West Burlington, IA- The Southeastern Community College (SCC) baseball and softball teams are gearing up for their respective Region 11 tournaments after another year of successful play on the diamond, yet both teams are looking to avenge some wrongs from yesteryear.
Softball
SCC has enjoyed a revitalization of their program going back to the late 2010s, picking up their sixth consecutive winning season though this year has been their best winning percentage at 0.674. Their 31-15 record was good enough to secure the #2-seed in the NJCAA Division I Region 11 tournament.
Due to their success, the Blackhawks will get to host their semifinal bout against #3 Indian Hills Community College in a three-game series starting with a doubleheader on Wednesday, May 6th, at 2 pm. On the season, SCC is 3-1 against the Warriors, outscoring them 25 to 8 in their three victories.
However, Indian Hills has knocked the Blackhawks out of the Region 11 tournament in two of the last three years, including a loss in the 2023 championship series. Moreover, the Blackhawks have failed to soar out of the semifinals the past two seasons after being swept by Iowa Western Community College last campaign.
SCC will look to set the tone with Araceli Rivas in the circle as the sophomore posted a 2.72 ERA for the season with a 9-4 record in 21 starts. Amazingly, Rivas is averaging nearly 10 strikeouts per seven innings. At the plate, Logan Kelley has been unstoppable, clouting three triples, 15 doubles, and 16 home runs for a slugging percentage of 0.856.
The winner of the series in West Burlington will face off against the winner between #1 Iowa Western, who touts Burlington alum Saydee Plummer and her 2.47 ERA, and #4 Marshalltown Community College, who went 4-12 in conference play.
Baseball
SCC baseball has been the definition of consistency, although that might be an understatement. The Blackhawks have not lost more than 22 games in a season in the at least the past 15 years, won 50 games last year, and currently rank #7 in the country in NJCAA Division II.
Nonetheless, the Blackhawks are in the same boat as their softball counterparts having struggled in the Region 11 Division II tournament over the last two years. Of course, that was on the heels of winning the Region 11 championship in 2023 over Iowa Central and then going 6-3 in the NJCAA DII World Series before losing to Heartland Community College, 8-6, in the championship game.
The last two years, the Blackhawks have been able to get the Region 11 championship, but Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) shocked everyone in 2024 for the upset victory and Iowa Central got their revenge last year right when it appeared that the Blackhawks were going to rip it away from them again.
Unfortunately, SCC has also faltered in their last two World Series’ trips, going 2-4 with two one-run losses.
Still, this team has positioned themselves for a nice run, garnering the top seed and a bye after going 22-5 in conference and 43-13 overall. Their most impressive run of the season saw the Blackhawks claim 19 straight games from March 21st to April 11th.
This year’s team has been able to get it done in any fashion at the plate with Kam Francois sitting 5th in the conference in batting average at 0.425, while Gavin Awbrey’s 16 home runs have him tied for 7th in the ICCAC and 9th in extra base hits.
Additionally, their 5.09 ERA is the best amongst the conference, even considering #5 Kirkwood Community College, who has the best offense and only eight losses for the season. The Blackhawks will be looking for Kyler Kaczmarksi—3.12 ERA—and Isaac Flamino—4.34 ERA—to have strong outings on the mound to boost this team past an offensive-heavy conference.
SCC will take on either #4 DMACC or #5 Northeast on Friday, May 8th, at 3:30 pm from Merchants Park in Carroll, Iowa in a double-elimination bracket. The Blackhawks went 3-0 against DMACC and 2-1 against Northeast.
The team they never could get past was Kirkwood, getting outscored 35 to 20 in their three losses.