Metro Sports Report

The mailman brings new 'Friends' every day

Fri - 30 Oct Written by Jim Ecker

I'm like a kid again, waiting anxiously for the mailman to arrive so I can rip open the letters and see what's inside.

It reminds me of my high school days, waiting for letters from colleges to see if I'd been accepted or not. The University of Michigan finally said yes, after putting me on the waiting list, so that was a great day for the Ecker family.

It also reminds me of my senior year at college, when I wrote all those letters to the Detroit Free Press, Detroit News, New York Times, Yonkers Herald-Statesman and Ann Arbor News to see if they'd give me a job in their sports department. The answers were No, No, No, No and No, so that got a little discouraging.

Finally, one of my journalism professors at Michigan told me that a little newspaper in Fort Madison, Iowa, was looking for a sports editor. It wouldn't pay much at $148 per week and I'd have to cover the Lee County Board of Supervisors and occasional prison breaks -- in addition to a half-dozen high schools and the rodeo -- but I was 22 and anxious to get started.

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Kirkwood looks to take next step

Fri - 30 Oct Written by Jim Ecker

Bryan Petersen has done a good job as the men's basketball coach at Kirkwood Community College the past two years.

Now he wants more.

Petersen led the Eagles to a 21-10 record during the 2013-14 season as their rookie head coach, then followed with a 25-7 mark last season.

"We want to take the next step," Petersen said Thursday after practice at Johnson Hall. "We've knocked on the door a little bit, but it's time. We have to find a way to get Kirkwood back to conference champs and going to the national tournament.

"This team has the potential to do that," he said. "I think we're a long ways away from it, but it's something we're thinking about on a daily basis."

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Mustangs have new coach, same goals

Fri - 30 Oct Written by Jim Ecker

Aaron Jennings switched jobs at Mount Mercy University last week, becoming the head coach of the men's basketball team after leading the women's program for the past seven years.

Comically, he noticed the change right away. His new players are a lot taller than his former players.

"At the very first practice, that was one of the things I noticed the most," he said, laughing. "All right, bring it in guys -- And they're all just right there at eye level."

That's saying a lot, because Jennings stands 6-foot-8 and used to tower over his players on the women's basketball team.

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Haley Stecklein of Cedar Rapids Prairie bumps a serve from Waterloo West into scoring position during Thursday night's 3-0 victory in the Class 5A regional semifinals at Prairie. (MSR photo by Margaret O'Banion).

Prairie sweeps into 5A regional finals

Thu - 29 Oct Written by Jim Ecker

Kate Busswitz was in grade school the last time the Cedar Rapids Prairie volleyball team made it to the state tournament.

"I was like 11 years old," she said Thursday night, smiling at the distant memory.

Now a polished 6-foot-1 high school senior, Busswitz and the Prairie Hawks need one more victory to reach the state tournament for the first time since 2008 and for only the third time in school history.

Prairie swept Waterloo West, 27-25, 25-18, 25-13, in the Class 5A regional semifinals Thursday to get one step closer to the promised land.

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Kennedy tailback Tyler Dralle ran for 220 yards and two touchdowns Wednesday night in Kennedy's 59-0 victory over Clinton in the Class 4A playoffs at Kingston Stadium. (MSR photo by Ken Gilchrist)

Cougars nearly perfect in 59-0 romp

Wed - 28 Oct Written by Jim Ecker

Perfection is impossible to achieve in a high school football game, but the Kennedy Cougars came awfully close Wednesday.

The fourth-ranked Cougars spanked Clinton, 59-0, in the opening round of the Class 4A playoffs on a cold, blustery night at Kingston Stadium to cruise into the Round of 16.

Kennedy will host another game at Kingston Monday night.

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