Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The Fourth of July has passed and playoff baseball is right around the corner.

The baseball postseason gets underway on Saturday with opening round games in Classes 1A and 2A with 3A and 4A getting into the act on Friday.

Every team has the goal of reaching the state tournament which is scheduled to run July 22-26 at Merchants Park in Carroll (1A and 2A) and Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids (Class 3A and 4A).

Before the first pitches of the postseason are thrown we take a look at a few things to watch for area teams as the postseason gets underway.

West Branch Eyeing Postseason Push to Cap Strong Season

It has already been a season of impressive growth for West Branch under second-year head coach Reid Bonner.

West Branch (13-12) has equaled its win total from the previous two seasons combined while winning double digit games and posting its highest win total since 2019.

Now the Bears will look to put the finishing touches on a strong season with a postseason push.

If West Branch is to make a substate run it will need to do it away from home.

The Bears open the postseason on Saturday at Jesup (16-9) in a Class 2A, District 9 quarterfinal and with a win would travel to Alburnett (24-11) for the District 9 semifinals.

Eighth-ranked Sumner-Fredericksburg (20-4) is the top seed in a District 9 field in which all six teams enter with a winning record.

Regina Ready to Reverse Close Calls

The regular season was filled with near misses for Regina which went 1-9 in one-run games on its way to a 14-18 record.

Regina opened the season with an 8-7 win over Clear Creek Amana but lost its final nine games decided by a single run.

Overall, the Regals were 5-13 in games decided by three runs or less this season.

As the postseason approaches Regina will attempt to reverse its regular season struggles in close games.

Regina opens the postseason against the winner of Saturday’s game between Cascade (11-12) and Clayton Ridge (8-16) on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Dyersville Beckman.

With a win in the District 7 semifinals on Tuesday the Regals would set up a potential district title matchup with fifth-ranked and defending 2A champion Dyersville Beckman (17-10) on July 13 at 7 p.m.

Regina has shown the ability to beat good teams with wins over 1A ninth-ranked Algona Garrigan, 3A eighth-ranked Solon and two wins over River Valley Conference South Division champion Mid-Prairie.

The key to a postseason run for Regina may be winning close games, something it struggled to do for most of the season.

Surging Solon Seeking State Tournament Return

It has been a while since Solon made a state tournament appearance.

The Spartans last qualified for state in 2018 but are hitting stride at the right time for a serious postseason push this season.

Surging Solon (26-10) has won five straight and nine of their last 10 games and will open Class 3A, Substate 4 play on Friday by hosting Vinton-Shellsburg (6-22) in a quarterfinal.

It will be a familiar postseason path for the Solon which has already posted its highest win total since 2021.

Last season Solon defeated Clear Creek Amana 2-0 in a substate quarterfinal before falling to Dubuque Wahlert in the substate final.

This season the Spartans could face Clear Creek Amana (20-14) for a third time this season in the semifinals and third-ranked Dubuque Wahlert (24-8) is the top seed in Substate 4.

Solon has the elements needed for a postseason run.

The Spartans enter the postseason red hot, featuring the best offensive player in Class 3A in senior Baylor commit Brett White (.387, 10 HR 50 Runs) and a solid 1-2 pitching punch in senior Vince Steinbrech (6-0, 2.95 ERA) and junior Jackson Link (6-1, 1.92 ERA).

Rivalry Week for Clear Creek Amana

What’s the only thing more exciting for a team than prepping for the postseason?

Postseason matchups against two of your biggest rivals.

Clear Creek Amana has the potential to open postseason play with back-to-back rivalry games starting with a Class 3A, Substate 7 quarterfinal against Williamsburg (11-21) on Friday in Tiffin.

The Clippers swept Williamsburg in a WAMAC doubleheader on June 24 winning the two games by a combined score of 26-5 and has won eight straight over the Raiders scoring double digit runs in five of those games.

If Clear Creek Amana can win its substate opener against the Raiders it will likely get a rematch with WAMAC rival Solon which swept a doubleheader from the Clippers on June 27 and knocked the Clippers out of the postseason with a 2-0 win in the substate semifinals last season.

Clear Creek Amana has been among the best offensive teams in 3A this season hitting .354 as a team led by juniors Ty Fuller (.478, 38 runs), Maclane Morgan (.462 12 extra-base hits) and Kaden Phan (.400, 5 HR, 38 RBI).

City High Trying to Ride Pitching, Defense Back to State

Strong pitching and defense can take a team a long way.

City High is hoping stellar pitching and excellent defense will take it back to the state tournament for a third consecutive season and fourth time in the past five seasons.

Third-ranked City High (31-6) has once again been one of the best teams in the state this season and has done it behind its patented formula of strong pitching and solid defense.

City High ranks second in Class 4A with a 1.77 team ERA, is fourth in 4A in opponents batting average at .194 and is second in fielding percentage at .961.

That combination will once again have the Little Hawks in position to play for a state title.

City High is the top seed in Class 4A, Substate 7 and will open postseason play against Clinton (5-25) a team the Little Hawk defeated 2-0 last month.

With a quarterfinal win City High would earn a bye to the Substate title game.

Junior Talon Young (4-2, 1.51 ERA) headlines a talented City High pitching staff that features senior left-handers Jake Mitchell (4-0, .92 ERA) and Johannes Boevers (6-0, 1.14 ERA), hard throwing senior Max Waldschmidt (3-2, 2.97 ERA) and impressive junior lefty Jaxton Schroeder (6-0, 1.22 ERA).

West High Ready to Make Noise in Strong Substate 7

With three 20-win teams and four teams currently at .500 or better Substate 7 is among the best top to bottom brackets in the 4A field.

If you are looking for a potential surprise team in substate 7 look no further than West High.

Winners of five of their last eight games the Trojans are playing their best at the right time and are coming off a doubleheader split with seventh-ranked Liberty High on Friday.

West High (16-20) travels to Cedar Rapids Prairie (23-11) for a substate 7 quarterfinal on Friday after splitting a doubleheader with the Hawks on June 14 dropping game one 3-0 and winning the nightcap 3-2.

The Trojans are playing their best right now and have shown an ability to knock off good competition with wins over Liberty High, Western Dubuque and Dubuque Wahlert in the last month.

Senior Jacob Koch (.318, 3 HR, 27 RBI) leads a improving West High offense and junior Kyle Cherry (5-4, 3.30 ERA) and sophomore Owen Harms (2-1, 2.04) are quickly become a dangerous front of the rotation duo.

Liberty High Enters Postseason in New Role Seeking Similar Result

The past two seasons Liberty High has been the surprise in the Class 4A postseason, reaching back-to-back state tournaments as a substate underdog.

That won’t be the case this season as the seventh-ranked Lightning enter postseason play top-seeded in Class 4A, Substate 8.

It is a well-deserved top-seed for No. 7 Liberty High (23-13) which is one win away from matching the program single-season record for wins.

Liberty High hosts Waterloo East (12-18) in a Substate 8 quarterfinal and with a win would get a bye to the title game.

Liberty High junior left-hander has emerged as one of the best pitching in 4A this season posting a 9-0 record, .14 ERA and .71 WHIP while striking out 53 in 51 innings.

The anticipated substate final matchup would be Waterbury facing off with a potent Davenport North (28-11) offensive led by slugger Klayton Bolkema.

Davenport North leads 4A in team batting average (.354), is third in runs (321) and fourth in home runs (16) and Bolkema is a big part batting .430 with six home runs and 53 RBI while drawing 38 walks.

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