Metro Sports Report

Linn-Mar swimmers take 2nd at Dowling event

WEST DES MOINES - Emilie Berg and Sam Wagner won individual titles Saturday to help Linn-Mar finish second at the West Des Moines Dowling Sprint Classic.

Berg captured the 50-yard backstroke in 28.70 seconds and Wagner won the diving title with 356.10 points.

The Chanhassen (Minn.) Swim and Dive club won the team championship with 383 points. Linn-Mar was second with 357 points in a field that included Dowling, Waukee and Ankeny.

The Lions placed second in the 200 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay. Nicole Larsen, Lauren Dalecky, Berg and Alex Dunn swam the medley relay in 1:54.56. Dunn, Samantha Fitzgerald, Lizzie Adams and Berg swam the 200 relay in 1:42.89.

Dunn finished third in the 100 free in 55.90 seconds and Larsen was third in the 50 back in 29.99 seconds.

DOWLING SPRINT CLASSIC

Team Standings

1. Chanhassen, Minn. 383, 2. Linn-Mar 357, 3. Dowling 299.5, 4. Waukee 277.5, 5. Ankeny 191.5, 6. Newton-Colfax Mingo-Pella 178.5, 7. Chaska 167, 8. Lincoln 78, 9. Fairfield 73, 10. Grinnell 4.

Former Metro preps in pro baseball

RYAN SWEENEY (Xavier, Oakland Athletics) -- Started in center field Saturday and was 2-for-4 with two RBIs, a triple and two runs scored in the Athletics' 8-7 win at Texas.
Year-to-date: Batting avg. -- .275 (69-251), HR -- 1, RBI -- 25, 2B -- 11, 3B -- 3, R -- 33, SB -- 1.

MATT HOLLAND (Marion, GCL Phillies) -- Season completed.
Year-to-date: Batting avg. -- .236 (26-110), HR -- 4, RBI -- 15, 2B -- 7, 3B -- 0, R -- 19, SB -- 1.

SCOTT SCHEBLER (Prairie, Ogden (Dodgers)) -- Started at designated hitter Friday and Saturday and was 0-for-3 in each game as Ogden split with Orem in the first round of the Pioneer League playoffs. Game 3 is Sunday.
Year-to-date (regular season): Batting avg. -- .285 (84-295), HR -- 13, RBI -- 58, 2B -- 17, 3B -- 8, R -- 44, SB -- 1.

KELLEN SWEENEY (Jefferson, Bluefield (Blue Jays)) -- Season completed.
Season stats: Batting avg. -- .114 (4-35), HR -- 0, RBI -- 1, 2B -- 1, 3B -- 0, R -- 4, SB -- 0.

NATE WOODS (Xavier, Jupiter (Marlins)) -- Season completed.
Season stats (Total, 3 teams): Batting avg. .266 (47-177), HR -- 4, RBI -- 22, 2B -- 17, 3B -- 1, R -- 23, SB -- 0.

Cougars hammer Warriors, 41-28

Kennedy got nailed in its first two football games of the season, but turned the hammer loose Friday night and surprised cross-town rival Washington.

Junior Alex Hillyer ran for 208 yards and three touchdowns and senior Trevor Heitland also scored three touchdowns to lead the Cougars past the Warriors, 41-28, in a Mississippi Valley Conference game at Kingston Stadium.

Kennedy (1-2) came into the game with just 81 rushing yards after losses to Xavier and Linn-Mar. The performances prompted Kennedy Coach Tim Lewis to make a few personnel changes and challenge his team to play a more physical game.

"I try to pick a different theme each week and this week I talked about us being the hammer and not the nail," Lewis said. "We were definitely the nail the last couple of weeks and I think they showed tonight that we can play that hammer type of football."

The Cougars ran the ball 57 times for 307 yards against Washington (2-1). Heitland, who was switched from running back to flanker at the start of the week when Lewis decided to make Hillyer the feature back, still ran 16 times for 74 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught six passes for 100 yards and a touchdown.

"(Coach) got on us, especially the seniors, about keeping our heads up and come out and keep fighting and working hard because this season will turn around," said Heitland, who rushed for more than 900 yards a year ago. "That's what we did. We just kept fighting."

No.8 Lions set records in romp past Wahlert

DUBUQUE - Linn-Mar Coach Bob Forsyth could have trouble picking an Offensive Player of the Week for his ballclub after all the fireworks in Dubuque Friday night.

The eighth-ranked Lions broke a school record with 514 yards rushing, smashed another school mark with 656 yards of total offense and rolled up 54 points.

Here's an idea: Give an award to everyone.

Linn-Mar roared back from a halftime deficit and smashed Dubuque Wahlert, 54-22, in an entertaining Mississippi Valley Conference game at the Rock Bowl.

The Lions trailed, 16-14, at intermission and appeared in a speck of trouble, but they scored four touchdowns in the third period and put the game out of reach.

"We came out and exploded like we knew we can," said quarterback Mark Atwater, who rushed for 194 yards. "We ran the ball really well tonight. A lot of things clicked tonight."

Tailback Mitch Wantock galloped for 182 yards as he and Atwater ran wild. Both of them could have cracked 200 yards if Forsyth hadn't sent in the subs with 8 minutes left in the game.