South Winneshiek prepared to peak for the high school baseball postseason

South Winneshiek’s season started without a familiar face and some fresh ones.

Offseason injury prevented all-state pitcher Carson Streeter from suiting up this season. So, the Warriors had to rely heavily on the returning talent and development inexperienced personnel.

“Our goal coming in was to show a lot of growth throughout the year,” South Winn Coach Alex Smith said. “Try to play our best baseball at the end, get settled into some positions and establish what our pitching staff was going to look like. I think we made good progress.”

As the high school baseball postseason begins Saturday for Class 1A and 2A, South Winn has displayed that improvement from the start of the season. The Warriors are 17-13 after opening the season with three straight losses and host Edgewood-Colesburg in a 1A District 5 first-round game Saturday in Calmar.

South Winn has won nine of its last 13 games, including a stretch of six straight capped by a victory over 2A No. 10 Sumner-Fredericksburg. Ed-Co is 4-17.

“I think we’re peaking at the right time,” Smith said. “We have shown some growth. Hopefully, it put us in the best place to be at our best come Saturday.”

Streeter was named third-team all-state utility player a year ago, tying for the team lead in RBIs and third in hits. On the mound, he recorded seven wins, one save and 92 strikeouts in 66 1/3 innings with a 1.27 earned run average. Big shoes to fill but other players have picked up any slack.

Braiden Todd, a 2024 first-team all-state selection, has been a leader at the plate and on the mound for the Warriors. He has a team-best five wins, 53 strikeouts and 2.27 ERA. He paces South Winn with a .482 batting average, .603 on-base percentage, 41 hits, 39 RBIs and 72 total bases. His 33 runs is second to Nolan Sabelka’s 37.

“He’s been in our lineup for several years and he’s been the key cog in the offensive lineup. We’ve had several other guys step up to go along with him. We’ve had different guys step up throughout the lineup. It’s been fun to see.”

South Winn has shown its pitching depth with seven pitchers logging double-digit innings this season. Todd is joined by junior Carver Wenthold (4-2, 2.54 ERA) and eighth-grader Hayden Tieskoetter (3-1, 3.79 ERA) as possible top options in the postseason. Their ability to consistently throw strikes has prevented free bases and damage when errors occur.

“We have three pitchers at the top of our rotation that I think are peaking at the right time,” Smith said. “They kind of give us a good chance when we start up on Saturday.”

The Warriors have produced postseason success in recent years. They reached the state baseball tournament six times overall and five of those appearances have come since 2019. Players have experienced playoff baseball or they’ve watched it from the dugout and stands. They know the demands to play well and have put in the work all season.

“There is an expectation when it comes to the postseason we’re going to make a run at it and be highly competitive,” Smith said. “We have quality teams as we progress through the tournament.

“They know when it comes to July baseball we want to put our best foot forward. They’ve seen the brand of baseball we need to play, in terms of pitching at a high level, playing good defense, getting timely hits and doing little things well on the base paths.”

POSTSEASON ASSIGNMENTS

FIRST ROUND

Saturday

CLASS 2A

District 5

At Alburnett

Cascade vs. West Branch, 5 p.m.

Hudson at Alburnett, 7 p.m.

Denver, Iowa City Regina receive byes

District 6

At Arlington

Oelwein vs. Crestwood, 5 p.m.

North Fayette Valley at Starmont, 7 p.m.

Grundy Center, Sumner-Fredericksburg receive byes

District 7

At Durant

West Liberty vs. Camanche, 5 p.m.

Tipton at Durant, 7 p.m.

Mediapolis, Northeast receive byes

District 8

At Monona

Clayton Ridge vs. Waukon, 5 p.m.

Postville at MFL MarMac, 7 p.m.

Bellevue Marquette, Dyersville Beckman receive byes

District 11

At Des Moines

(James W. Cownie Baseball Park)

PCM vs. East Marshall, 5 p.m.

Pella Christian at Grandview Christian, 7 p.m.

Mid-Prairie, Pleasantville receive byes

District 12

At Aplington

Monticello vs. Union Community, 5 p.m.

Jesup at Aplington-Parkersburg, 7 p.m.

Anamosa, Dike-New Hartford receive byes

CLASS 1A

District 5

Turkey Valley at Maquoketa Valley, 7 p.m.

Lansing Kee receives a bye

At Calmar

Riceville vs. Nashua-Plainfield, 5 p.m.

Edgewood-Colesburg at South Winneshiek, 7 p.m.

District 6

At Mason City

Gladbrook-Reinbeck vs. Waterloo Columbus, 5 p.m.

Clarksville at Mason City Newman, 7 p.m.

At Janesville

BCLUW vs. South Hamilton, 5 p.m.

Dunkerton at Janesville, 7 p.m.

District 7

Midland at Lisbon, 7 p.m.

North Linn receives a bye

At Traer

Calamus-Wheatland vs. Easton Valley, 5 p.m.

Prince of Peace at North Tama, 7 p.m.

District 8

At Belle Plaine

Springville vs. Don Bosco, 5 p.m.

Iowa Valley at Belle Plaine, 7 p.m.

At Winthrop

BGM vs. GMG, 5 p.m.

North Cedar at East Buchanan, 7 p.m.

District 9

At Lisbon

Montezuma vs. Lone Tree, 5 p.m.

Sigourney receives a bye

At Highland

HLV vs. Hillcrest Academy, 5 p.m.

English Valleys vs. Highland, 7 p.m.

District 10

At Moravia

Pekin vs. Van Buren, 5 p.m.

Danville at Moravia, 7 p.m.

At New London

Keota vs. Burlington-Notre Dame, 5 p.m.

Wapello at New London, 7 p.m.

Comments: k.j.pilcher@thegazette.com