Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

SOLON – The rankings consider Clear Creek Amana’s win over seventh-ranked Solon on Tuesday an upset.

Some across the state will see the Clippers’ 6-2 victory in the Class 3A, Substate 4 semifinals as a surprise.

To the Clippers Tuesday was a showcase into the type of team they have believed they’ve been all season.

Reece Cochrane tossed five strong innings and Robert Meade homered for the second postseason game in a row as Clear Creek Amana (23-15) avenged a regular season sweep to the Spartans last month and advanced to the substate title game.

“We know how we can play,” Cochrane said. “We can beat any team and if we play well, like we did tonight we know we are as good as any team out there.”

Meade hit an opposite field two-run homer in the first inning to set the tone as Clear Creek Amana jumped to a 6-0 lead two innings into the game.

Leadoff hitter Ty Fuller had a two-run single in the second and Cochrane and relieve Luke Young took care of the rest setting up a Substate title game showdown with Dubuque Wahlert (32-9) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at McAleece Park and Recreation Complex in Dubuque.

“When we are fielding the ball clean we can win a lot of games,” Meade said. “Our bats are hot, we are one of the hottest hitting teams in the state, I feel like we can do anything.”

Clear Creek Amana never held a lead in either game when Solon swept the Clippers in a WAMAC Conference doubleheader on June 27 in Tiffin.

On Tuesday Meade gave the Clippers an early lead they would never give up.

The junior first baseman hammered a first pitch fastball just inside the right field foul pole to give the Clippers a 2-0 lead and an early boost.

“It was huge,” Meade said. “That got the energy up and hitting I feel like is a lot of energy. We put up four runs the next inning.”

The Clippers tacked on four more runs in the second on successive singles by Young, Luke Higdon and Fuller.

Kaden Phan had an RBI groundout in the second that gave the Clippers a 6-0 lead.

“If you look at the stats we have the best offense in 3A,” Clear Creek Amana coach Bryan McCray said. “We aren’t always consistent, we are a little feast or famine but if we can make adjustments I’d put us up against anybody in the state.”

Cochrane and Young made the early lead stand up.

A junior left-hander, Cochrane stuck out seven and walked four in five innings, allowing just one run on two hits.

“When he is in the zone we’ll put him up against anybody,” McCray said. “He has really good stuff, he generates a lot of swing and miss but he always generates a lot of week contact and that’s what we need. The way our bats are we can hang with anybody in the state.”

Solon (28-12) had a golden opportunity to get back into the game in the third inning loading the bases with one out.

Ty Bell, who drew a walk to leadoff the inning, scored on a wild pitch but Cochrane escaped further damage getting Gehrig Turner swinging for the second out and getting Vince Steinbrech to ground out to second.

“That was the turning point of the game,” Fuller said. “That showed us that we were going to win that game, even though we knew it wasn’t over after that we knew we had the game on lock.”

Solon got a run in the seventh on an RBI single by Brett White and loaded the bases with two outs but Young got Maddox Kelley to ground out to second to end the game.

“Coach told us in the huddle we don’t even know our full potential yet,” Fuller said. “We haven’t seen a full complete game yet so to see us win like this we know we are back.”

Clear Creek Amana              240  000  0  –  6  7  0

Solon                                      001  000  1  –  2  6  1             

W – Reece Cochrane                         L – Jackson Link

2B – SOL: Vince Steinbrech. CCA: Maclane Morgan

HR – CCA: Robert Meade

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