Cedar Rapids Prairie sweeps Western Dubuque in a battle of ranked teams and Mississippi Valley Conference divisional baseball leaders

CEDAR RAPIDS — Mason Trpkosh stepped to the plate with bat in hand and a chip affixed on his shoulder.

Strategically, he understood it was the right move, but he still took it personal when all-staters Maddux Frese and Cal Sullivan were intentionally walked to face him with the game on the line.

Trpkosh delivered a game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the seventh, helping Class 4A second-ranked Cedar Rapids Prairie sweep 3A No. 1 Western Dubuque, 3-2 and 7-2, in a baseball doubleheader Friday night at Prairie.

“They did a great job,” said Prairie assistant Tom Smith, who was filling in for head coach James Nelson. “They were able to lock it in and go win a game in the bottom of the seventh. They walked one off and then put their foot on the gas pedal to keep going in Game 2. They put a great team away. It was awesome.”

The teams were tied, 2-2, in the bottom of the seventh. Prairie’s Ty Dinusson led off with a single and Layton Baber’s sacrifice bunt moved him to second with the Hawks’ top-three hitters up with just one out. The Bobcats won the first battle, getting a groundout from Kade Knock that left Dinusson at second with two out.

The free passes were doled out after a brief Western Dubuque conference on the mound, setting up the late heroics from Trpkosh, who entered the game with 21 hits and nine RBIs. He enjoyed the strut down to first after the hit.

“Honestly, I wasn’t prepared for it,” Trpkosh said. “They walked two guys in front of me, but I saw it as a challenge. I went after the fastball and the ball fell.

“I don’t blame them at all … It worked out.”

Trpkosh finished the opener 3-for-4 with an RBI single in the two-run third. His first run-scoring hit came after Frese singled and scored on Sullivan’s double.

“I saw the guy pretty well, coming into it,” Trpkosh said. “I had a big RBI earlier in the game. I was confident at the plate. There was no doubt in my mind that we were going to win that game. I was glad we were able to pull off the win.”

Reid Burkle and Kam Volz combined to win Game 1. Volz also relieved Frese and closed Game 2.

In the nightcap, Prairie used a four-run second to take control of the game. Dinusson started the scoring with a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to put the Hawks on the board. Jace Rickertsen contributed a two-run double to deep left field. Knock added an RBI single. Dinusson had a sacrifice fly in the fifth and the Hawks closed with two in the sixth, including an RBI single from Shraden Lechtenberg.

“From top to bottom, everybody was pretty locked in,” Smith said. “That was our focus today.”

Frese had two hits and walked twice, but he limited the Bobcats’ offensive output in the nightcap. Frese was able to get the win, overcoming a three-hit first inning that included a run walked in for a 1-0 lead.

“Usually, I pitch first, so it was a little different,” Frese said. “It took a little getting used to but after that I felt a little more comfortable and started throwing strikes.”

The sweep occurred a day after the Hawks were swept by Cedar Falls. They reset and rebounded for one of the biggest series of the regular season and reinstated a winning attitude.

“We made sure to get back here early and get some work on the field,” Frese said. “We came back with a whole different mentality. We were a lot more aggressive.”

Western Dubuque’s Jake Goodman and Brett Harris each had two hits in the first game. Harris added a hit and run, while Goodman had an RBI single in the sixth of the nightcap. Isaac Then paced the Bobcats with three hits, including a double, and Caleb Klein had two hits for Western Dubuque in Game 2.

Prairie improved to 31-5 overall and secured the Mississippi Valley Conference Mississippi Division title with a 22-4 mark with only a doubleheader left with Waterloo West. The Bobcats are 28-9 overall and are in first place in the MVC Valley at 19-7.