Metro Sports Report

6 more players join IWSL for 2018

There's too much snow on the ground to play college softball in most parts of Iowa right now, but registration for the summer league has accelerated like a snowball going down a hill.

Six more players have joined the Iowa Women's Softball League for this year, boosting the total number of players to 48 for the only collegiate summer league in Iowa.

Natalie Halvorson of Kirkwood, Payton Bruner of Mount Mercy, Lizzy Adams of Coe, Tara Lance of DMACC, Marissa Promes of Buena Vista and Addison Westercamp of Southwestern Community College have all enrolled in the IWSL in the past few days.

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Halvorson, a freshman from Cedar Rapids Prairie, has compiled a 10-2 record and 2.52 ERA for the second-ranked Kirkwood Eagles. She is tied for seventh in the country in victories and has shown pinpoint control, with 58 strikeouts and only 11 walks in 75 innings.

Bruner, a sophomore infielder from Cedar Rapids Washington, is hitting .400 for Mount Mercy with three homers and 17 RBIs. The Mustangs are 18-13 overall and 7-5 in the Heart of America Conference after struggling last season.

Hanna slugs 3 homers as Eagles sweep

OMAHA, Neb. - The Kirkwood baseball team went the extra mile on Sunday to sweep a conference doubleheader from DMACC.

Actually, the Eagles went an extra 170 miles.

Kirkwood was supposed to play the doubleheader on DMACC's campus in Boone, but the games were moved to Millard North High School in Omaha, Neb., due to unfavorable field conditions in Boone.

The 12th-ranked Eagles took the switch in stride and swept the Bears, 10-8 and 5-1, in the ICCAC conference opener for both teams with the temperature in the mid-30's.

Ellison Hanna socked three home runs in the doubleheader for Kirkwood, which raised its records to 18-3 overall and 2-0 in the conference with its ninth straight victory.

Hanna belted two homers and drove in four runs in the 10-8 triumph in the first game. Izaya Fullard was 2-for-2 and drove in two runs and Kal Youngquist hit a solo homer.

Cameron Cowan (2-0) picked up the victory with three innings in relief.

Eagles edged in finals by No. 1 team

HARRISON, Ark. - The Kirkwood Eagles made another remarkable run at the national tournament this year, but this time they landed a few points short against the No. 1 team in the country.

The second-ranked Eagles made a spirited comeback Saturday night but lost to top-ranked Monroe Community College of New York, 62-56, in the championship game of the NJCAA Division II women's basketball tournament at Pioneer Pavilion.

Kirkwood was aiming for back-to-back national crowns, but the Eagles had to settle for second place after seeing their 24-game winning streak finally come to an end with their first loss in three months.

Kirkwood finished the season with a 34-4 mark, giving the Eagles an incredible two-year record of 71-4 with one national title and one second-place showing.

Coach Kim Muhl saluted his team after the game, especially the six sophomores who played the past two seasons.

"They're a special group of kids. There's no question about it," said Muhl.  "My gosh, you play 75 games and win 71 of them, you must have done something well.

No. 2 Eagles win thriller in semis

HARRISON, Ark. - Kim Muhl has enjoyed a long list of tremendous victories during his 29 years as Kirkwood's head coach, but Friday night's triumph over Highland has to rank near the top.

The second-ranked Eagles stormed back from a nine-point deficit in the second half and trimmed the third-ranked Scotties, 77-74, in the semifinals of the NJCAA Division II national tournament at Pioneer Pavilion.

Kirkwood (34-3) will face top-ranked Monroe (28-2) in the championship game Saturday night at 7:30, with Muhl seeking his eighth national crown with the Eagles and second in a row.

Highland had won all 34 of its games this season and was averaging 99.3 points per game, by far the highest mark in the country with outbursts of 138, 137 and 134 points, but the Eagles kept them under wraps for the most part with an effective zone defense that yielded to a man-to-man in the fourth quarter.

Highland launched a long 3-pointer in the final seconds in an effort to tie the game and force overtime, but the shot missed the basket by several feet and Kirkwood got the ball out-of-bounds with just six-tenths of a second remaining.