Lisbon hopes to ride rubber-armed ace Morgan to state tournament

LISBON - He's Lisbon's rubber arm. The state's rubber arm.Almost.Marshall Morgan has thrown 95 2/3 innings this season for Class 1A's sixth-ranked Lions, in just under two months. The senior can tell you exactly where that stands as far as Iowa's heaviest pitching workload.“One-third of an inning behind the top guy,” Morgan said.Wapello's Greg Carpenter has logged 96 innings, and his team still is alive in the Class 2A postseason. Lisbon (33-7) plays No. 8 Preston (30-6) tonight at Calamus in a Class 1A substate final.There's no doubt who will be pitching the Lions.“I hope he has a rubber arm for at least one more game,” Lisbon Coach Ryan Stensland said, kidding. “He's in a core group of senior kids who we've kind of built around the last couple of years. He gives us a chance to win every time he pitches. He has pitched against small schools and big schools.”Morgan's 14 wins lead the state. He and Preston's Colton Bormann each threw nine shutout innings when they faced each other in the regular season, with Preston winning in the 10th, 1-0.Tonight's game literally could be the first team to score wins.“My games get spread out enough,” said Morgan (14-1 with a 1.68 earned run average). “We had a great off-season workout program, so my arm is in shape. I know that our best team is when I'm on the mound ... I love being out there, with everyone looking at me.”It should be pointed out the state has pitching limitations, so there is absolutely nothing nefarious going on here. Pitchers can throw 16 innings in a week, no more than nine in one day or two consecutive days.Weeks run Sunday to Saturday. Stensland stressed that pitch counts are more important than innings counts.Morgan strives to pitch to contact with a five-pitch arsenal, including a low-80's fastball.“Durability is definitely one of his strengths,” Stensland said. “He's a kid who plays baseball year around. He's one of the best pitchers in our area, and I think one of the best pitchers in the state.”He'll pitch in college, too, though its undecided where. He wants to go to Mount Mercy, with Dubuque being his fallback school.Mount Mercy Coach Desi Druschel was the home-plate umpire for a Lisbon game in which Morgan pitched earlier this season and liked what he saw enough to begin recruiting him.