Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports  

Ben Swails is a future college baseball player committed to perennial power Iowa Western Community College.

The Clear Creek Amana senior is also a dynamic quarterback coming off a senior season in which he ranked in the top-six in Class 4A in touchdown passes and passing yards per game while being named district offensive player of the year.

For good measure Swails is a multi-event state track and field qualifier.

This winter though, the 6-foot-2 Swails is focused making his final basketball season a special one.

“Basketball has always been my number two sport,” Swails said. “I like to think I am pretty good at all four of my sports but if I had to pick one to play in college other than baseball it would be basketball.”

Swails has been more than pretty good at all four of his sports during a stellar prep career.

A two-year starter as an infielder for the Clippers baseball is the future for Swails who hit missed most of his junior baseball season with injury but hit .368 with a team-high 23 RBI as a sophomore.

In his only season as the full-time starting quarter for Clear Creek Amana Swails was electric this fall throwing for 1,715 yards and 19 touchdowns with just three interceptions in 10 games.

He has his sights set on trips to the Drake Relays and state track and field meet this spring but first Swails has a storybook ending in mind for his final season on the hardwood.

“I’m really excited for basketball and I’m taking this season really serious,” Swails said. “It’s a pretty close second with football but basketball has always been one of my loves.”

Swails was a key contributor off the bench for the Clippers the past two seasons helping Clear Creek Amana to a combined 38-12 record and a third-place finish at the 3A state tournament in 2020.

As a junior last season Swails averaged 7.2 points and 2.1 rebounds per game but has already taken on a much larger role this year.

“The biggest thing he brings js just being a leader and know what we want,” Clear Creek Amana coach Brandon Clubb said. “He’s played for us so he knows what he wants and he’s been in big games and in big moments in all sports so that’s something we are going to rely on from him with his leadership.”

A huge season on the football field this fall had Swails brimming with confidence as basketball season started.

That has shown up on the court.

Swails is tied team lead in scoring with fellow senior guard Kyle Schrepfer at 17 points per game helping Clear Creek Amana get off to a 4-0 start which propelled the Clippers to ninth in the Class 3A Associated Press poll released this week.

“I knew I was going to have to put that team on my back with guys like Gage and Harrison and that definitely gave me confidence because I know that I can do it,” Swails said. “Coming into basketball that definitely gave me some confidence.”

Swails had a career-high 30 points in a 72-50 win over Maquoketa and followed it up with 17-point, 7-rebound effort that included the game-winning tip-in as time expired in a 63-61 win at Grinnell.

Scoring is only one of the skills the multi-talented Swails brings to the table.

Through four games he is averaging 4.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 56 percent from the floor including 50 percent (5-of-10) from 3-point range.

“I look at Ben as kind of the Swiss Army Knife guy that can do anything for us,” Clubb said. “He can knock down some 3s, he gets to the rim really well, plays great defense, he is long and he can defend so just whatever we need him to do.”

The numbers are great but the biggest asset Swails brings to the Clippers is experience.

A multi-year starter in all four of his sports Swails understands his biggest impact comes in leading his younger teammates.

“Leadership is the number one key,” Swails said. “With the amount of young guys on this team, we have to teach those guys what it’s like to play in these games. Kyle and I have had the experience and we just have to drive those guys.”

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