off with #2 Newman Catholic facing off against #3 Remsen St. Mary’s and the scoring was identical with the Hawks and Knights each scoring a run in the 5th inning, two runs in the 6th inning, and a run in the 7th inning. The game was tied at four and heading to extras. 

Newman Catholic’s best chance to score was in the bottom of the 9th inning when a couple of singles led to runners on second and third base with two outs, but both were stranded, while Remsen St. Mary’s replicated that same scenario in the top of the 10th inning with similar results.

Eventually, in the top of the 14th inning, the Hawks found their bats after an error by the defense started off the inning. Brady Koenck had a two RBI single and another run scored unearned, leading to a 7-4 victory for the Hawks. It was the longest game in Iowa State Tournament history.

#4 Lynnville-Sully took care of business efficiently, scoring a run in the first inning and never looking back, defeating #1 Akron-Westfield 4-0. Carson Maston pitched the complete game shutout for the Hawks, allowing only five hits and striking out 12. 

Remsen St. Mary’s will look to repeat as the Class 1A state champions tomorrow, July 26th, at noon against Lynnville-Sully.

Class 3A also saw their top seed eliminated after #4 Bishop Heelan put on three runs in the top of the 7th inning to take down #1 Wahlert Catholic 6-3. #3 North Polk followed suit, eliminating #2 Marion 2-1. Hunter Cook pitched six innings, allowing one run on four hits and tabbing six strikeouts. 

#4 Bishop Heelan will face off against #3 North Polk at 5 pm tomorrow for the championship.

Classes 2A and 4A will have their semifinal matchups today. For Class 2A, #1 Underwood will take on #4 Chariton at 4:30 pm and #2 New Hampton will compete against #3 Sumner-Fredericksburg at 7 pm. For Class 4A, #1 Cedar Rapids Kennedy will face off against #4 Johnston at 5 pm and #7 Dowling Catholic will play at 7:30 pm against #3 Iowa City High.

High School Postseason Softball

A full day of softball has set the stage for each championship game for the five classes and their third place matchups as well. Here’s how yesterday’s semifinals played out. 

Starting with Class 5A, #1 Valley had little issue with #5 Ankeny, surrendering only one run on an Abby Rusher solo shot in the fourth inning to win 8-1. Ireland Broderick was a triple away from the cycle for the Tigers with her solo home run being her lone RBI. Mackenzie Mohler tabbed five RBIs and also crushed a home run. 

#2 Pleasant Valley handled #6 Urbandale, taking the contest 4-2. Mary Paige Withers and Sarah Rigdon tallied two RBIs apiece in the win. The championship game will take place tonight at 5 pm, while #5 Ankeny and #6 Urbandale will compete for 3rd place in the late afternoon.

Class 4A is an underdog’s paradise with #7 Carlisle defeating #6 North Scott 6-2 with Natalie Ramsey leading the offense with two RBIs and #4 ADM crushing #1 North Polk 7-2 as Lauren Hagedorn tossed 10 strikeouts in the complete game win. 

The Tigers and Wildcats will play for the championship tonight at 7:30 pm with the 3rd place matchup between #6 North Scott and #1 North Polk taking place at 6 pm tonight. 

For Class 3A, #2 Williamsburg held off #3 Wahlert Catholic to win 3-2, while #4 Assumption could not stop scoring against #1 Benton as the Knights usurped the top seed 10-7. 

#2 Williamsburg will compete against #4 Assumption for the championship tomorrow, July 26th, at 2:30 pm. The 3rd place game will start at 1 pm tomorrow. 

Class 2A had no upsets despite the close contests. #1 Van Meter defeated #4 East Marshall 4-3 and #3 Audubon took down #7 Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 3-2. The championship game will have their first pitch tomorrow at 5 pm, while the 3rd place game will be at 3:30 pm tomorrow.

Lastly, #6 Sigourney continued their Cinderella story with a 6-1 victory over #7 Southeast Warren. They will be pinned against #1 Martensdale-St Marys after the Blue Devils defeated St. Edmond 2-1. The Class 1A championship game will be tomorrow night at 7:30 pm.

The 3rd place game between St. Edmond and Southeast Warren will take place at 6 pm tomorrow. 

Prospect League

The Burlington Bees were stomped by the Thrillville Thrillbillies last night 13-1. Cedric Dunnwald and Skyler Agnew each clocked doubles for the Bees. Their rematch will take place at 7 pm tonight on the road. 

The Clinton LumberKings had their offense working late, scoring six runs between the 7th and 8th inning to down the Alton River Dragons 8-2. Bryan Belo clobbered a grand slam for the LumberKings. Clinton will travel to compete against the Normal CornBelters tonight in a doubleheader with game one at 5 pm. 

This Day in Sports History

1940 – John Sigmund begins swimming for 89 hours and 46 minutes from St. Louis to Caruthersville, Missouri in the Mississippi River, a total distance of 292 miles.

1956 – Pittsburgh Pirate Roberto Clemente hits MLB’s first (and only) walk-off inside-the-park grand slam for 9-8 win over visiting Chicago Cubs at Forbes Field.

1999 – 86th Tour de France: Lance Armstrong wins first of seven consecutive Tour de France titles but is later disqualified for doping.

High School Postseason Baseball

The state tournament continued yesterday with Class 3A wrapping up their first round matchup along with Classes 2A and 4A. Here’s how day two of the tournament wrapped up.

In Class 3A, #1 Wahlert Catholic started the day by showing off their pitching prominence against #8 Central DeWitt, winning 1-0 to advance to the semifinals. The Golden Eagles will take on Bishop Heelan tonight at 5 pm. 

For Class 2A, the advancing teams did so handily, winning by an average of 5.5 runs yesterday. #1 Underwood had the closest matchup yesterday, mustering a 3-1 victory over #8 Unity Christian. Garrett Luett picked up the win on the mound with 11 strikeouts and grabbed two RBIs at the plate.

Chariton dominated Pleasantville to the tune of 7-1 victory and New Hampton one-upped that score by taking down Aplington-Parkersburg 11-1. Kael Meyers went 4 for 5 with a double and three RBIs in the win.

Finally, Sumner-Fredericksburg knocked out Wilton 6-2. Underwood will face off against Chairton tomorrow, July 25th, at 4:30 pm and New Hampton will face off against Sumner-Fredericksburg at 7 pm tomorrow.

Most of the Class 4A matchups involved a comeback attempt. #1 Cedar Rapids Kennedy scored four runs in the bottom of the 6th inning to beat Pleasant Valley 6-3. Grant Mather tabbed three RBIs in the win. 

Johnston had to score two runs in the bottom of the 7th to walk off Waukee Northwest 4-3. Mason Tell knocked in two of the runs for the Dragons. Kennedy will face off against Johnston tomorrow at 5 pm.

Dowling Catholic handled business, defeating Dallas Center-Grimes 3-1. Trevor Baumler threw six strikeouts in 5.2 innings of work. Iowa City High will take on Waukee today with the winner playing Dowling Catholic tomorrow at 7:30 pm. 

Classes 1A and 3A will resume their tournament trails tonight. 

High School Postseason Softball

All first round matchups are now in the books with a couple of consolation bracket contests also playing yesterday. Here’s how the games went down.

The bottom half of the Class 3A bracket started the day with a Jessa DeMoss complete game for #1 Benton as her seven strikeouts led to a 5-1 win over #8 Solon.

#5 Estherville Lincoln Central attempted the comeback yesterday against #4 Assumption but fell short, stranding a runner on third to lose 6-5. Benton will compete against Assumption today at 4:45 pm.

Class 2A saw #1 Van Meter demolish #8 West Fork 10-0. The Bulldogs will take on #4 East Marshall today after the Mustangs defeated #5 Lisbon 8-1 as Peyton Grabenbauer clobbered a grand slam.

On the bottom half of the bracket, #7 Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont pulled off the upset against #2 Northeast, winning in convincing fashion 6-1. #3 Audubon walked off #6 West Monona to win 4-3. The Rockets will face off against the Wheelers tonight at 5:15 pm. 

For Class 1A, Campbell German’s 13 strikeouts led #1 Martensdale-St Marys to a narrow 2-1 victory over #8 Edgewood-Colesburg. #4 St. Edmond followed suit with a close win against #5 Collins-Maxwell 4-2. Lauren Gibb slugged a triple with two RBIs for the Gaels. 

Martensdale-St Marys will play St. Edmond tonight at 7 pm with the winner advancing to the state championship.

#7 Southeast Warren defeated #2 Wayne 3-2 and #6 Sigourney followed along with the upset with a 3-1 victory over #3 Remsen St. Mary’s. Southeast Warren will face off against Sigourney tonight at 7:30 pm. 

Prospect League

The Burlington Bees were crushed last night by the Alton River Dragons 14-2. Dillion Kuehl hit a solo home run for the Bees. Burlington will stay on the road to take on the Thrillville Thrillbillies tonight at 7 pm. 

The Clinton LumberKings will face off against the River Dragons tonight at 6:35 pm on the road. 

This Day in Sports History

1958 – Ted Williams is fined $250 for spitting at Boston fans again.

1968 – Hoyt Wilhelm pitches in a record 907th major league game breaking Cy Young’s record for pitching appearances. He held the record for 30 years.

1978 – Billy Martin resigns as Yankee manager after “one is a born liar the other a convicted one” comment about George Steinbrenner and Reggie Jackson.

High School Postseason Baseball

Class 1A and Class 3A competed in their first round matchups yesterday and the results were generally close but predictable.

The day did not start out predictable in Carroll as #8 Bedford and #1 Akron-Westfield were still tied at two after 8 innings. Finally, the Westerners walked it off on a Carter Wilken squeeze bunt, advancing with a score of 3-2. 

#1 Akron-Westfield will face off against #4 Lynnville-Sully in the semifinals tomorrow, July 24th, at 7 pm after the Hawks brushed past Sigourney 2-0.

Newman Catholic extended their win streak to five over South Winneshiek with a 3-1 victory yesterday. Lastly, Remsen St. Mary’s offense was too much for North Linn to handle as the Hawks defeated the Lynx 10-6. 

Newman Catholic will take on Remsen St. Mary’s tomorrow at 4:30 pm. 

The Class 2A state tournament will start play today with Underwood and Unity Christian throwing the first pitch at 11 am.

For Class 3A, Bishop Heelan handled Pella to the tune of a 3-1 victory. The Crusaders will find out who their opponent will be today as Wahlert Catholic versus Central DeWitt had to be moved due to time; the two will play at 9 am this morning.

In the bottom half of the bracket, Marion’s bats caught fire with a 12-2 thumping of Center Point-Urbana and North Polk snuck past Harlan Community to win 5-4. The Comets and Wolves will compete tomorrow at 7:30 pm.  

#1 Cedar Rapids Kennedy will face off against #8 Pleasant Valley today at 11:30 am to begin play for Class 4A.

High School Postseason Softball

The state tournament commenced yesterday in Fort Dodge with Classes 5A and 4A completing their first round of matchups and Class 3A getting through half of their bracket. Here’s how the first round of action went down. 

In Class 5A, #1 Valley dominated #8 Prairie, pulling away late to end the game early in favor of the Tigers, 11-1. 

#4 Waukee Northwest and #5 Ankeny engaged in a pitching duel that went the way of the Hawks and Abby Rusher as she pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only two hits and striking out four to earn a 2-0 win for Ankeny.

#1 Valley will face off against #5 Ankeny tomorrow, July 24th, at 10 am. #8 Prairie and #4 Waukee Northwest will compete today in the consolation bracket at 10 am.

#2 Pleasant Valley was against the ropes in their matchup against #7 Waukee, needing to score five runs between the 6th and 7th innings to force extras, then scoring another three runs in the bottom of the 8th to win 8-7 over the Warriors.

#6 Urbandale held off a last ditch comeback effort from #3 Muscatine to pull off the upset, winning 10-9. Sarah Webster led the way with three RBIs. 

#2 Pleasant Valley will take on #6 Urbandale tomorrow at 12:15 pm. #7 Waukee will square off against #3 Muscatine today at 10:30 am.

#7 Carlisle kicked off play in the Class 4A bracket with an 8-6 upset over #2 Dallas Center-Grimes. Kaliyah Freeman led the way with a double and three RBIs for the Wildcats. 

#6 North Scott followed suit with a 2-0 upset of #3 Norwalk. The Lady Lancers will play Carlisle tomorrow at 10:30 am. Dallas Center-Grimes will compete today at 12:15 pm against Norwalk.

In the bottom half of the bracket, #1 North Polk dispatched #8 Western Dubuque 7-2 and #4 ADM shut down #5 Fort Dodge 2-0. The Comets and Tigers will play in the semifinal at 12:45 pm tomorrow. Western Dubuque and Fort Dodge will compete today at 12:45. 

Lastly, #2 Williamsburg downed #7 PCM 8-2 and #3 Wahlert Catholic escaped with a 9-8 victory over #6 Sumner-Fredericksburg to advance to the semifinals tomorrow at 2:30 pm. PCM will take on Sumner-Fredericksburg today at 2:30 pm in the consolation bracket. 

Class 3A will complete their first round matchups today as Classes 2A and 1A begin their postseason journeys. 

Prospect League

The Burlington Bees scored first but the Clinton LumberKings outscored them the rest of the way, downing the Bees 4-2. Blake Gaskey picked up the win on the mound with 6 innings of work, allowing two runs on six hits and striking out five. Michael Carrano Jr. had the two-run blast for the Bees in the 2nd inning. 

The Bees will travel to take on the Alton River Dragons tonight at 6:35 pm.

The Clinton LumberKings will face off against the River Dragons tomorrow, July 24th, at 6:35 pm on the road. 

This Day in Sports History

1866 – Cincinnati Baseball club, also known as the Cincinnati Red Stockings, forms.

1931 – France announces it can’t afford to send a team to the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics due to the Great Depression. They eventually manage to send a team.

2009 – Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox becomes the 18th pitcher to throw a perfect game in MLB history, defeating Tampa Bay Rays 5-0.

High School Postseason Baseball

State baseball begins today with Classes 1A and 2A traveling to Carroll to play at Merchants Park while Classes 3A and 4A will compete at Kernels Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids. Here’s a look at today’s schedule.

Akron-Westfield enters as the favorite in Class 1A and they will start off the day with an 11 am matchup against Bedford. 

#4 Lynnville-Sully will take on #5 Sigourney at 1:30 pm in a rematch from earlier in the season when the Hawks won 4-3. Caden Clarahan will look to continue his dominance on the mound and at the plate for Sigourney.

Newman Catholic will face off against South Winneshiek at 4:30 pm. The Knights have a 7-1 record against the Warriors in their past decade of matchups.

Lastly, Remsen St. Mary’s title defense starts at 7 pm with a matchup against North Linn. This is their third time meeting up in the postseason in the last eight years with Lynx winning 6-3 back in 2018. 

The Class 2A state tournament will begin play tomorrow, July 23rd. 

For Class 3A, North Polk will face off against Harlan Community at 11:30 am on Monday.

Marion will act as the home team against Center Point-Urbana (CP-U) with their contest starting at 2 pm. The Wolves hold a 19-1 record over CP-U as a Stormin Pointer win in 2022 ended a 15-game winning streak for Marion.

Bishop Heelan will square off against Pella at 5 pm and Central DeWitt will attempt to pull off the upset against Wahlert Catholic at 7:30 pm. Central DeWitt has a devastating offense with seven straight contests of scoring at least eight runs, while Wahlert Catholic has 19 games of their defense holding their opponent to two runs or less.

Class 4A will begin their tournament trail tomorrow.

High School Postseason Softball

The state tournament for all five classes will take place at Fort Dodge with Class 5A kicking off the action today at 10 am. Here’s a look at today’s slate of games.

In Class 5A, #1 Valley will face off against #8 Prairie at 10 am. #4 Waukee Northwest will take on #5 Ankeny. #2 Pleasant Valley will square off against #7 Waukee and #3 Muscatine will compete against #6 Urbandale at 12:45 pm.

In Class 4A, #2 Dallas Center-Grimes will take on Carlisle at 2:30 pm. #3 Norwalk will compete against #6 North Scott. #1 North Polk will tango with #8 Western Dubuque at 4:45 pm and #4 ADM will face off against #5 Fort Dodge at 5:15 pm.

Lastly, the top half of the Class 3A bracket is schedule to round out the day with #2 Williamsburg taking on #7 PCM and #3 Wahlert Catholic facing off against #6 Sumner-Fredericksburg with the matchups expected to start at 7 pm and 7:30 pm, respectively. 

Prospect League

The Burlington Bees and Clinton LumberKings went down to the wire Saturday night but the hometown Bees looked to be on the losing end until a two-RBI double by Bryce Brown walked it off for a 7-6 victory. Karson Grout led the LumberKings with three RBIs in the loss.

Clinton managed to get their own type of dramatic revenge last night with a 12th inning walk off against the Springfield Lucky Horseshoes, taking the win 11-10. Ben Swails clobbered a home run and finished with three RBIs in the win.

The LumberKings will travel to take on the Bees tonight with first pitch at 6:30 pm. 

This Day in Sports History

1923 – Washington Senators future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson becomes the first to reach the 3,000 career strikeout milestone (enroute to 3,508) with 5 K’s in 3-1 win over Cleveland.

1997 – Greg Maddux threw a complete game with just 76 pitches.

2018 – Seattle basketball guard Sue Bird plays a record 500th WNBA game as the Storm go down 87-74 to the Atlanta Dream; finishes career with 508 games for Seattle.