Metro Sports Report

Kuhn tosses 1-hitter for Marion

SOLON - David Kuhn pitched a one-hitter as the Marion Indians bopped Solon, 9-1, in the opening round of the Class 3A district baseball tournament at Solon Friday night.

Kuhn tossed a complete game and struck out eight batters.

Marion raised its record to 24-16 with the convincing victory. The Indians will face Dubuque Wahlert (19-19) in the district finals Monday at 7 p.m. at Solon. The substate finals will be played next Wednesday night at a site to be determined.

Marion scored first against Solon on a single by Maverick Miller and an RBI double by John Carstensen.

Gordon riding 15-game streak for Kernels

Nick Gordon does not have a cool nickname like his father, Tom "Flash" Gordon, but somebody might have to think of something if he keeps playing like this for the Cedar Rapids Kernels.

Gordon hit safely in his 15th straight game Thursday night as the Kernels lost to the Burlington Bees, 5-4, before 2,618 fans at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Gordon's batting average dropped to .222 on May 25, but he's raised the mark to .267 and ranks among the Midwest League leaders in runs scored, stolen bases and hits.

Big crowd sees J-Hawks nip Prairie

An overflow crowd filled every nook-and-cranny at Larry Niemeyer Field on Tuesday night to watch two premier softball teams battle for a spot in the Class 5A state tournament.

When it ended, the fans gave both teams a standing ovation after the third-ranked Jefferson J-Hawks edged the Prairie Hawks, 3-2, to claim a cherished trip to the state tournament next week in Fort Dodge.

Jefferson (35-7) will face Linn-Mar (25-17) in the quarterfinals at 3:30 p.m. Monday.

"Very rarely do I look outside the fence during a game," said Jefferson coach Brian Erbe. "I really, truly don't, believe it or not. But holy cow, I looked around and I just couldn't believe it.

Lions pound Falcons for trip to state

The magic is back.

Seven years since their last go-around in the state softball tournament, the Linn-Mar Lions will return to Fort Dodge next week after drubbing Davenport West, 12-2, in six innings Tuesday night in the Class 5A regional finals on the Kennedy diamond.

Seven of their runs were scored in a third-inning barrage that put the match out of reach.

The Lions were led by supremely confident freshman Ally Johnson with four hits and a gutsy pitching performance by senior Maddy Ryan.

And guiding the late-blooming, fresh-faced Linn-Mar squad (25-17) back to state is wily 67-year-old coach John Begley, a student supervisor and bus driver at the school for the past 21 years.