Jefferson duo highlights all-state softball teams

Larry Niemeyer called it “maybe the best overall infield I've ever had.”All of it has graduated. Half of it, today, is honored.Cedar Rapids Jefferson's Alex Jacobson and Morgan Allee were selected as part of the 20-girl Class 4A all-state first team, released by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association.“They're both very deserving,” said Niemeyer, the J-Hawks' head coach. “They're going to be hard to replace.”Allee batted .469, scored 40 runs and batted in 34. Jacobson hit .403 with 27 runs scored and 31 RBIs. They anchored the left side of the infield - Allee was the shortstop, Jacobson the third baseman.Jefferson advanced to the state tournament four times during the Allee-Jacobson years, falling short this summer in a regional final at Muscatine.The J-Hawks were 34-7 this season.Allee and Jacobson headline a list of 14 Gazette-area players to earn first-team accolades.Three of them came from Clear Creek Amana, which finished 39-7 and placed fourth in the 3A state tournament. Caitlin Wnek (.557, 91 RBIs, 29 doubles), Fran Strub (.548, 80 runs, 72 RBIs, 18 triples) and Katy Sexton (.493, 76 runs) highlighted a team that averaged nearly 9 runs per game and batted .405.Sexton was a senior; Strub and Wnek were sophomores.Maquoketa (34-7, fifth place in 3A) and Mount Vernon (31-14, fourth in 2A) had two first-teamers apiece.Maquoketa's Hailey Bickford was 20-2 on the mound and hit .579 with 39 RBIs while Kelsey Bollman batted .438 with 56 RBIs.Mount Vernon's Karly Cochrane batted .336 and scored 39 runs; Sarah Ryan hit .412 with 36 runs.Other area first-team picks are Abby Flannagan of West Delaware and Catie Flaucher of Independence in 3A and Julia Hunter of Iowa City Regina, Erica Soppe of state-qualifier Jesup and Bailey Bone of Monticello in 2A.