Iowa City West hopes to add state baseball title to resume

DES MOINES — Iowa City West seniors have impressive achievements in their four years of baseball.

The resume includes conference titles, substate championships, trips to the state tournament and victories when they reach Principal Park. Actually, the Trojans are 6-3 in their last three trips, reaching the finals each time.

The one thing missing from the list of accomplishments is a state title, becoming the only team in Iowa history to place second three consecutive years.

'We all have some extra motivation,' West senior and University of Iowa recruit Connor McCaffery said. 'This senior class has been there for every one of the runner-up finishes. It's been tough, but we're really looking forward to it. We all have that chip on our shoulders.'

Third-seeded West will make its fourth straight state appearance, facing No. 6 seed Cedar Rapids Washington in the Class 4A state quarterfinals Wednesday at Principal Park.

Only four teams in the state end the season with a win. Reaching the final Saturday night is not the ultimate goal but it still is a special feat.

'That's not what we're going to go there for,' West Coach Charlie Stumpff said. 'You guys feel so sorry for second place. Losing (in the substate final) is way worse than that.

'It's a great thing. We're just going to go and hopefully play well. We've done good work this year all the way through.'

The Trojans own a 31-8 mark, winning the Mississippi Valley Conference Mississippi Division over the likes of state qualifiers Linn-Mar and Dubuque Wahlert. This year's squad is comparable to those that reached the final, leading 4A offenses with 30 home runs, 308 runs and a .348 batting average.

'We're kind of all the same,' Stumpff said. 'We hit. That's what we do. I'm very biased but I don't believe there is a 4A lineup that's as deep as us. Our top six guys are really off-the-charts good. We're batting (Lucas) Karwal and Dane (Randall) are over .300. We'll hit and battle at the plate.'

Izaya Ono-Fullard leads the way with a .425 batting average. Leadoff hitter Nate Disterhoft has hit .406 with McCaffery at .397. Ono-Fullard has a team-best 48 runs, 10 home runs and 58 RBIs, hitting a game-ending grand slam in the substate final. All of the West starters hit .306 or better.

'We trust we're going to put up runs and our pitchers will do their job,' Ono-Fullard said. 'We just have to play good defense and we think we have a good shot.'

The pitching staff has been effective as well. The Trojans are among 4A leaders with a 2.38 team earned-run average and 223 hits allowed. Braden Houston is 8-1 with a 0.99 ERA, pitching the substate final against Davenport West. McCaffery has six wins and a 1.75 ERA. Jack Wilson is 4-0 with 0.80 ERA.

A larger outfield could be a factor in their effectiveness.

'We don't have the dominant pitcher,' Stumpff said. 'The big park will help that. They'll do great.'

Stumpff's coaching career includes six state finals, leading West to runner-up finishes in 2009 and 2010 as well as the last three years. He is bringing his 11th team to the state tournament, including 10 trips with West since 2004 and guiding Northeast Hamilton to the 1991 1A state tournament. He is tied for sixth in all-time state appearances with Decorah's Dennis Olejniczak, surpassing his former Norway coach and mentor Jim Van Scoyoc.

McCaffery and Ono-Fullard said the players would like to win a title for Stumpff.

'It would mean everything,' McCaffery said. 'I love Coach Stumpff. He's been great for me. He's got a great view of the game. He's given me tons of advice. I really want to get one for him.'

West will have to face the Warriors (24-15), beginning at 5 p.m. The two teams split a doubleheader at the beginning of June. Washington is making its first appearance since 2009, ending the longest state drought in the Metro.

State baseball brackets: Updated scores, schedule

The team that denied West the state title last season returns as well. Fourth-seeded Cedar Rapids Prairie (29-12) will open its title defense against No. 5 Waukee (28-13) at 11 a.m. The Hawks qualified with a substate win over seventh-ranked Southeast Polk at Runnels and earned their third berth.

Linn-Mar is making its sixth appearance at the state tournament. The Lions (21-18) have closed strong, becoming the only 4A school to qualify by winning three straight road games. Linn-Mar dropped fourth-ranked Iowa City High, 6-2, to reach Des Moines.

Linn-Mar is the eighth seed and faces top-seeded Johnston (38-3) on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m.

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