Class 4A Substate 4

Linn-Mar (20-18) at No. 4 City High (29-12)

Where: Mercer Park in Iowa City  

When: Wednesday, 7 p.m.

Regular Season Meeting: City High swept doubleheader 3-0 and 6-2 on June 12.

Player to Watch: Linn-Mar senior first baseman Reese Phillips makes things go for the Lions. Phillips is hitting a team-best .432 and is coming off a 4-for-5, four-RBI performance in a semifinal win over Pleasant Valley.

About the Lions: Linn-Mar was below .500 entering July but has won six of its last eight to move one win away from its first state tournament berth since 2013.

The Lions avenged regular season losses in each of its first two playoff wins over Clinton and Pleasant Valley and will try to continue that trend on Wednesday after being swept by City High in a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader last month.

After using three pitchers to win its first two substate games it will be all hands on deck for the Lions who have eight pitchers with an ERA between 3.00 and 4.00 with more than 16 innings.

About the Little Hawks: It’s been a season to remember for City High which won the MVC Valley Division title and has already won 29 games. Win number 30 would give the Little Hawks their first trip to state since 2003. Brett McCleary and Bryce Frantz combined to no-hit Waterloo East in a 10-0 postseason-opening win for City High.  

That duo has paced a deep City High pitching staff all season combining for an 8-3 record and a 1.78 ERA.  

Breakdown: City High gets its shot at the breakthrough win it has been looking for against a familiar foe.

The Little Hawks have made a habit of getting their offense going late but will look for a quick start against a Linn-Mar pitching staff that has worked 16 innings in two substate wins.

City High had 19 hits in the regular season doubleheader against Linn-Mar and leads 4A with 301 runs this season.

Class 4A Substate 6

Davenport West (22-14) at No. 3 West High (30-8)

Where: West High

When: Wednesday, 7 p.m.

Regular Season Meeting: West High 10, Davenport West 3 on May 24

Player to Watch: The Davenport West offense starts with leadoff hitter Trevor Burkhart. The junior shortstop leads the Falcons with a .464 average and ranks second in 4A in both runs (57) and stolen bases (42).

About the Falcons: Davenport West is after its second consecutive state tournament appearance after falling to eventual champion Cedar Rapids Prairie 1-0 in the quarterfinals last season. Junior ace Clayton Nettleton (6-2, 2.17 ERA) was brilliant in the state tourney loss to Prairie last season and is expected to get the start tonight for the Falcons.

In three substate starts over the past two seasons the Iowa commit has allowed five hits and one walk while striking out 30 in 21 innings.

Nettleton spun a complete-game, one-hit shutout of Muscatine in the Falcon’s substate opener last Friday.

About the Trojans: Following a 6-5 stretch early in the season West High has quickly gotten to its patented postseason form, winning 19 of 22 down the stretch.

The Trojans are seeking a fourth consecutive state tournament berth after 4A runner-up finishes each of the past three seasons.

West High cruised past Davenport North 10-1 in the postseason opener and received a semifinal bye.

During its three-year state tournament run the Trojans have won three substate finals by a combined score of 26-7.

Breakdown: It is strength on strength as Nettleton faces a West High lineup that ranks among the best in the state.

Nettleton, who has a fastball that can reach into the 90s at times, has won his last three starts, allowing six hits in 20 1/3 innings.

The right-hander faces a West High lineup that leads 4A hitting .344 as a team and averages a 4A-best 7.8 runs per game.

All nine regulars in the West High lineup are hitting over .300 entering play on Wednesday and the Trojans have scored 10 or more runs nine times in their last 16 games.

Class 3A Substate 4

No. 5 Marion (30-10) at Solon (27-13)

Where: Solon

When: Wednesday, 7 p.m.

Regular Season Meeting: Marion swept a doubleheader winning both games 4-0 on June 30. Player to Watch: Marion senior second baseman Parker Ridge is hitting .435 and leads the Indians with 39 RBI from his leadoff spot.

About the Indians: Marion has relied heavily on a deep and talented pitching staff all season and the postseason has been no exception.

Senior Brady Donohue (8-2, 1.18 ERA) and sophomore Rick Atkins (6-1, 1.17 ERA) each turned in impressive complete game performances as Marion downed Maquoketa 9-1 and Cedar Rapids Xavier 4-2 in district play.

Donohue and Atkins join sophomore Trevor Paulson and junior Luke Golla as Marion pitchers with sub-.2.50 ERAs in more than 29 innings helping the Indians rank third in 3A with a 1.84 team ERA.

About the Spartans: Solon enters the substate final winners of nine straight and as hot as any team in Class 3A. The Spartans scored six unanswered runs in a 6-4 win over Central DeWitt in the district final and has scored at least six runs in every game during their current winning streak.

Solon is seeking a third trip to state in the past four seasons after reaching the 3A semifinals last season.

The Spartans have the offense to get back to Principal Park, led by junior shortstop Luke Ira.

A South Dakota State commit, Ira ranks third in 3A with a .522 average and leads Solon in runs (53), doubles (13) home runs (6) and RBI (39).

Breakdown: It’s pretty simple, for Solon to reverse the outcome of the two regular season meetings with the Indians it will need to find a way to score some runs against a talented Marion pitching staff.

Solon got solid pitching performances from Ira and sophomore Ryan Geistkemper in the regular season doubleheader but totaled just four hits and no runs in 15 innings against Marion pitching.

Class 2A Substate 5

No. 3 Wilton (26-6) vs. No. 9 Regina (26-7)

Where: Solon  

When: Wednesday, 5 p.m.

Regular Season Meeting: Wilton swept a doubleheader 7-2 and 3-0 on June 5.

Player to Watch: Senior third baseman Evan Reifert does a little bit of everything for Wilton, leading the Beavers in batting average (.462), runs (44), home runs (9), RBI (32) and stolen bases (20).

About the Beavers: Wilton has been one of the top programs in Class 2A in recent years but is still seeking its first state tournament trip since winning the 2005 title. The Beavers have won six of their last seven games, a stretch that includes an impressive 3-1 win over 3A second-ranked Davenport Assumption.

About the Regals: Regina enters the biggest game of the season to date playing its best baseball of the season. The Regals have won seven straight and 12 of 13 with the only loss in that stretch coming to 4A substate finalist Davenport West. Regina has picked up its offensive production in the postseason. The Regals had 25 hits and scored 21 runs in a pair of district wins and have scored eight or more runs in nine of their last 11 games.  

Breakdown: Two familiar foes meet again the postseason after Regina stunned Wilton 2-0 in the district final last season behind a stellar two-hit shutout from Ryne Schooley.

Schooley (5-1, 2.23 ERA) figures to get another shot at Wilton tonight after allowing two runs on four hits in six innings in an eight-inning regular season loss to the Beavers.

Wilton swept Regina in a regular season RVC doubleheader last season before the Regals won the postseason rematch.