Metro Sports Report

Local players in pro baseball

RYAN SWEENEY (Xavier, Chicago Cubs) - Started in center field Thursday and was 0-for-3 in the Cubs' 5-1 win over the Brewers. Season stats: G - 61, Avg. - .268, AB - 164, H - 44, HR - 6, RBI - 19, SB - 1.

Xavier happy to pay price for success

The Xavier Saints look like a college football team when their 86-man squad runs onto the field before games each Friday night, but that big squad comes with a big price tag.

It costs Xavier approximately $700 to give each player all the equipment he needs with a helmet, shoulder pads, padded girdle, game pants and practice pants.

That comes to roughly $60,000 to outfit the varsity, but it doesn't end there. The Saints also have 38 sophomores and 38 freshmen in the program, swelling the ranks to 162 players and swelling the investment to more than $100,000 in equipment.

Kirkwood sweeps to top of ICCAC

The Kirkwood Eagles made quick work of their match against Southeastern Community College Wednesday night in a showdown for the ICCAC lead.

The No.7 Eagles swept the 13th-ranked Blackhawks, 25-14, 25-16, 25-22, in a contest that lasted only 70 minutes at Johnson Hall.

Kirkwood moved into sole possession of the ICCAC lead with a 4-0 record. Southeastern, which began the night with an impressive 21-2 overall mark, fell to 3-1 in the league.

"I came into it prepared for a tough five-set match," said Kirkwood Coach Jill Williams. "We came out definitely ready to go in sets one and two."

Payton Hilton, a 5-foot-11 freshman from Union High School in LaPorte City, had a series of kills in the first set as the Eagles (13-4) took command early.

Madison Dellamuth commits to Bradley

Madison Dellamuth, an all-state point guard at Cedar Rapids Prairie, announced Wednesday morning that she has committed to play college basketball at Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.

Dellamuth, a 5-foot-6 senior, averaged 11.6 points, 4.6 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals last season when Prairie finished with a 15-7 record. She hit 43.1 percent of her 3-pointers (25 of 58) and shot 67.1 percent at the foul line.

Dellamuth was named third team all-state by the Iowa Newspaper Association and the Iowa Girls Coaches Association.

Bradley finished 14-16 overall last season and went 8-10 in the Missouri Valley Conference.