Coe advances to IIAC baseball tournament final

CEDAR RAPIDS - Coe Coach Steve Cook said he understands college students will have fun, especially after big accomplishment.

He also planned to remind the Kohawks to keep the celebration brief because work still remains to achieve their primary goal.

A.J. Reuter earned the win, collecting three hits and four RBIs to help Coe advance to the Iowa Conference baseball tournament championship with a 6-3 win over top-seeded Wartburg Friday at Memorial Stadium. The Kohawks are a win away from their fourth IIAC tournament title, playing the first of two possible title games at 1 p.m.

'We'll get them focused back on that, but I don't mind them enjoying this for maybe an hour,” Cook said with a laugh. 'They will go have dinner with their families and enjoy that part, but after that we'll be ready to play again.”

The Kohawks (30-12) never trailed and tallied 13 hits, securing the second 30-win season in school history. They won't be satisfied without another win and an automatic NCAA Division III regional berth.

'We are definitely not done,” Coe shortstop and leadoff hitter Craig Konrardy said. 'That was a sweet victory. We kind of played off our advantages (Thursday) with a lot of hits and runs and carried that into (Friday). We're just going to try to keep it rolling into (today).”

Wartburg (31-11) swept Coe in a four-game series to open IIAC action in March. The Kohawks wanted another cracked at the regular-season conference champion Knights. Cook said it served as a bit of a wake-up call, which led to some timely hitting and a strong performance from Reuter and reliever Jack Hoffmann, who pitched more than three innings for the save.

'This go-round, it was just one game, but an important one,” Cook said. 'We got things done on both sides of the baseball.”

The Kohawks struck first, grabbing the lead in the top of the third. Michael Goerdt ripped a two-out double that short-hopped the right-field wall, scoring Konrardy. Goerdt scored on Hoffmann's single, giving Coe a 2-0 edge.

Wartburg answered with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Ryan Kemp chased home Tyler Willis with a double and scored on a double form Milton Croes.

Coe regained the lead during its next at-bat. Reuter's two-out single scored Alec Zwanziger and Konrardy, recapturing the momentum and the lead for good.

'I think that was as big a two runs as any in the game,” said Cook, noting Reuter had two strikes. 'He hung a breaking ball and (Reuter) made him pay for it. It was a huge at bat.”

Reuter added an RBI-single in the seventh and his sacrifice fly in the ninth brought in Cole Tomlinson. Reuter is getting back to full strength, struggling through a broken finger earlier this season, returning from the injury three to four weeks early.

'He's just coming back now,” Cook said. 'Part of this group effort we've had, he's really done his part.”

Konrardy led all players with three runs. Cook said Konrardy and Goerdt provide a nice 1-2 punch at the top of their lineup. They always seem to pick each other up, but Konrardy tries to set the table for his teammates.

'I always want to be a catalyst for the team,” Konrardy said. 'I want to get on. I'm fast. I like to steal bases. If I can do that, I will. If Michael lays down a bunt and gets me to second, there's no doubt in my mind that we will score a run. It's rare when I get on and into scoring position that we don't score.”

Willis and Kemp led Wartburg, who plays Central on Saturday at 10 a.m. Willis doubled in the fifth and scored on a single by Kemp, who had a team-high three hits.

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