CCA’s Schlotman comes up big

IOWA CITY - The little kid with a big heart delivered in his first varsity start.

Don't be fooled by the stature of Clear Creek Amana freshman Kobey Schlotman. His 5-foot-3, 105-pound frame holds a competitive nature for someone twice his size.

Schlotman threw five shutout innings, allowing only two hits, and helped the Clippers drop Class 2A 10th-ranked Iowa City Regina, 5-3, last night at Regina High School.

Clear Creek Amana Coach Brent Henry described Schlotman as a 'bulldog” on the mound, exuding confidence that earned the non-conference start.

'He was lights out,” Henry said. 'I couldn't be prouder of the work he has out in so far. Obviously, it shows on the diamond.”

The Clippers (13-7) scored in the top of the first when Cody Wagner's groundout drove in Jacob Klingeman, who led off the game with a single. The lead before throwing a pitch helped tame the pregame butterflies.

'I was kind of nervous,” Schlotman said. 'I just took a deep breath and just played catch with my catcher.”

Schlotman didn't face more than five batters in an inning, retiring the Regals in order in the first and third innings. He struck out three and only walked one, nibbling on the corners and hitting the strike zone.

'He threw strikes and changed speeds,” Henry said. 'You do that and you're going to have success, and he did that with the best of them (Tuesday).”

The young thrower, who is listed as a catcher and infielder on the roster, has been a key figure on the Clippers' sophomore and junior varsity squad until a couple weeks ago. He had one other varsity appearance, throwing a little more than two innings. A strong work ethic and competitive nature led to the call.

'He made us pull him up and obviously it was the right decision,” Henry said. 'He gets after it and he's cool and calm in any situation.”

Schlotman was quick to praise his teammates, including a solid defense that committed one error and an offense that ripped 12 hits.

'It went pretty good,” Schlotman said. 'My fielders played great. The hitters helped me as well.”

All but one starter had a hit, including two apiece from Nile Rourke, Jake Neubauer, Wagner and Drake Shores. The Clippers increased their lead to 3-0 in the third. Rourke scored after a base hit from Neubauer, who scored on a Stephen Jensen fielder's choice. Jensen had two RBIs, adding a sacrifice fly that scored Neubauer in the two-run fifth. Tanner Bandy closed the scoring RBI single.

'We came out right from the start and got an early lead,” Henry said. 'We continued to extend it. … That's something we've been talking about.”

CCA has matched its win total from last season, which doubled the six wins in both the 2012 and 2011 seasons. The Clippers have continued to improve and the results show it.

'We're really happy with where we're headed,” Henry said. 'The future continues to look bright. The upperclassmen have put in their time and I couldn't be happier, after several years of down baseball, to experience relative success so far.”

The Regals (13-12) made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh. They earned a couple walks of reliever Robby Swails. Payton Raso's groundout scored Nick Phillips for the first run. Jake Brinkman ripped a triple to deep center then scored when the ball slipped away during the relay, driving in Zach Galindo and making it 5-3. Riley Dixon had two of Regina's four hits.

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