The Clarion-Goldfield-Dows baseball team will look to outduel cross county rival Eagle Grove in the Class 2A first round meeting on Saturday.
CGD(11-16) enters on a three game win streak and their first double-digit win total since 2012. Head Coach Ryan Nail says this rivalry meeting in the postseason will call for the best from both teams.
“We’re two teams that are familiar with each other, the kids know each other well, the coaches know each other well,” says Nail. “When you get to postseason play, it’s gonna be everyone’s best against everyone’s best. In the past, when these two teams have played, everything kind of goes out the window with the rivalry. We’ve had some funky games in the past three seasons with me as a head coach. I’m expecting nothing but their best and hopefully they expect the same from us.”
Carson Nesheim leads the Cowboys in ERA (2.32), strikeouts thrown (114) which is a new school record, and RBI’s (18)
Eagle Grove(14-9) has won five in a row. Jake Jeske has helped the Eagles take off with 27 RBI’s and 29 stolen bases.
It’ll be the first game of a doubleheader, with pregame coverage at 4:40 p.m. followed by the first pitch at 5:00 p.m. on 104.9 KLMJ.
The Iowa Falls-Alden baseball team will look to track down their first win over South Hardin since 2021, when the programs meet in Class 2A first round on Saturday.
IFA(4-17) will look to break free of a seven game slide and extend their season with a rivalry victory. Head Coach Wyatt Ziesman says the Cadets will need to match the Tigers energy and Hayden Reed keeps them in the game on the hill.
South Hardin, they’re going to be ready to play, they’re going to be wanting to win, they’re going to be loud, they’re going to be having fun,” says Ziesman. “We need to get our guys to match that and go down there with a little bit of a chip on their shoulder so they can compete and try to get a postseason win for us, that hasn’t happened in a few years. Reed is going to throw strikes, he’s not going to put people on base for free, he’s going to make you earn it, and he gets us a lot of ground balls and fly balls when they do hit it. He throws hard as a freshman, Hayden Reed is definitely an asset for the team on the mound. Anytime he’s on the mound we feel comfortable that we’re going to be in the ball game and compete the entire time he’s on the mound.”
Reed has a 1.53 ERA and 26 strikeouts in seven starts.
South Hardin(12-11) has lost their last five outings. Peyton Welch is a difference maker for the Tigers with a team leading .380 batting avg. and 42 strikeouts thrown.
It’ll be the second game of a doubleheader that is scheduled to get underway at 7:00 p.m. on 104.9 KLMJ in Eldora.
