5 Gazette area Iowa high school baseball games to watch: Conference titles on the line

This marks the last full week of the Iowa high school baseball season for all four classes. The postseason for Class 1A and 2A begins next week. An Iowa City clash and another battle between Upper Iowa Conference leaders highlight our five games to watch this week.

Monday: Iowa City High at Iowa City Liberty

The Little Hawks are ranked third in 4A, while the Lightning are No. 8. Both teams still entertain Mississippi Valley Conference divisional title hopes. Liberty leads Dubuque Wahlert by one game in the Mississippi Division. City High is two games back of top-ranked Cedar Rapids Kennedy, which swept the Little Hawks earlier this season.

Runs could be at a premium. The Little Hawks only allow a miniscule 1.9 runs per game. The Lightning give up just 3.5 a game. Jaxton Schroeder and Johannes Boevers are both 5-0 and Talon Young and Jake Mitchell have four wins apiece for the Little Hawks. Each has an earned-run average under 1.49. The Lightning counter with Mason Waterbury, who is 7-0 and has allowed four runs in seven appearances. Only one of those runs was earned, giving him a 0.19 ERA. Andrew Olthoff (4-2, 1.43 ERA) has been a strong No. 2 arm for Liberty.

City High leads the series, 7-3, and swept a doubleheader last year. Success could teeter on who can execute small ball to manufacture runs and produce timely hits.

Monday: Grinnell at Benton Community

The Tigers are a newcomer to the Wamac Conference. They have done well in a traditionally tough baseball conference. This meeting is to remain in the Wamac West Division race. 3A No. 8 Grinnell is 19-8 overall and 13-5 in the conference, tying Clear Creek Amana for tops in the division. Benton Community is a game back at 12-6 in Wamac play with a 22-9 overall mark. Grinnell has a 6-1 record against the Bobcats dating back to 2011, including a 4-3 victory last season.

The Tigers score 6.9 runs per game, exactly one run less than the Bobcats. Runs allowed averages are almost identical (4.3-4.2). Brady Coffman leads the Grinnell offense, batting .416 with 32 hits, 10 doubles, two triples, three home runs, 24 RBIs and 26 runs. Wyatt Rinderknecht leads Benton with 38 hits and owns a .380 batting average. Drew Fillenworth is a key contributor at the plate and on the mound for the Bobcats. He has a team-best 33 RBIs and has five wins, a 1.86 ERA and a team-high 37 strikeouts in 37 2/3 innings pitched.

Wednesday: Marion at Dyersville Beckman

These two programs had some battles when they were both in the Wamac. The Blazers are now in the River Vallet Conference, leading the North Division. Marion is tops in the Wamac East. Marion is ranked No. 2 in 3A, while defending state champion Beckman is fifth in 2A. This game says a lot about both teams, scheduling top programs in non-conference games to prepare for the postseason. The Blazers have a challenging week with 3A No. 4 Wahlert on Tuesday, Marion and 4A No. 1 Kennedy on Thursday. They will be battle-tested come district play. Beckman starts the week 15-6 after a doubleheader sweep of Anamosa. Marion is 21-3, dropping two to Clear Creek Amana.

The Wolves have battled injury as of late but still score 9.8 runs per game and allow just 2.8 per game. Beckman can light up the scoreboard as well, averaging 7.1 runs per game. Isaiah Scott leads the Wolves with 34 hits, while batting .459 with 40 runs and 21 RBIs. Teammate Trey Franck adds 31 RBIs and is hitting at a .409 clip. Elite all-state performer and leadoff batter Luke Sigwarth is a catalyst for Beckman. He bats .457 with a .573 on-base percentage, tallying 32 hits and scoring 29 runs. Drew Thier has 22 RBIs and 29 hits and Matthew Florence has 23 hits with a .418 average and 17 RBIs for the Blazers, who own an 18-10 lead in the series. Marion won 14-4 last year and has taken five of the last six meetings.

Thursday: Solon at Clear Creek Amana

Few teams have been as hot as the Clippers, who have won five straight, including a doubleheader sweep of then-No. 1 Marion. CCA has won seven of its last eight and nine of 11, dating back to June 10. The Clippers have sailed into a first-place tie atop the Wamac West. CCA scores 7.7 runs per game. Ty Fuller has scorched opposing pitchers, batting .540 with 47 hits. He has 12 doubles, 30 runs and 20 RBIs. Kaden Phan has made an impact offensively and defensively. He has 31 hits with a team-best 30 RBIs. Phan also has four wins and a 0.84 ERA.

Solon, ranked ninth in 3A, has won two straight and is coming off an 8-6 victory over No. 5 Sioux City Heelan. Gehrig Turner has amassed a team-high 35 hits with a .389 batting average and 23 RBIs. Maddox Kelley has driven in the most runs for Solon with 31. Kelley also has 30 hits, including eight extra-base hits. Vince Steinbrech leads the Spartans with five wins and 40 strikeouts in 35 2/3 innings. Solon owns a 23-7 lead in the series since 2009. Solon won two of three last season.

Thursday: MFL MarMac at South Winneshiek

The Upper Iowa Conference title will be on the line in this doubleheader. MFL MarMac is looking for its first conference title in baseball since 1982, when longtime Marion Coach Terry Heald was leading the program. The Bulldogs are trying to be the first team other than South Winn or Lansing Kee to win the UIC championship since 2017.

MFL MarMac (20-5, 13-2) won the first meeting, 1-0, on June 11. The Bulldogs’ Parker Kluehl tossed a four-hit shutout and Jaron Wille drove in Jaxon Millage for the lone run in that meeting. MFL MarMac has won five straight and 10 of its last 11. Kuehl leads the Bulldogs in hits with 31, hitting .383 overall and scoring 32 runs. Ben Krambeer paces MFL MarMac with 31 RBIs. Nick Krambeer leads the Bulldogs with four wins and 41 strikeouts in just 22 2/3 innings pitched.

South Winn swept Kee last week. The Warriors have a mix of experience and young talent. Sophomores Braden Todd and Carson Streeter lead at the plate and on the mound. Todd has 30 hits, 22 runs and 16 RBIs, while Streeter has 50 strikeouts in 32 1/3 innings pitched and a 1.08 ERA. Senior Parker Timp leads South Winn with 21 RBIs and has 25 hits and 22 runs. Classmate Kole Hageman has four wins and serves as the starting catcher, handling a staff that allows three runs per game. South Winn won two of three against MFL last year.

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