Jefferson Baseball

J-Hawks run into a 'buzzsaw'

Austin Christensen has made all-state baseball teams at Kennedy High School as a freshman, sophomore and junior, but if he keeps playing like this he might deserve a special award.

Christensen starred as a top-notch pitcher and slugger Monday night as the top-ranked Cougars defeated Jefferson, 10-5, in the opening round of the Bob Vrbicek Metro Tournament at Kennedy.

Christensen struck out the first eight batters he faced and finished with 13 strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings, but he also did plenty of damage with his bat. He went 3-for-3 with two doubles, a triple, four RBIs and two walks in the first game of the year.

"We ran into a buzzsaw tonight," Jefferson Coach Mike Kuba said. "He had great command of his stuff, and we didn't expect anything different from him."

The first eight batters in the Jefferson lineup barely managed a loud foul ball in the first three innings as Christensen flashed an 89 mph fastball and pinpoint control.

"I don't know if I've ever had anybody start with eight straight strikeouts," Kennedy Coach Bret Hoyer said. "I don't know if I've ever seen that before. That was pretty impressive."

Christian Knox, the No. 9 batter in the J-Hawk lineup, grounded weakly to shortstop to end the third inning and snap the string of eight straight whiffs.

"I felt really good," Christensen said. "I had a lot of excitement and adrenaline going for the first game out. I mean, we've been waiting for this for a very long time. It was good to get out and play."

Christensen was the winning pitcher when Kennedy won the Class 4A title last summer in Des Moines, and the Cougars appeared to be in championship form Monday when they grabbed a 6-0 lead after three innings. It wasn't all clear sailing, however.

Kennedy committed five errors, had three runners picked off and had two others caught stealing, all in the last four innings.

"Sometimes you get a big lead like that and you lose focus, you lose your concentration and we certainly did," Hoyer said. "We've got to get better at that."

Kennedy grabbed a 3-0 lead in the second inning when Christensen socked a three-run double off the fence in center field. The Cougars made it 6-0 in the third when Matt Maiers hit a bases-loaded triple to right-center field.

Christensen tripled in the first inning, doubled in the second inning, walked in the fourth and fifth innings, then finished his night with an RBI double in the seventh.

"Hopefully he can keep it rolling all year long and take advantage of the opportunities he gets, because I'm sure a lot of people will start walking him," Hoyer said.

"Like we said in the team huddle, our hats go off to him," Kuba remarked. "He pitched and hit great."

Christensen said Monday he intends to honor his commitment to the University of Nebraska baseball program. The Cornhuskers fired coach Mike Anderson on Sunday.

"I'm still going to go to Nebraska," he said. "It's a great school, and I have faith in Tom Osborne (Nebraska's director of athletics). I know he's going to get a great coach."

Kennedy will face Cedar Rapids Prairie in the semifinals at Kennedy tonight at 7. Jefferson will play Mount Vernon in a consolation game at 5 p.m. at Kennedy.

KENNEDY (10)
Terrell Sykes, 2b, 4 1 0 0, Austin Christensen, p, 3 0 3 4, Griffin Michael, ss, 4 0 0 0, Devon Jacobus, 3b, 1 2 0 0, Cody Bell, 1b, 3 1 2 0, David Yancey, lf, 2 1 2 1, Alex Hayden, dh, 3 1 1 0, Logan Ambrosy, rf, 0 0 0 0, Colin Taylor, p, 1 0 0 0, Austin Benson, cf, 1 2 0 0, Josh Jahlas, ph, 1 1 1 0, Matt Maiers, c, 4 0 2 4, Jud Rhoades, cr, 0 0 0 0, Jimmy
Lizarraga, c, 0 0 0 0. Totals 27 10 11 9.

JEFFERSON (5)
Tanner Unkel, 2b, 3 1 0 0, Drew Striegel, c, 3 2 1 0, Michael Rooney, cf, 2 1 1 1, Bailey Hollingsworth, p, 2 1 0 0, Chance Tiedtke, p, 1 0 0 0, Alex Larson, 3b, 4 0 1 3, Ky Kramer, ss, 2 0 0 0, Austin Goodell, ph, 1 0 1 0, Drake Vanous, rf, 3 0 1 0, Jordan McCormick, 1b, 3 0 0 0, Christian Knox, lf, 3 0 0 0. Totals 27 5 5 4.

Kennedy   033 200 2 - 10 11 5
Jefferson  000 102 2 - - 5 5 2

Christensen, Taylor (6) and Maiers, Lizarraga (7). Hollingsworth, Tiedtke (4), Jourdan (7) and Striegel. W - Christensen. L - Hollingsworth. 2B - Christensen 2, Jahlas, Larson, Vanous. 3B - Christensen, Maiers. SB - Michael, Maiers, Rooney.

J-Hawks seek 1st state tourney berth since 1998

(EDITOR'S NOTE: First in a series of preseason Metro baseball stories. Next: Kennedy.)

The Cedar Rapids Jefferson baseball program lists all of its major accomplishments in school history on the pressbox at the J-Hawk field, but one of those categories has not been updated since 1998.

That's the category that lists trips to the state tournament. Jefferson's last trip happened 13 years ago, the longest drought for any Metro baseball team.

The J-Hawks nearly made it last year with a talented club, but they lost in the substate finals to Mason City, 3-2, on a bases-loaded walk to end their season.

"We were real close," Jefferson Coach Mike Kuba said. "That was a heartbreaking loss for us, a heartbreaking loss for those seniors that gave us five great years."

That club featured Matt Beer, Ben Rettenmeier, Joby Frey, Luke Montgomery and Kellen Sweeney, although Sweeney saw limited action after being drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays. Sweeney played in the substate loss to Mason City, but received an intentional walk on all four of his trips to the plate.

Those talented seniors are gone, but Kuba thinks he'll have another competitive team. "We're looking forward to the opportunity we have ahead of us this year," he said.

Kuba does not want to call this a rebuilding year at Jefferson, but he's counting on new players to plug some holes. The J-Hawks finished 22-18 overall and 13-13 in the Mississippi Valley Conference in 2010.

"We've asked the junior class to kind of step up for us and kind of push the seniors a little bit, and they've done that for us," he said. "We lost some guys in some very key spots for us.

"Guys know that there are some holes to fill, obviously. And our coaching staff does, too. The juniors have a nice opportunity to come in and see what they can do."

Rettenmeier (8-2, 3.05) and Beer (6-4, 3.26) were the mainstays on the mound for Jefferson in 2010, but they're both at Kirkwood Community College now. Bailey Hollingsworth (3-3, 6.25), Jordan McCormick (2-4, 5.39) and Michael Rooney (1-3, 5.85) are the top returning hurlers.

"Our pitching staff doesn't have as much depth as it's had in recent years, on paper," Kuba said. "We have some guys in our younger class that are going to get some opportunities real early to show us what they can do."

Chance Tiedtke is one of the young pitchers who could get the ball. He struck out 12 batters in 9 2/3 innings last year with a 2.17 ERA in limited action with the varsity.

Rooney, a speedy center fielder, hit .350 and stole 25 bases last season. Tanner Unkel, a talented middle infielder, hit .395 and swiped 31 bases. Unkel played second base last year, but could see time at shortstop. Rooney has signed with Kirkwood and Unkel has committed to NIACC.

Jefferson stole 86 bases in 40 games last season, and Kuba expects to run again this year. "I'd say one of our strengths this year will be speed," he remarked.

Kuba lists Drew Striegel (.234) behind the plate, but many other positions were still up for grabs as the J-Hawks entered the final week of preseason drills.

Kuba mentioned Drake Vanous, Alex Larson, Ky Kramer, Eric Lehmkuhl, Sam Techau, Austin Goodell, Christian Knox and Dylan Jellison as possible key players. Larson is a transfer from Kennedy, where he was a reserve on Kennedy's state championship team last summer.

Kuba has set high goals for the J-Hawks.

"Twenty-five to 30 victories is always a goal for us," he said. "Our first team goal is going to be the Metro championship. We're going after that. Our second goal is going to be the conference. And the third goal is getting to state. Those are three focus goals that we have each year."

Jefferson will be tested in its opening game of the 2011 campaign when it faces Kennedy in the quarterfinals of the Metro tournament at Kennedy on Monday, May 23 at 7 p.m.

"What better test to have right out of the gate, to see where we need to be, where we want to be and what we have to do to get better?" Kuba declared. "That's the way we view it.

"It's a challenge for us, there's no doubt about it. It's no easy task. We'll get measured right off the bat."

Kuba expects to compete with everyone.

"With the junior class we have, the well is not dry," he said. "We've got to get some guys in there and get them seasoned real quick."

Metro baseball tournament pairings set

Area baseball fans will be treated to a triple-header at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Wednesday, May 25 on the final day of the 2011 Bob Vrbicek Metro Baseball Tournament.

The Cedar Rapids Kernels will play Clinton at 12:05 p.m. that day in a Midwest League game, followed by the third-place game of the high school tournament at 5 p.m. and the championship game at 7 p.m.

Kennedy, the defending Class 4A state champion, will face Jefferson in the opening round of the Metro tournament on Monday, May 23 at Kennedy at 7 p.m.

The other first-round pairings are Marion vs. Washington, Linn-Mar vs. Xavier, and Mount Vernon vs. Prairie. Kennedy is hosting the tournament, with Xavier serving as co-host.

OPENING ROUND
Monday, May 23
 At Kennedy
5 p.m. - Mount Vernon vs. Prairie
7 p.m. - Jefferson vs. Kennedy
 At Xavier
5 p.m. - Marion vs. Washington
7 p.m. - Linn-Mar vs. Xavier

SEMIFINALS
Tuesday, May 24
Consolation Round
 At Xavier
5 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Championship Round
 At Kennedy
5 p.m. and 7 p.m.

FINALS
Wednesday, May 25
Consolation Round
 At Kennedy
5 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Championship Round
 At Veterans Memorial Stadium
5 p.m. and 7 p.m.

J-Hawks to honor Kenney on Hall of Fame Night

The Cedar Rapids Jefferson baseball program will honor former coach Joe Kenney at its Hall of Fame ceremony on Friday, June 3 at the Jefferson baseball field.

The Hall of Fame ceremony is being renamed "Coach Kenney Hall of Fame Night" in honor of the late coach who died earlier this year.

Jefferson baseball coach Mike Kuba is inviting all of Kenney's former players to participate in this year's ceremony. The former players will gather at home plate while Kenney's biography is read aloud to the crowd.

Kenney's family members plan to attend the ceremony as well.

In addition to honoring Kenney, the Hall of Fame Class of 2011 will have a special twist with Gordy Nordgren and his son, Nick, both being inducted into the Hall of Fame at the same time.

Gordy Nordgren played at Jefferson (Class of 1976) and also served as head and assistant coach of the J-Hawks. Nick Nordgren (Class of 2005) played for his father at Jefferson. Tyler Born (Class of 2005) also will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year.

The Hall of Fame ceremony on June 3 will take place between games of a sophomore/varsity doubleheader against Cedar Rapids Washington.