Pair of district tournament wins at home put Kee baseball team in position to play for a return trip to the Class 1A State Tournament
Perfect pitching and perfect ending ... Kee baseball senior pitcher Tyson Cota delivers a pitch in the Hawks’ 10-0 home win over Dunkerton in five innings in the semifinal round of the Class 1A District 6 Tournament Wednesday, July 6. Cota pitched a perfect game against the Raiders, striking out 11 of the minimum 15 batters he faced. He also collected two hits in Kee’s 3-2 home win over Janesville in the Class 1A District 6 championship game, delivering the game-wining hit with a walk-off double. Photo by Anissa Stanley. View and find out how to purchase this photo and many more by clicking on the Photo Galleries link on this webpage.
Hawks slated to play South Winneshiek Tuesday for Substate 3 championship
The Kee baseball team got its postseason journey underway in victorious fashion this past week, winning two games to vault the Hawks to their second consecutive Class 1A Substate championship game to vie for a return trip to the Class 1A State Tournament. As the top seed in Class 1A’s District 6, Kee’s diamond dwellers received a first-round bye before putting their first postseason competition easily into the win column with a 10-0 district semifinal victory at home over Dunkerton in a mercy-rule five innings Wednesday, July 6, after having that game postponed from Tuesday, July 5 by weather.
The Hawks then earned return advancement to the Class 1A Substate round with a 3-2 home win in walk-off fashion over Janesville Saturday, July 9. Those first two postseason victories leave Kee with an overall record of 36-3 that includes a 17-1 mark that secured sole possession of the Upper Iowa Conference season championship this summer.
That Class 1A Substate 3 championship game will match the Hawks up with an all too familiar opponent in fellow Upper Iowa Conference squad South Winneshiek, a team Kee has beaten three times during the regular season this summer by a combined 33-6 scoring tally. That showdown was scheduled for Tuesday, July 12, with the winner advancing to the Class 1A State Tournament, which is slated to be held Monday through Friday, July 18-22.
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