SBLive Iowa Top 25 baseball rankings: Top 10 teams didn't fare well last week
By Chris Short
Nine of the top 10 teams in our rankings suffered a loss this past week, but the top seven teams remain the same. Iowa City West, Lansing Kee and Storm Lake make their debuts, and defending Class 4A champion Pleasant Valley, which was our preseason No. 1, Independence and Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln fall out.
1. Johnston (14-1)
The Dragons lost for the first time last week, splitting a twin bill with Southeast Polk. Both teams claimed 2-1 wins, then the Drags bounced back with four more wins to solidify the top spot in our rankings. Spencer Campidilli, who is hitting .500 with 19 hits, is fourth in the state in doubles with nine. Carter Woollums leads the pitching staff with three wins.
2. Dowling (9-3)
The Maroons hold onto second despite splitting a doubleheader with rival West Des Moines Valley and losing by one run to Class 3A power Davenport Assumption, to finish the week 4-2. They did have an impressive doubleheader sweep over Ankeny and beat Class 1A power Mason City Newman. Trever Baumler, just a sophomore, leads the state with seven home runs and 48 total bases and is tied for fourth with 22 hits and slugging percentage (1.333).
3. Dubuque Wahlert Catholic (12-2)
The Eagles started the week strong with an impressive sweep over crosstown rival Hempstead, stubbed its toe with a loss to Cedar Rapids Washington, but bounced back with a win over ranked West Delaware. Jack Walsh is tied for the state lead with three saves, and Bryce Rudiger has four wins.
4. Iowa City High (13-3)
The Little Hawks had a solid week, sweeping Cedar Rapids Kennedy, beating Bettendorf and splitting a pair with ranked Cedar Falls. Joey Bouska and Gavin Koch lead the team at the plate, each with 19 hits and 11 runs scored. Koch also has three victories on the bump with a 1.53 ERA.
5. Cedar Falls (10-2)
The Tigers split with City High and swept Waterloo West last week. Ben Phillips (.469 avg.) and Jaden Kramer (.389) lead the team at the plate, and Shae Buskohl has a 1.62 ERA and a pair of wins.
6. Cedar Rapids Xavier Catholic (13-3)
Sophomore Andrew Hamlett is tied for second in the state with 23 hits, and Alex Neal is second with 18 walks for the Saints, who are the highest-ranked Class 3A team. Xavier’s only blemish last week came Friday night with a loss to power Davenport Assumption, which ended a seven-game win streak
7. Waukee (10-1)
The Warriors continue to surprise, winning three of four last week. Their only loss on the season came in a doubleheader split with Urbandale, ending the their seven-game win streak to start the season. Camden Kaufman has pitched Waukee to three wins.
8. Grinnell (13-0)
Brady Steward has four wins, and a microscopic 0.52 ERA and Will Doty hasn’t given up an earned run in 18 innings as the unbeaten Tigers continue to get it done with pitching with two shutouts last week. Grinnell will be tested this week with doubleheaders against ranked Indianola and Pella (7-4), along with a single game with Norwalk (9-5).
9. Urbandale (9-2)
The J-Hawks move up a spot after a 4-1 week, losing only the second game of a doubleheader against ranked Waukee. Lukas Jellnor has is hitting .529 and Sam Harris has three wins and a 2.80 ERA on the bump. The U has a big doubleheader with rival #1 Johnston on deck.
10. Marion (10-2)
The defending 3A state champs stumbled in a doubleheader loss to Clear Creek-Amana but came back strong with resounding doubleheader sweeps where the Wolves outscored their opponents 26-1 and 23-1 to get back into the top 10. Kaden Frommelt is fifth in the state with 39 total bases, hitting .462 with four homers, seven doubles and 20 RBIs. Miles Davis has a 0.44 ERA and three victories.
11. Van Meter (13-0)
Ganon Archer is second in the state in home runs with six and fourth with 45 total bases for the defending Class 2A state champions, who rolled along with five more wins. Archer has been dynamic on the bump, garnering three wins with a perfect ERA in 13 1/3 innings.
12. Western Dubuque (14-1)
The Bobcats, winners of nine straight, went 5-0 last week. Garrett Kadolph leads the state with 25 hits, including 11 doubles (tied for state lead) and 25 RBIs. Isaac Then is tied for second with 23 hits, and Jake Goodman is second in runs scored with 23. Ryan Klosterman (1.31 ERA) has pitched WD to three wins.
13. Davenport Assumption (10-3)
The 3A Knights suffered close losses to Cedar Rapids Prairie and WDM Valley, but bounced back strong with a 6-0 week, which included victories over Dowling and Xavier. Chance Dreyer is hitting .421 with two dingers and six doubles.
14. Mason City Newman Catholic (12-3)
The Class 1A Knights take on all comers. They went 3-3 on the week, but all the losses were to ranked schools in larger classifications – Dowling (4A), Xavier (3A) and Estherville-Lincoln Central (2A). Newman is led by Max Burt (.549) and Doug Taylor (.429) at the dish and the pitching of Elijah Brinkley (three wins).
15. Southeast Polk (6-4)
The Rams became the first and only team to knock off No. 1 Johnston in a thrilling 8-inning game last week as Matt Rivers pitched a gem over 6 2/3. Jack Casey is SEP’s top hitter with a .360 average and 12 RBIs – both team highs.
16. Remsen St. Mary’s (14-0)
The undefeated Hawks move up seven spots after another perfect week. Carter Schorg has pitched five victories and a state-high 49 strikeouts for the unbeaten Hawks. Jason Bunkers is hitting .537 with seven stolen bases and Hunter Pick has driven in 22 runs.
17. Iowa City West (10-4)
The Trojans’ debut after winning six straight. Noah DeSaulniers (.349, 10 RBIs) and Ryne Vander Leest (.326, 11 RBIs, 15 runs, nine stolen bases) spearhead the offense.
18. West Delaware (10-5)
The Hawks plummet eight spots after losing three straight and four of five with three of the losses coming to ranked teams Beckman (twice) and Walhert. WD did salvage an impressive win over a good Waverly-Shell Rock squad. Kyle Cole and Lukas Meyer each have 17 base hits and Luke Kehril has three wins and a 0.74 ERA on the mound and has also smacked five dingers on the season, which is third in the state.
19. Indianola (9-5)
The Indians drop seven spots after a difficult 2-3 week, but they have an opportunity to bounce back with a big game at unbeaten Grinnell on deck. Brady Blake continues to lead the squad, batting .395 with 16 RBI – both team highs. Hayden Hoffman has a 0.50 ERA and two wins.
20. Clear Creek-Amana (8-2)
The Clippers, who debuted last week after an impressive doubleheader sweep over defending 3A champion Marion, drop in the poll after a 3-2 week. Ben Swalls is hitting .630 with 15 RBIs, 12 runs scored and two homers.
21. Waukee Northwest (8-4)
The Wolves won their only two games last week, taking a pair from Fort Dodge. Anthony Watts has pitched Northwest to three wins this season thanks to an ERA of 0.44.
22. Estherville-Lincoln Central (11-2)
The Midgets played a tough schedule last week with wins over ranked Newman Catholic and Kingsley-Pierson (7-3) and losses to previously ranked MOC-Floyd Valley and Cherokee Washington – two teams on the brink of making our poll. Owen Larson has pitched the Midgets to three wins and a 0.41 ERA, striking out 29.
23. West Des Moines Valley (9-4)
Hunter Essman’s .818 on base percentage ranks second in the state for the Tigers, who lost to Dowling but came back to win the nightcap of a twin bill vs. the No. 2 Maroons and then swept Mason City. The Tigers have doubleheaders with Waukee and Johnston coming up this week. Kyle Sonnenburg has three wins pitching and is hitting .417.
24. Lansing Kee (13-2)
The Lancers had their 11-game win streak end at unbeaten New London last week. Damon Weber is hitting .500 with six doubles, 15 RBIs and 19 runs scored, and Tyson Cota is fifth in the state with eight doubles and has pitched the team to a pair of wins.
25. Storm Lake (10-3)
The Tornadoes debut after winning seven straight. Edgar Barriero leads the team with a .410 batting average with 16 runs, 15 RBIs and three homers. Drew Taylor has a 0.68 ERA in over 10 innings pitched.
