Kuemper provides stiff quarterfinal test for North Fayette

WEST UNION - They've already beaten one of the state's perennial heavyweights on its home field just to qualify for the state tournament.

How much more difficult can it get for the North Fayette Hawks? Wow, that's a loaded question.

North Fayette faces top-ranked and top-seeded Carroll Kuemper in its Class 2A state tourney quarterfinal Friday night at 6 at Principal Park in Des Moines. All Kuemper has done is win 26 games in a row and compile a 37-1 record.

The Knights were 2A runners-up last season to Solon. They hit a robust .407 as a team.

Tough, tough task.

"This Kuemper team is loaded," said North Fayette Coach Dan Hovden. "They are the real deal. An excellent, excellent team."

North Fayette (30-14) went through its share of ups and downs this summer. It won nine of its first 10 games, then had a stretch in late June where it lost six of seven.

A double-header loss June 28 to Mason City Newman and subsequent come-to-Jesus team meeting seemed to turn the season around. Since then, the Hawks have won seven of eight, scoring double digits in all seven wins.

That included a 10-7 victory at Dyersville Beckman in the substate final.

"We didn't talk about specifics. We just wanted to maximize our potential," Hovden said. "We needed to start playing for each other, and we have."

Leadoff hitter Jake Greco has had a monster junior season, hitting .556 with 12 home runs and 64 RBIs. The return of classmate Kevin Vierow (.385 average) also has helped the offense.

He missed 18 games because of a foreign-exchange trip to Germany.

"I don't really know much about Kuemper," Greco said. "I just look at it as we're the underdog. They've got all the pressure on them. We don't have any.

"On any given day, anybody can beat anybody ... When we come to play, we can play with anybody."

NORTH FAYETTE (30-14) vs. CARROLL KUEMPER (37-1)

Time: 6 p.m., Friday

Place: Principal Park, Des Moines

Noteworthy: The eighth-seeded Hawks have quite the hill to climb in No. 1-ranked and seeded Kuemper. The Knights have won 26 games in a row, coming off a 2010 season in which they finished 2A runner-up to Solon, now a 3A school. North Fayette is making its fourth trip to state. Head coach Dan Hovden has won over 500 games in his career. The Hawks are led offensively by Jake Greco, who leads the 2A field in hits (80), home runs (12) and is second in doubles (17), batting average (.556) and RBIs (64). Kuemper's Cody Williams has a gaudy .631 batting average. Top pitcher Chris Halbur, a sophomore, is 11-0 with a 1.45 earned run average. Kuemper hits .407 as a team.