Metro Sports Report

Craig, Aikey sparkle for Emil's

Strong pitching was the name of the game for Emil's Hideaway in the Iowa Women's Softball League Sunday.

Brooke Craig from UNI and Kelsey Aikey from Western Kentucky tossed a pair of gems as Emil's Hideaway swept a doubleheader from Construction  Materials at Coe.

Craig spun a three-hit shutout with seven strikeouts as Emil's Hideaway took the first game, 13-0, in five innings.

Aikey tossed a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts as Emil's rallied for a 3-1 verdict in the nightcap. The only run against Aikey was unearned.

The sweep lifted Emil's Hideaway to 6-6 for the campaign and moved them into second place in the standings behind Ironside Apparel, which  has a three-game lead at 9-3.

Adara Opiola of UNI went 2-for-4 for Emil's in the first game with a triple and two RBIs. Mallory McArtor of Coe had two hits and Taylor Bell of Waldorf scored three runs.

Alyssa Wiebel of Illinois State went 2-for-2 with a double for Construction Materials in the first game.

4 Eagles playing for U.S. in Canada Cup

Taylor Nearad, Maddie Hansen, Lexi Kinnaird and Morgan Frost of Kirkwood were four of the top junior college softball players in the United States the past two years.

Now they hope to shine on an international stage as well.

Nearad, Hansen, Kinnaird and Frost are members of the NJCAA National  Team that is playing in the Canada Cup International Softball Championship in Surrey, British Columbia. Kirkwood Coach Joe Yegge is a member of the coaching staff for the NJCAA all-stars.

The tournament begins today and will run through July 17.

Nearad, a center fielder, was a two-time All-American and two-time National Player of the Year at Kirkwood. She hit .516 with 19 homers and 80 RBIs this season.

Hansen, a catcher, also was a two-time All-American. She hit .534 with 19 homers and 92 RBIs this year.

LED lights illuminate Norway field

NORWAY - The history of baseball in this small Eastern Iowa town is legendary.

Much of that history has taken place on the Norway Baseball Field that served as home to the 20-time state high school champion Norway Tigers until the school closed in 1991.

Now, thanks to the Norway Baseball Association, a group of Norway baseball boosters, headed up by former Norway baseball coach Jim Van Scoyoc, the field with so much history associated with it has undergone a number of upgrades, ensuring more baseball memories will be made in future years.

The latest upgrade was the installation of LED lighting. The  state-of-the-art lighting system, created by Musco Lighting, was first used on June 7.

"The lights have worked as advertised," Van Scoyoc said. "Musco leads the field in this and it really shows.

"I was out working on the field one day and they were testing them," he said. "I looked right into them and it about blinded me. They are powerful."

The field, the home of the Iowa Valley League's Norway Bandits, became part of the Benton Community School District when Norway closed. Since then the field had been used for a variety of baseball events. As time passed, the field began to need upgrades.

Corson lifts Norway to IVL split

NORWAY - Norway had little time to recover from a 9-3 loss to Red Top in the first game of an Iowa Valley League twinbill Sunday.

The Bandits were held hitless for five innings by Red Top starter Cole McDonald, scoring late off the Red Top bullpen.

Enter Brady Corson.

The left-hander survived a rough first inning in Game 2, giving up a run and a pair of hits. He would give up nothing after that, walking only two the rest of the way as the Bandits rolled to a 10-1 victory to earn a split.

Corson, a Cedar Falls High School graduate who just finished his sophomore season at Cal-State San Marcos, had what had been a hot hitting Red Top unit off balance much of the game.

"Coming out of the bullpen I felt good tonight," Corson said. "The defense behind me played great. We had a tough first inning but we still made it work.

"I felt like I had my command as I kept going," he said. "It wasn't just me. I got a lot of help from the defense."