Metro Sports Report

NAIA hoops tourney coming to town

It looks like Mount Mercy University might learn to enjoy its status as an independent basketball school during the 2015-16 campaign while it waits for full membership in the Heart of America Conference.

The Association of Independent Institutions has decided to hold the 2016 A.I.I. Division II men's and women's basketball tournaments at the U.S. Cellular Center in downtown Cedar Rapids from Feb. 26-28.

Mount Mercy will serve as the host school and will receive automatic bids to the tournament for both of its teams.

There will be eight men's teams and eight women's teams in both tournaments, which will run simultaneously. The top three teams in each tournament will receive automatic berths to the NAIA Division II national tournament.

There will be wall-to-wall basketball at the U.S Cellular Center on Friday, Feb. 26 with all eight quarterfinal games -- four men's games and four women's games -- from early in the morning until late at night. The four semifinals will be staged on Saturday, Feb. 27, with the championship games and third-place games on Sunday, Feb. 28.

J-Hawks sweep No. 1 Iowa City West

It's rarely a good idea to spot the No. 1 team in the state a fat early lead, but Erin Kuba and the Jefferson J-Hawks have learned to spit at adversity.

The fifth-ranked J-Hawks rallied for a pair of impressive victories over top-ranked Iowa City West, 7-4 and 8-4, in a key Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader Tuesday at Larry Niemeyer Field.

Iowa City West arrived in town with a spotless 18-0 record in the MVC, but Jefferson dropped the Women of Troy to 18-2 and raised their own mark to 17-3, climbing within one game of Iowa City West in the Valley Division standings with six games left.

The J-Hawks trailed 4-0 in the first game and 3-0 in the nightcap, but came roaring back both times.

"It would have been easy to get our daubers down and just say, 'Oh well, they're the No. 1 team in the state, they should beat us.' But they didn't," said Jefferson Coach Brian Erbe.

"We got down twice and we didn't waver. The kids, I'm just so proud of them."

Marion girls win twice in tourney

Alicia Steepleton and the Marion Indians won both of their games Wednesday in the Marion Classic.

Marion trimmed Cedar Rapids Washington, 5-3, and blanked Union, 1-0.

Steepleton pitched a complete game against Washington in the 5-3 victory. She allowed three hits and three earned runs, with two strikeouts and two walks.

Haley Dullea went 3-for-4 and scored two runs for the Indians. Shannon Sellers was 3-for-3 and also scored twice.

Emily Oler pitched for Washington in the first game and hit a home run. The Warriors scored three times in the bottom of the seventh, but the rally ended there.

Kernels put Steele on DL

The Cedar Rapids Kernels and Minnesota Twins announced Wednesday that left-handed pitcher Randy Rosario has been activated from the 7-day disabled list and right-handed pitcher Keaton Steele has been placed on the 7-day DL, retroactive to June 29, with a right shoulder impingement.

Rosario was placed on the DL when the Kernels broke Spring Training in April. He was signed by the Twins as a non-drafted free agent on Aug. 16, 2010 and pitched in three games for the Kernels in 2014, posting an 0-1 record and 5.40 ERA.

Steele has made seven appearances (six starts) for the Kernels with a 2-2 record and 3.46 ERA.