Postseason Baseball
In a battle of the Bulldogs, #5 Mediapolis clinched their first state tournament berth since 2015 after shutting out MFL MarMac 2-0 last night. Lance Ludens produced another gem on the mound, throwing the complete-game shutout while striking out nine. Ludens talked about his mindset heading into the substate championship,
“Confident in my defense, so every game I just try to come out, stay relaxed, stay calm, throw some strikes, hopefully roll some ground balls and let my defense do most of the work tonight. I was a little hyped up so I was feeling really good and I think I got a few more strikeouts than I normally do, but yeah, I just really just came in, staying calm and treating every game like the last. It’s a job. It’s a business. So just get the job done.”
Kyler Crow broke the tie in the fourth inning with a solo home run with Braeden Oliver adding an insurance run with an RBI single. Mediapolis head coach Rick Whitaker felt the nerves wash away as soon as Crow made the final out,
“But I still got anxious because these kids wanted it, so I want it so bad for the kids. Not for myself. I want it for those guys because you spend a lot. It’s summer baseball. I tell the kids all the time, you know, it’s different. It’s a different sport than you know, basketball, football because you’re during the school, summer. You’re just there’s no distractions. It’s just baseball, you know? And so, you spend a ton of time, you know, 30 some games and you’re together. I just wanted it for them, really. Because you become like a little family in the summer for sure.”
#5 Mediapolis will play #4 Unity Christian at 1:30 pm on Tuesday, July 22nd, for the Class 2A quarterfinals in Carroll, Iowa at Merchants Park. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 1:15 pm.
In Class 1A Substate 5, Hillcrest Academy squeaked out a 1-0 victory over Pekin last night to punch their ticket to the state tournament. Phoenix Anderson struck out seven in seven innings of work. The Ravens will square off against #1 Remsen St. Mary’s on Monday, July 21st, at 11 am.
Postseason Softball
For the Class 3A Region 5 championship, Washington scored four runs in the final two innings to down Assumption, 6-4. The Demons grabbed the #7-seed and will take on #2 Williamsburg on Tuesday, July 22nd, at 10 am.
Here are the Class 1A and Class 2A, state tournament matchups for Tuesday.
In Class 1A, Wayne grabbed the #1-seed with a 25-2 record and they will face off against the #8-seed Highland after the Huskies upset Iowa Valley 6-3. #4 Riverside and #5 Newell-Fonda will link up in the early evening matchup.
With a 28-4 record, #2 Clarksville will square off against #7 Newman Catholic with the winner scheduled to face off against the winner between #3 Wapsie Valley and #6 St. Edmond.
Over in Class 2A, #1 Van Meter enters as the favorite as the Bulldogs look to defend their Class 2A title with an opening round matchup against #8 East Marshall. Grabbing the #4 and #5 seeds were Durant and West Fort, respectively.
#2 Louisa-Muscatine flew past Pella Christian 6-3 on their way to their first state tournament appearance since 2022. The Falcons will compete against #7 West Monona. Lastly, #3 West Lyon will take on #6 Cascade at 3 pm.
Local Athletic Summer Camps
Mt. Pleasant will be hosting Panther Hoopla: A Southeast Iowa Basketball Camp starting today and running through Friday, July 18th. Coaches will work with the campers in a fun and challenging environment, filled with drills, player development, and competitive games at the Mt. Pleasant High School gym.
The morning session is for 6th through 8th graders, and it runs from 8:30 am to 10:30 am. The afternoon session will go from 1 pm to 3 pm for 3rd through 5th graders.
An upcoming registration due date is July 18th for the Mediapolis volleyball camp for 3rd all the way through 9th graders starting on August 4th and the Danville youth volleyball camp for 2nd through 8th graders starting on the same date.
Check out this link for other local summer athletic camps: School Summer Camps
Prospect League
The Burlington Bees bounced back from a weekend sweep with a 9-0 dismantling of the Normal CornBelters. Danny Harris allowed only four hits in seven innings, fanning three in the win. The Bees will face off against the CornBelters tonight at 6:30 pm on the road.
The Clinton LumberKings fell to the Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp last night 6-0. The LumberKings will get their rematch tonight at 7:05 pm on the road.
This Day in Sports History
1909 – MLB Detroit Tigers and Washington Senators play the longest scoreless game in AL history – 18 innings at Bennett Field in Detroit, Michigan.
1941 – Joe DiMaggio goes 3 for 4, hitting in his 56th straight game.
1994 – The Shreveport Pirates lose their first CFL home game, 35-34 to the Toronto Argonauts at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana.