Kennedy snags state berth with rout of Cedar Falls

CEDAR RAPIDS – Cedar Rapids Kennedy pitcher Sammy Lizarraga started off shaky, but his quick recovery delivered a Cougar whitewash.

The senior opened the Class 4A substate baseball final with Cedar Falls by uncharacteristically issuing a pair of walks before slamming the door on the Tigers with two first-inning strikeouts. From there, Lizarraga yielded just a run and a hit with four strikeouts as sixth-ranked Kennedy routed Cedar Falls, 18-1, in four innings Wednesday night at Herkelman Field.

'I guess the nerves got to me a little bit in the beginning,” said Lizarraga, who walked only five batters in 39 innings entering the game. 'But I ended up finishing strong, settled down a little bit and got more in a routine.”

The routine was hastened when the Kennedy batters popped Cedar Falls pitcher Austin Marchesani (4-1) for four runs in the bottom of the first inning, highlighted by RBI doubles from seniors Mitchell Gaffey and Kyle Brewer. Cedar Falls (22-14) threw four pitchers at Kennedy in three innings, but none were effective two days removed from appearing in an 11-inning district final at Linn-Mar.

'We got the big hit by Mitchell there in the bottom of the first,” Kennedy Coach Bret Hoyer said. 'That seemed to really kind of set the tone there, I thought. Things just took off from there.”

Buoyed by the first-inning cushion, Lizarraga (7-0) made quick work in the second. A swinging strikeout of Drew Marchesani set the Tigers down in order, allowing the Kennedy hitters to get back on the offensive.

Speedy senior Zach Daniels tripled home Bryce Church, then scored on a Lizarraga hit. A Tyler Dralle single scored courtesy runner Brandon Niemeyer, while Jackson Behn converted his second RBI sacrifice bunt in two innings. The Kennedy rout was on, 8-0.

'It was nice getting a four-spot that first inning,” Lizarraga said. 'The more we put on them, the more comfortable I got and it just made it a lot easier.”

After Cedar Falls got on the board with a hitless run in the top of the third, Kennedy turned the game into a laugher by scoring 10 runs in the bottom half. The first eight Cougar batters reached base and scored, beginning with junior Jacob Henry's two-run home run over the left-field fence. Gaffey closed the inning with a single that scored two more for an 18-1 lead and a season high in runs scored.

'I think we were all just ready to go and hyped up,” said Daniels, who reached base four times and scored three runs. 'Came out strong and just put it together.”

Kennedy earned a No. 2 seed and will open the Class 4A state tournament Wednesday, July 29, at 7:30 p.m. against Davenport North (19-14) at Principal Park in Des Moines.

It is the second straight trip to the state tournament for the Cougars, and the 12th in the past 16 years.

'It's awesome,” Daniels said. 'Not just for the senior class, but for the underclassmen. Give them some experience right now and let them know how fun it is.”

Kennedy lost in last year's 4A quarterfinal and won its only baseball state championship in 2010.

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