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Wagemester steps aside as Kirkwood coach

Doug Wagemester, one of the most intense and most successful junior college men's basketball coaches in the country, has decided to step aside as the head coach at Kirkwood Community College for the 2013-14 campaign.

Wagemester, 45, wants to concentrate on his job as Kirkwood's athletic director and also spend more time with his wife and three children.

Bryan Petersen, 25, a former Kirkwood player and one of Wagemester's assistant coaches this past season, has been named interim head coach for the 2013-14 season.

Wagemester plans to re-evaluate his situation a year from now and might return as Kirkwood's head coach for the 2014-15 campaign.

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3 KCC softball players pick next school

Three sophomores on the sixth-ranked Kirkwood Community College softball team will continue their careers at four-year schools next season.

Shelby Crist, a center fielder from Cedar Rapids Prairie, has committed to play at Upper Iowa, an NCAA Division II school. Crist is hitting .395 for the Eagles this season.

Kayla Tatge, a right fielder from Milan, Ill., has committed to Saint Ambrose, an NAIA school in Davenport. Tatge is hitting .341 with six homers and 15 RBIs.

Kristen Winter, a second baseman from Xavier, has committed to Luther, an NCAA Division III school that competes in the Iowa Conference. Winter is hitting .467 with three homers and 21 RBIs.

Eagles soar with Krack of the bat

Yogi Berra, a Hall of Fame catcher with the New York Yankees more than a half-century ago, once declared that you can't think and hit at the same time.

Kirkwood slugger Haylee Krack heartily agrees.

Krack walloped five homers in two games last Saturday at a tournament in Missouri. She belted two homers and drove in four runs against Carl Albert, then collected three homers and 10 RBIs against Oklahoma A&M.

She wasn't looking for a particular pitch or trying to work the count in her favor. Like Yogi, she tried to keep it as simple as possible.

"I felt clear-headed," she said Friday. "I don't think much. It's all reactions from muscle memory.

"It was just a great day. I felt good and I was having fun."

See ball. Hit ball.

"Yeah, pretty much," she claimed.

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NCAA baseball champ finds new home at Kirkwood

Most of the baseball players at Kirkwood Community College can only dream about playing in the College World Series in Omaha and winning an NCAA title.

Greg Brodzinski has already done it.

Brodzinski was a freshman catcher at South Carolina in 2011 when the Gamecocks won the NCAA Division I title with a 5-2 victory over Florida before 26,721 fans at TD Ameritrade Park.

Brodzinski was in the bullpen when South Carolina got the final out. He raced onto the field and joined the dogpile.

"I'll never forget that," he said Friday. "It's like in the movies."

Brodzinski anticipated becoming one of Carolina's top catchers in 2012, but a fifth-year senior was granted a special sixth year of eligibility for 2012 and Brodzinski decided to transfer to Coastal Carolina rather than being a reserve with the Gamecocks again.

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