Kennedy Baseball

No. 3 Kennedy sweeps Ankeny Centennial

ANKENY - The Kennedy Cougars got more strong pitching Tuesday night and swept a doubleheader from Ankeny Centennial, 4-2 and 9-2, in Ankeny.

The third-ranked Cougars raised their record to 22-3.

Sammy Lizarraga (5-0) tossed a complete game in the opener. He allowed four hits and collected five strikeouts.

Tyler Dralle and Derek Jacobus had two hits for Kennedy in Game 1. Zach Daniels drove in two runs.

Daniels (6-0) pitched a complete game in the nightcap. He allowed four hits and struck out seven batters. Daniels also had two hits and three RBIs.

Ben Sass had three hits for Kennedy in Game 2. Dralle had two more safeties for the Cougars.

Ankeny Centennial fell to 15-8.

Game 1

Kennedy      001 000 3 - 4 7 0
Centennial   000 100 1 - 2 4 2

Game 2

Kennedy      050 310 0 - 9 14 2
Centennial   000 200 0 - 2 4 3

Cougars stay 3rd in baseball poll

The Kennedy Cougars stayed in the No. 3 spot in the Class 4A baseball rankings Monday by the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association.

Dubuque Hempstead remained in the No. 1 position in Class 4A. The showdown between Hempstead and Kennedy, scheduled for Monday night at Kennedy, was postponed and tentatively rescheduled for July 14.

No other Metro teams are ranked again this week.

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No. 3 Cougars blanked by Ottumwa

OTTUMWA - The Kennedy baseball team got more good pitching Thursday night, but this time it wasn't quite good enough.

The Ottumwa Bulldogs trimmed the third-ranked Cougars, 1-0, on a four-hit shutout by Steven Wilson.

Sophomore Jacob Henry allowed only four hits in six innings for Kennedy, but he was the hard-luck loser in a pitcher's duel.

Ottumwa (14-9) scored a run in the second inning and Wilson made it stand up.

Kennedy's record fell to 18-3.

Kennedy    000 000 0 - 0 4 0
Ottumwa    010 000 x - 1 4 0

W - Wilson. L - Henry.

'Zach! Zach! Zach!' blanks Saints again

The Kennedy Cougars invented a new chant in honor of junior Zach Daniels Wednesday night after he pitched a shutout against Xavier for the second time this year.

"Zach! Zach! Zach!" they sang as Daniels emerged from the visitors dugout at Ken Charipar Field for a post-game interview.

"It's a little annoying," the honoree said, smiling, "but that's OK."

Daniels tossed a five-hit shutout as No.3 Kennedy blanked the Saints, 1-0,in the second game of a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader.

Earlier this season, he pitched a one-hitter against Xavier and beat Mitch Keller in the semifinals of the Metro Tournament. Kennedy won the opener Wednesday, 13-4.

Daniels has thrown 14 innings against the Saints this year, allowing just six hits and no runs.

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