Linn-Mar Baseball

No. 9 Linn-Mar pounds Waterloo East

WATERLOO - The Linn-Mar Lions scored 26 runs Wednesday and swept a Mississippi Valley Conference twinbill from Waterloo East, 8-2 and 18-1 in four innings.

The victories lifted the ninth-ranked Lions to 19-9 overall and 13-7 in the conference. Waterloo East fell to 3-34 overall and 1-23 in the league.

Andrew Gassman went 4-for-4 for Linn-Mar in the first game. Brandt Ollinger was 2-for-4. Manny Jeffery pitched a complete game, allowing only one earned run with nine strikeouts.

Adam Bradley collected three RBIs for Linn-Mar in the second game. Ryan Wyant went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs. Jeffery drove in three runs. Adam Stolley and Gassmann had two RBIs. Taylor Yoke had two hits.

Wyant pitched a one-hitter with seven strikeouts in the four-inning game.

Read more...

Linn-Mar splits with Hempstead

DUBUQUE - Adam Bradley went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs Friday as Linn-Mar topped Dubuque Hempstead, 6-2, in the second game of a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader in Dubuque.

Hempstead took the first game, 5-4, by scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh.

The split ended Linn-Mar's chances of claiming the No. 1 for the Class 4A substate tournament this month. Kennedy swept Waterloo West Friday and claimed the top seed in the substate.

Sam Crawford pitched six innings for Linn-Mar in the 6-2 victory. He struck out eight batters and walked two. Manny Jeffery scored two runs for the Lions.

Jeffery had two hits for Linn-Mar in the 5-4 setback. Andrew Gassmann scored twice for the Lions.

Linn-Mar is 17-9 overall and 11-7 in the conference. Hempstead is 16-12 overall and 13-7 in the league.

Read more...

No. 5 Prairie sweeps No. 9 Lions

Cedar Rapids Prairie has never won a baseball title in the Mississippi Valley Conference in school history, but Coach Todd Rima and the fifth-ranked Hawks are getting mighty close.

Prairie took a big step toward an MVC crown Wednesday night by sweeping a twinbill from No. 9 Linn-Mar, 5-4 in eight innings and 3-0, at the Oak Ridge Middle School complex.

The Hawks have a 17-3 record in the Mississippi Division for a comfortable four-game lead over Dubuque Hempstead, which is sitting in second place at 12-6 with just two weeks left.

Prairie boasts a 24-4 overall mark, just four victories away from breaking the school record of 27.

Read more...

No. 9 Lions sweep No. 2 J-Hawks

There's something about playing the best baseball teams in the state that brings out the best in the Linn-Mar Lions.

The Lions made a statement earlier in the season by sweeping a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader from Kennedy when the Cougars were ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 4A.

The giant-killers from Linn-Mar struck again Monday night when they swept an MVC twinbill from No. 2 Jefferson, 3-1 and 3-1, at the Oak Ridge Middle School complex in Marion.

The victories lifted the Lions into serious contention for the Valley Division title and improved their chances of claiming a precious No. 1 seed for the substate tournament in a few weeks.

Read more...