Sports

The 2014 Waukon volleyball team will look to improve on a 9-25-4 overall record posted by last year’s squad in its first year under the guidance of head coach Peyton Wacker. Now in her second year at the helm and newly married, Coach Peyton Lapel will see the return of five varsity letterwinners from last year’s crew that also finished sixth in the final Northeast Iowa Conference (NEIC) standings with a 1-6 record, along with a large group of 10 seniors that will make up a majority of this fall’s 14 team members in this season’s early-going.
Four of those five returning letterwinners also headline that large senior class, including two-year letterwinners Allie Schwartz and Jackie Welch and first-year letterwinners Katelyn Kolsrud and Thea Meyer. Sophomore Regan Wasson rounds out the list of returning letterwinners from last season, making considerable contributions and gaining valuable experience as a middle hitter for the Tribe as just a freshman last fall.

The 2014 Kee cross country season looks to be completely one-sided this fall, as no girls have reported for early-season practice thus far for the Hawks. Veteran coach Gary Bottorff has also seen a bit of a drop in overall numbers on the boys’ side of the team equation this season, as just nine competitors have been putting in early-season work-outs for the Kee boys.
Of those nine, six return with varsity letterwinning experience for Coach Bottorff, and five of this season’s team members are seniors. Four of those team members can boast that most veteran combination of being both a senior and a returning varsity letterwinner, that quartet including Sam Hisel, Michael Harris, Nolan Welsh and Tom Brennan. The sophomore pair of Evan Whalen and Spencer Colsch round out this year’s list of seasoned returnees, having earned their first varsity stripes last season as freshmen.

Nine returning letterwinners bolster Kee football hopes for 2014 campaign
 

The Waukon baseball team played to an overall record of 6-25 this season, a mark second-year head coach Jerry Keenan says doesn’t necessarily reflect the potential that he saw in this year’s team that returned a dozen letterwinners with varsity experience from a nine-win crew one season earlier.
“I am not certain that our record was always indicative of the way that we were capable of playing,” Coach Keenan said. “The way we played the last two weeks of the season was very encouraging as we look forward to next season. I am proud of these young men for the way they represented our school district and our communities.”

The 2014 Waukon softball team played to an overall season record of 7-25 this summer, posting a mark of 2-16 to place seventh in the final seven-team Northeast Iowa Conference standings. A reversal of a handful of close games this season - nine contests decided by three runs or less - would have evened out that season mark, but this season’s diamond crew seemed to make things a bit more difficult for itself with some offensive and defensive woes.
“Our greatest challenges throughout the season were producing runs and minimizing errors,” Waukon softball coach Bob Wasson said. “For next season, I think that the girls will need an increased focus on hitting during the pre-season, and that with more experience the number of errors will hopefully decline as well.”

by Val Meyer

Kee softball head coach Liz Hill was named Class 1A Northeast District Coach of the Year by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association following completion of the 2014 softball season. Hill guided the softball Hawks to their best season in program history that included a school record for wins in a season in Kee’s 34-10 overall record. The Hawks also played to a 20-2 Upper Iowa Conference record to win their first-ever conference championship, and also won two of three games at this season’s grand finale in Fort Dodge to claim Class 1A State Tournament Runner-Up accolades in just the second-ever State Tournament appearance in program history.
 

Kee softball eighth grader Kendra Cooper earned Class 1A Northeast All-District honors and Class 1A First Team All-State honors from the Iowa Girls Coaches Association following completion of the 2014 softball season, in which the Hawks played to a best-ever season record of 34-10, a first-ever Upper Iowa Conference championship, and Class 1A State Tournament Runner-Up honors. Cooper led the Hawks this season with a .462 batting average that also included team highs of 67 hits, four triples, seven home runs and 47 runs batted in (RBI). In addition to her offensive leadership, she also paced Kee’s pitching efforts this season with a 22-5 overall record that included team highs of 160-2/3 innings pitched, 172 strike-outs, a .192 opposing team batting average and an earned run average (ERA) of just 1.52.
 

Kee softball freshman Courtney Cooper was honored with Class 1A Northeast All-District honors and Class 1A First Team All-State honors by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association following completion of the 2014 softball season, in which the Hawks played to a best-ever season record of 34-10, a first-ever Upper Iowa Conference championship, and Class 1A State Tournament Runner-Up honors. Cooper was second on the team in home runs and doubles this season with six round-trippers and 12 two-baggers, collecting 53 hits and driving in 39 runs that ranked fourth and third on the team, respectively, this season. She also rounded out Kee’s formidable one-two pitching punch with her eighth grade sister, Kendra, posting a 12-5 season record that included 97-2/3 innings pitched, 144 strike-outs, a .200 opposing team batting average and an earned run average (ERA) of 2.29.
 

Kee softball junior outfielder Val Meyer was named to the Class 1A Northeast All-District Team and the Class 1A All-State Third Team by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association following completion of the 2014 softball season, in which the Hawks played to a best-ever season record of 34-10, a first-ever Upper Iowa Conference championship, and Class 1A State Tournament Runner-Up honors. Meyer led the Hawk offense with 19 doubles on the season, finishing second on the team with 66 hits, a .458 batting average and 40 runs batted in (RBI). She also played a solid outfield for Kee’s defense, committing just one error on the season.