Austin ChristensenSome people thought it was premature when Austin Christensen was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in May when only a handful of baseball games had been played.

As it turned out, Gatorade got it right.

The Iowa Newspaper Association named Christensen the captain of the Class 4A all-state team on Tuesday, putting the Cedar Rapids Kennedy senior at the head of his class. Christensen made the all-star squad as an outfielder.

Christensen hit .555 with 19 homers and 52 RBIs for the Cougars this season. He also compiled an 8-1 record on the mound and helped Kennedy reach the state tournament for the ninth time in 12 years.

Three other Kennedy players made the Class 4A all-state team. Terrell Sykes was selected to the first team as a utility player, Alex Hayden made the second team as a pitcher and Devon Jacobus made the third team as an infielder.

Two Cedar Rapids Prairie seniors were honored on the all-state squads. D.J. Utley was named first team all-state at first base and Anthony Gagliardi made the third team as a pitcher.

Jordy Brown of Cedar Rapids Washington made second team all-state as an outfielder, putting a total of seven Metro players on the Class 4A squads.

Tyler Hedtke and Kasey Semler of Marion High School were named third team all-state in Class 3A. Hedtke made the club as a pitcher and Semler made the team as an infielder.

Glenwood's Taylor Kaufman was named captain of the 3A team. The 2A captain is Kuemper Catholic catcher Bryce Berg.

Ethan Westphal of Martensdale-St.Marys completed a remarkable high school career last week and added one more honor by being named the Class 1A team captain.

CLASS 4A
First Team

Pitcher - Andrew Hedrick, Ankeny, Sr.
Pitcher - David Stagg, West Des Moines Valley, Sr.
Pitcher - Brad Chelleen, Dowling Catholic, Sr.
Catcher - Jeff Pullen, West Des Moines Valley, Jr.
First Base - D.J. Utley, Cedar Rapids Prairie, Sr.
Infield - Jake Peter, Mason City, Sr.
Infield - Ryan Rumpf, Iowa City West, Sr.
Infield - Jake Yacinich, Dowling Catholic, Sr.
Outfield - Austin Christensen, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Sr.
Outfield - Aaron Peller, Iowa City West, Sr.
Outfield - Eric Toole, Council Bluffs Lewis Central, Sr.
Utility - Terrell Sykes, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Sr.
Utility - Adam Prybil, Iowa City High, Sr.

CLASS 4A
Second Team

Pitcher - Will Kenny, Fort Dodge, Sr.
Pitcher - Brady Hanna, Pleasant Valley, Jr.
Pitcher - Alex Hayden, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Jr.
Catcher - Joel Lanning, Ankeny, Soph
First Base - Sam Norman, Des Moines Roosevelt, Jr.
Infield - Nolan Lodden, West Des Moines Valley, Jr.
Infield - Zach Little, Southeast Polk, Jr.
Infield - Aaron Huber, North Scott, Sr.
Outfield - Jordy Brown, Cedar Rapids Washington, Sr.
Outfield - Dalton Parrott, Dowling Catholic, Sr.
Outfield - Dominique Thompson-Williams, Sioux City East, Soph
Utility - Jason McMurray, Dowling Catholic, Sr.
Utility - Brandon Platts, Mason City, Sr.

CLASS 4A
Third Team

Pitcher - Anthony Gagliardi, Cedar Rapids Prairie, Sr.
Pitcher - Adam Bernstorf, Southeast Polk, Jr.
Pitcher - Luke Tasler, Des Moines Roosevelt, Jr.
Catcher - Blake Wilson, Pleasant Valley, Sr.
First Base - Austin Stubbs, Sioux City East, Sr.
Infield - Alex Crowl, Council Bluffs Lincoln, Jr.
Infield - Jeremy Cronk, Iowa City West, Sr.
Infield - Devon Jacobs, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Jr.
Outfield - Alex Alstott, Fort Dodge, Sr.
Outfield - Landon Schultz, Mason City, Sr.
Outfield - Ryan Lehmann, Western Dubuque, Jr.
Utility - Austin Stephens, West Des Moines Valley, Jr.
Utility - Connor Alberhasky, Iowa City High, Sr.

CLASS 3A
First Team

Pitcher - Taylor Kaufman, Glenwood, Sr.
Pitcher - Jared Shoning, Carlisle, Sr.
Pitcher - Brandon Shulista, Solon, Sr.
Catcher - J.J. Reimer, Dubuque Wahlert, Sr.
First Base - Carsen Anderson, Storm Lake, Sr.
Infield - Nick Day, Solon, Sr.
Infield - Taylor Ostrich, Carroll, Sr.
Infield - David Kerian, Sioux City Heelan, Sr.
Outfield - Tommy Argo, Davenport Assumption, Sr.
Outfield - Brandon Jasper, DeWitt Clinton, Sr.
Outfield - Derrick Loveless, Solon, Sr.
Utility - Henry Krieger-Coble, Mount Pleasant, Sr.
Utility - Austin Katzureck, Norwalk, Sr.

CLASS 3A
Second Team

Pitcher - Tyler Mitchell, Charles City, Sr.
Pitcher - Scott Harris, Dallas Center-Grimes, Sr.
Pitcher - Luke Kordick, Norwalk, Sr.
Catcher - Zach Isakson, Charles City, Jr.
First Base - Jake Wimmer, Sergeant Bluff-Luton, Sr.
Infield - Ben Bruck, Harlan, Jr.
Infield - Michael McCabe, Storm Lake, Sr.
Infield - Riley McCarron, Dubuque Wahlert, Sr.
Outfield - Anthony Ossman, Washington, Sr.
Outfield - Tanner Truesdell, Clear Lake, Jr.
Outfield - Jake Kruger, Perry, Sr.
Utility - Eric Jones, Knoxville, Sr.
Utility - Marshall Koehn, Solon, Sr.

CLASS 3A
Third Team

Pitcher - Zach Brautigam, Dubuque Wahlert, Sr.
Pitcher - Schyler Kane, Pella, Jr.
Pitcher - Tyler Hedtke, Marion, Jr.
Catcher - Tyler Greiner, Williamsburg, Sr.
First Base - Andrew Holden, Waverly-Shell Rock, Sr.
Infield - Tyler Ronan, Waukon, Sr.
Infield - Kasey Semler, Marion, Sr.
Infield - Ozzie Adams, Clear Lake, Jr.
Outfield - Mike Dahl, Boone, Sr.
Outfield - Joey Miller, Waverly-Shell Rock, Sr.
Outfield - Robert River, Maquoketa, Sr.
Utility - Tyler Payton, Dallas Center-Grimes, Jr.
Utility - Alex Brown, Harlan, Sr.