Big inning powers Don Bosco

TROY MILLS - Don Bosco's Alex Bagby stood on second base and threw his arms in the air, commanding some excitement.

The gesture may not have been the catalyst, but the sixth-ranked Dons seemed to answer his call.

Don Bosco sent 15 batters to the plate and tallied 11 runs in that second inning, rolling to a 16-0 win in four innings over North-Linn in an Iowa High School Athletic Association Class 1A District 8 semifinal Thursday night at North-Linn.

'It's just one of those nights of baseball where everything was going your way,” said Don Bosco Coach Blaine Rhoads, adding the final score was not indicative of North-Linn's talent. 'It was just our night. We were swinging well.”

After a scoreless first, Bagby led the big inning off with a double, scored and added an RBI double in his second trip to the plate before the Lynx recorded an out. The Dons had six hits and three walks, capitalizing on seven Lynx errors.

'I came into this game fired up and ready to go,” Bagby said. 'I noticed my team wasn't getting into it as much as I was. I wanted to be a leader and get them fired up.”

Travis Havel, who earned the win to improve to 8-0, helped himself with a two-run double and an RBI single in the inning. Havel added an RBI single in the five-run third. Dalton Smith ripped a three-run double for the Dons.

Bagby said he tried to motivate his teammates and prevent them from coasting.

'I wanted to make a statement with this game,” Bagby said. 'Scare other teams that are about to play us.”

Don Bosco (28-3) is looking to return to the state tournament. Last year, the Dons dropped an extra-inning heartbreaker to eventual runner-up van Buren in the quarterfinals.

'We want to get back there,” Don Bosco senior Brandon Zumbach said. 'We have a chance and go further than last year. It's been a big focus since the first day of practice.”

Havel was effective and only threw three innings. The Dons are two wins away and have plenty of pitching options.

'He got the job done,” Rhoads said. 'We got him out. That is what we wanted to do. Hopefully, we can use him down the road.”

North-Linn finished the season 19-21-1, playing better the last half of the season. Jacob Rawson, Brad Pflughaupt and Logan Novak each had a hit for North-Linn.

The young Lynx couldn't regain their composure after momentum swung in Don Bosco's favor. North-Linn coach Travis Griffith said they ran into a buzz saw after the game.

'I'm not so sure it was what we didn't do as much as what they did do,” Griffith said. 'They are one of the best 1A ball clubs.”

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