In a region littered with upsets, Mount Vernon still upright

Her team was exposed in its final two regular-season games. And Mount Vernon softball coach Robin Brand was grateful.

'(Solon Coach Jim White) is very good about finding a team's weaknesses, and he certainly found ours,' Brand said about the Spartans' doubleheader sweep of the Mustangs last week, which forced a tie for the Wamac Conference East Division softball championship.

'So those games were very beneficial to us, because it gave us three things to work on.'

And those three things are?

'I'm not saying,' Brand said. 'But they were already better (in a 12-0 first-round regional win over Columbus Community on Wednesday).'

A pair of quarterfinal upsets in Class 3A Region 5 made the eighth-ranked Mustangs' path to Fort Dodge a little more smooth.

Monticello's 8-3 win over Anamosa and East Marshall's 3-2, 10-inning triumph over Union leaves Mount Vernon (26-15) as the lone plus-.500 team remaining in the region.

The Mustangs host Monticello (14-14) in a regional semifinal at 7 p.m. Friday.

'Honestly, yes, it was a surprise,' Brand said of Monticello's win over Anamosa. 'But you never know. It sounds like Monticello hit the ball hard.'

The postseason marches on with regional semifinals in 1A, 2A and 3A Friday, and 4A and 5A Saturday.

Wednesday's slate was littered with surprises in the area. A 30-win Central City team was ousted by a sub-.500 Bellevue Marquette squad in 1A. Cascade was taken down by Bellevue in 2A.

And Alburnett moved to 20-18 with a 5-1 win over Tri-Rivers Conference champion Lisbon. The Pirates go back to Lisbon on Friday to face North Linn (25-13), a 6-5 road victor against Jesup.

'The (regular) season hadn't gone like we wanted, but we have a goal,' Alburnett pitcher Amber Porter said. 'We know what we want.'

The upset bug has not yet reached the top level; all area ranked teams remain alive in 1A, 2A and 3A. That includes 1A top-rated Lansing Kee, the defending small-school state champion. Kee High (33-2) hosts Starmont (13-21) at New Albin.

FRIDAY'S CLASS 3A REGIONAL SEMIFINALS

All Games, 7 p.m.

Region 4

New Hampton (25-14) at Center Point-Urbana (27-10)

Crestwood (23-7) at West Delaware (27-14)

Region 5

Monticello (14-14) at Mount Vernon (26-15)

East Marshall (16-17) vs. Vinton-Shellsburg (13-27), at La Porte City

Region 6

Camanche/Northeast winner at Davenport Assumption (37-1)

Central Lee/West Burlington-Notre Dame winner at West Liberty (21-13)

Region 7