2015 State Champ By Class

[Bringit10]

Let's hear your picks. I'll get you started.

1A - Newman Catholic, Mason City
2A - Columbus Catholic, Waterloo
3A - Waverly- Shell Rock
4A - Waukee

Good Luck to all of them!! Enjoy the experience!

 

[moondog24]

North Linn in an upset in 1A
Kennedy in 4A

 

[maxstabs13]

Newman/Martensdale
North Linn/West Sioux

Newman/West Sioux

Newman

Newman has hitting depth. I think GR will give them a challenge for a few innings, as they got very good as the year progressed.

Martensdale and Coon Rapids were lucky to match each other, because I believe they are the two weakest teams at state in 1A. Martensdale went Ace for Ace with Pleasantville and lost early in the year. Pleasantville got better as the year progressed. Coon Rapids looked like a formidable team early in the season, but I wasn't particularly impressed as the season progressed. Solid club, but I don't think they will challenge Newman if they see them.

Van Buren doesn't have a shutdown pitcher. They had a great run going undefeated with balanced pitching across the board, but at state an Ace can take you a long ways and North Linn has an 8th grader who is an Ace much like Cale Henke was for Hudson a few years back. Hudson never made it over the hump because they saw Waterloo Columbus every year. North Linn is at an advantage being in a lower class. If they were 2A they would not have made state because they would have seen Columbus, South Winn, Monticello, Beckman, Cascade, or someone else with dominate hitting and pitching.

West Sioux I believe has possibly the best pitcher in 1A. Hummel has had an impressive season and West Sioux is just deep enough in hitting that they should pose some issues for there side of the bracket. Pleasantville has had a very impressive season and I think Adreon is nearly as good as Hummel, but they lack hitting depth. Hummel could almost get away with pitching around Adreon and Luna. He might as well take his chances with the rest of the team trying to hit him.

The hitting depth will be the difference in the second round for West Sioux also. If both Ace's face each other West Sioux has more hitting depth than North Linn. If neither Ace faces each other than I take West Sioux because of pitching depth.

Newman is simply to much for Martensdale.

Depending on Hummel's eligibility for the Title game West Sioux could keep it close with Newman, otherwise I think Newman wins big.

Cascade/Columbus
Roland Story/Clear Lake

Cascade/Clear Lake

Cascade

Cascade got nearly a perfect set up for them. Mediapolis isn't a general 2A caliber state team. Very solid club and earned that spot, but not as strong as a typical 2A state tournament season. I think Cascade should throw Lieurance against Mepo and only use Hoffman if needed.

Columbus will likely throw Farley and rightfully so as Glass is the only other guy I would consider. I think they should start Farley and see how the game progresses. If they jump out to a 6-7 run lead I would look to have Glass pitch the remainder of the game after the 3rd inning. Hinton has some solid hitting across the board, but I don't think there pitching has seen hitting quite as good as Columbus.

Roland Story and Davis County along with Mediapolis are the weakest teams in 2A. RS has very limited pitching though Hovick has been pitching much better of late. Davis County has limited hitting and mediocre competition. Goodson and Jones are hands down the best pitchers on the team. Goodson could be much better but he walks nearly double the amount of guys who get hits off him. I don't think it particularly matters who wins this game except from a morale standpoint. I think Roland Story will pull it out because Hovick has gotten better of late and I trust RS's hitting more.

Clear Lake and Treynor could be a solid match up and Clear Lake has a history of faltering in big games. These teams are about even in hitting ability, but Clear Lake possesses guys with more pop. Pitching wise Treynor offers a few very solid options, but Adams for Clear Lake is the best for either team. If Treynor can hit Adams they have a good chance, but Merrill is no slouch either for Clear Lake. I just don't think Treynor will have enough to pull it off.

Depending on how Cascade handles the Mediapolis game will depend on what chances Columbus will have. If Hoffman is limited or not used against Mediapolis then Cascade should win by 2-3 runs. If Lieurance is the guy Cascade starts with then this game could go either way. Columbus will be relegated to pitching Farley each game and hoping that they are able to 10 run someone and/or get Farley some rest with a big lead. Glass may need to be the guy for Columbus and I am not sure that they pull that off against Cascade. Cascade can hit top to bottom. Columbus can hit well in the Top 6 with a little more pop in the middle of the lineup. This will be the best match up in 2A. I think the winner here will win the Title, unless Clear Lake is able to rest Adam's so he doesn't have an innings limit.

Like I said. I think RS, DC, and Mepo are the 3 weakest 2A teams. I don't think RS will have much success hitting Adam's and I think Clear Lake can put up enough runs to knock out Roland Story. Not much to this match up. I just feel Roland Story is a little out matched. Mainly because pitching.

Cascade as I have mentioned can hit from top to bottom. Adam's will likely be limited on his available innings to pitch and Cascade should have two Ace's available to pitch as many innings as they want. Clear Lake has some decent hitters, but they are not consistent down the entire order. I think CL will hang around until Adam's runs out of innings. I would almost start with Merrill and see how far they can get with him before bringing in Adam's. I just don't see Clear Lake having the consistent hitting to stay with Cascade. Could be a 2-3 run win or a 5-7 run win for Cascade.

I will do a review on 3A and 4A later.

 

[KidKinnick]

Good write up MaxStabs. You obviously have done your research on 1A ball but I disagree with V Buren however. They might not have a shutdown guy but Barker is pretty darn good and Bartholomew doesn't look like he would be but that kid can bring it with the best of them and has a nasty breaking ball to go with it. I think this bracket could go either way but I look for V Buren to get by N Linn pretty handily and with their pitching depth make it to the finals with Newman......don't forget that they have great sticks as well. Looking forward to the next week!! That Pella/DCG game Tuesday night is going to be fantastic with Judkins and Baker facing each other right off the bat!

 

[maxstabs13]

Waverly Shell Rock/Sergeant Bluff Luton
Pella/Wahlert

WSR/Pella

Waverly Shell Rock

First game to me is a no brainer. Great season for Vinton Shellsburg, but WSR just beat them 7-0 a week or two ago. Way to much hitting and pitching for VS to hang around. If they had a elite 3A pitcher they would have a chance, but they have what would be considered good 3A pitching.

Now starts the toss ups that remain in 3A... This game could go either way. I simply am going with SBL because I like who they have played and beat competition wise. I think Wyant and Mallas are about even in pitching ability. Mallas has seen a little easier competition than Wyant and so statistically looks better. I think SBL hitting will be the difference in the game. I think SBL has the slightly better hitting, which will be the key factor in a close game.

Judkins and Baker will face off in this one and I would expect a close and low scoring game. I have to go with Pella. Judkins has better control and unless Baker plans on pitching around him then good luck getting him out at the plate also. I think Pella simply has to much hitting along with Judkins tossing for them.

This is probably the game I am most unsure about... Wahlert has played a higher level of competition and the record shows that. Savary has done very well in 4A competition for being a Sophomore. My belief is that the competition Wahlert has seen and having won close games leading to the state tournament that they will be able to continue rolling and squeak past a young and talented Harlan team.

Waverly Shell Rock has hitting and pitching depth that I don't think SBL can match. I think 3A has a few teams that stand head and shoulders above the rest. WSR, Pella, West Delaware being the three and since WSR knocked out West Delaware I think you know where that leads with this bracket set up.

As previously mentioned... As much tough competition that Wahlert has seen I don't think they will be able to pull it off against Pella. The biggest question is if and how much will Judkins need to pitch for Pella in this game. If he pitches the whole game or a large portion Pella could have to rely on Hileman or Wood to pitch the Title.

I am taking WSR in this one. Frankly, it's nearly impossible to pick a winner. Judkins is the best pitcher and WSR has had some issues with BB. I have to go with WSR because they can hit top to bottom. I know Pella can nearly do the same, but any time a team has 9 guys that hit for nearly a .300 average the pitcher gets no break. I played with a team that had that ability and could put up 6-8-10 runs in a given inning. Pitching can get you to the title. Hitting will win it in most cases. On the flip side Pella goes 7 deep with great hitting and Judkins has the power. Like I said this game is nearly impossible to pick.

4A later... Off to the Bix Fest.

 

[maxstabs13]

Waukee/SEP
CR Kennedy/SC East

Waukee/CR Kennedy

Waukee

Waukee versus North Scott I don't see as being much of a contest. Great season for the Lancers and nice run to state, but Moore and Mullenbach to deal with on the mound. NS has some solid hitters, but I don't think the pitching staff will be able to handle Waukee's hitting and this will likely end up a rough day for the Lancers.

Southeast Polk and Sioux City East should be an entertaining game throughout. SEP has obviously seen a little tougher competition throughout the season and that is why I am giving them the edge in this game, but absolutely could see SCE winning this one. McLaughlin can throw. However, Franko and Riley make a pretty stellar duo as long as they can avoid the BB and HBP... I like SCE hitting much more the SEP and Blatchford may be a pitch around guy if SEP can get away with it, because he can be the difference in the game with one swing of the bat. I think this one will come down to the wire and though SCE has very solid and balanced hitting I think the pitching of SEP will win this one for them.

CR Kennedy and Davenport North will likely be the lowest scoring game unless it becomes an error fest. Lizarraga(Last name of the Year award?) and Johnson will be one of the best pitching match ups that we will see in the tournament. Both guys are good at sitting guys down and not making mistakes. I give the upper hand to Kennedy in this one. Lizarraga could put up some impressive strikeout numbers against a North lineup that I think will be pretty over matched. North made a nice run and won some tight games to get here, but I don't see them escaping with the win here. Look for Kennedy to put together a few solid innings either by there own doing or mistakes in the field and eventually pull away.

This pick may surprise some people. IC West has a solid young team, but I think they got a bad match up. Neither of these teams really has a shutdown pitcher. They are about even, but I think I lean towards Enochs and Bentley over Lohaus/Miller and Ono-Fullard. The difference for me comes with hitting. As far as depth in the lineup I would say they are about the same, but DME offers a lot of pop in the lineup and one BIG BANG! Alcala is the best hitter in the state along with Judkins, Rommes, and Blatchford. I personally would rather face the other three mentioned if the game was on the line though. I don't expect ICW to pitch around him unless they can get away with it or have an open base, but that could lead to some damage to be done against decent ICW pitching. I actually think DME pulls this one off in one of the higher scoring if not highest scoring game in 4A.

The build up is here... Quite possibly 3 of the 4 best pitchers in the state matching up in the Semi's. Franko being on the outside looking in of that group.

I will keep this clean and simple. SEP and Waukee faced off earlier in the season and Moore outdueled McLaughlin in a win for Waukee. Do I expect more to go 7 innings of 2 hit baseball at the state tournament? No. But will he? SEP doesn't have the best hitting and McLaughlin can't score runs throwing off the mound. SEP is going to have to find some magic in those bats to be able to win this game. It should be close all the way through, but great pitching can only take you so far before someone steps up in the batters box. I've got Waukee in a 2-3 run win for this one.

CRK and SCE will be the clash of the Titans. Will the pitching of Lizarraga/Hargens/Daniels be able to keep the hitting of SCE at bay? When you look at these teams they are the perfect match up of opponents. CRK has awesome pitching and solid hitting. SCE has awesome hitting and solid pitching. It is going to come down to who makes less mistakes and who steps up to make the important play or plays that are the difference in the game. I look at one key thing. CRK may not be the better hitting team, but they don't make mistakes on the base pass and Franko and others for SCE have had issues with walks. Maybe it is just the umpiring on the West side calling things tighter or more than likely he has a lack of consistent control or doesn't hit his spots consistently. I think that will be a key factor in the game and combined with CRK ability to keep guys off the bases I believe they will pull this one out in what should be a very entertaining game.

The title should be interesting. As with any title game pitcher eligibility may come into play and since I think Lizarraga may be looking at 12-14 innings for the first two games he will likely have limited use for the title. Either way I'm not sure it will matter outside of how long CRK will hang around in the game. Hitting wise these teams are the same. CRK is more aggressive and better on the base pass, which may put Moore/Mullenbach in more pressure situations if they allow anyone on base to begin with. Lizarraga/Hargens/Daniels will need to be very crisp on the mound and just match the Aces for Waukee in hopes that eventually someone makes a play to put a run across. I don't expect much scoring in this one. I think you will get to see some of the best pitching that Iowa has to offer in full force. I can't see CRK putting across more than 1 run though and thus I think Waukee takes home the Title.

 

[maxstabs13]

Clear Lake romping Davis County! I thought they would win fairly easy but this may be the first 15 runs over 4 innings game I can ever remember... 20-1 Top 4... Yikes!

 

[HawksAndSox]

Sad thing is it could've been 30-1 if Clear Lake would've wanted to. Believe it or not that 20-1 score is a classy 20-1. All time state tournament record for runs in a game EVER.

 

[oonfoofoo]

Sad thing is it could've been 30-1 if Clear Lake would've wanted to. Believe it or not that 20-1 score is a classy 20-1. All time state tournament record for runs in a game EVER.

Let's not go completely overboard here. Walks and hit batsman killed Davis County. Not saying that Clear Lake was not the better team but Davis County looked like an 8 year old team.

Just wasn't their day

 

[HawksAndSox]

No I totally agree walks and hit batters killed DC and haha, yes they looked like a bunch of little leaguers out there sadly. What I meant was CL didn't get too ridiculous with chances they could've - pass balls, extra base hits, wild pitches...they played it one base advancement at a time, which was good by them. I only stated it because some people probably think 20-1 was harsh and cruel by CL, yet it wasn't.

 

[maxstabs13]

No I totally agree walks and hit batters killed DC and haha, yes they looked like a bunch of little leaguers out there sadly. What I meant was CL didn't get too ridiculous with chances they could've - pass balls, extra base hits, wild pitches...they played it one base advancement at a time, which was good by them. I only stated it because some people probably think 20-1 was harsh and cruel by CL, yet it wasn't.

It's the state tournament... Nothing is harsh or cruel... You make it this far and get embarrassed it is your fault or it proves how weak a certain area of the state was.

 

[maxstabs13]

My predictions have obviously not panned out so well... That is what happens when every team is forced to throw the #2 guy... I am fully confident if Waukee and CRK threw the #1 against there opponents they win those games, but obviously that wasn't an option. Columbus did a good job of using Farley and thus they were able to get past Cascade.

At this point my Champions are:
MCN
Columbus
WSR
SEP

I think Columbus/Clear Lake will be the best game to watch. SEP and ICW could be a high scoring game. MCN and WSR should be heavy favorites... Harlan is still a young team, which is scary for the upcoming seasons.

 

[ICParrent]

My predictions have obviously not panned out so well... That is what happens when every team is forced to throw the #2 guy... I am fully confident if Waukee and CRK threw the #1 against there opponents they win those games, but obviously that wasn't an option. Columbus did a good job of using Farley and thus they were able to get past Cascade.

At this point my Champions are:
MCN
Columbus
WSR
SEP

I think Columbus/Clear Lake will be the best game to watch. SEP and ICW could be a high scoring game. MCN and WSR should be heavy favorites... Harlan is still a young team, which is scary for the upcoming seasons.

So, your answer is to play a game every 5 days so each team is assured of using their #1?
Kennedy's #2 is a stud and threw 52 in the first two innings, that and errors is what cost them the game.

 

[DogBoyRy]

So, your answer is to play a game every 5 days so each team is assured of using their #1?
Kennedy's #2 is a stud and threw 52 in the first two innings, that and errors is what cost them the game.

Kid for CRK melted down after losing close call. Doesn't seem like Big 10 stuff to me but what do I know. Maybe he's going on academic aid.

 

[HawksAndSox]

What's everyone think of the lopsided championship games? Unbelievable..

 

[screwloose]

Is it still all but two years since 1995, someone from the CIML has won 4A? I know Ottumwa wasn't at the time but are now. If so, that's incredible.

 

[maxstabs13]

So, your answer is to play a game every 5 days so each team is assured of using their #1?
Kennedy's #2 is a stud and threw 52 in the first two innings, that and errors is what cost them the game.

My answer is once teams were forced to use the 2nd or 3rd best pitchers it would throw a monkey wrench in my predictions... CRK second guy was nothing compared to Lizarraga... Daniels is far and away behind Lizarraga. The numbers don't lie... 72K 9BB 8R 5ER 1.59BAA for Lizarraga... Daniels 54K 19BB 28R 18ER .210BAA... Did I expect ICW to hit Daniels that well? No... But they put the ball in play and CRK made mistakes which led to a compilation of mistakes on the mound and in the field.

I was right on 3 of the 4 Champions... Holy cow did Columbus lay an egg. Just a mistake filled game for Columbus... Should have gone with CL knowing they were able to rest the important pitcher for them in the previous game. Probably the quickest day of Championships in state history... Probably the most blowouts in state history in regards to all games.

 

[GoHawks2009]

Lol Clear Lake with their worst team in the years since their 3A championship and should've lost to both Forest City and St. Edmonds before State goes on to dominate an unprepared 2A field in perhaps the most lopsided fashion in State tournament history considering that it's 2015.

Unless any Clear Lake fans wanna use the excuse that they should be up in 3A.

 

[buckw87]

Lol Clear Lake with their worst team in the years since their 3A championship and should've lost to both Forest City and St. Edmonds before State goes on to dominate an unprepared 2A field in perhaps the most lopsided fashion in State tournament history considering that it's 2015.

Unless any Clear Lake fans wanna use the excuse that they should be up in 3A

Let's see, CL won it in 2013 so this team is worse than last years is what you are saying? Believe they only lost to one school in their class this year, beat Newman (state championship team), and the rest of their losses were to 3A and 4A schools.

Not sure why they would need to make excuses about anything, they won the tournament!

Why should they have lost to FC and St. Eds? Didn't Clear Lake score more runs in both of the games? Do runs scored in the 7th inning not count the same as runs scored earlier in the game? Give the kids some credit for hanging in there and fighting, and for dominating the 2A field in Des Moines.

 

[stick1972]

Clear Lake was an incredibly talented team this year and just as good as the 2013 team... Did they have the greatest pitching staff? No, but Adams is a stud and the other guys are more than decent. They were a very good hitting team up and down the lineup, and it showed once they got into tourney play. Down, but never out of it. They didn't win their own conference, but only because Humboldt was a very good team with a great staff and offense. Congrats Clear Lake!