CLASS 1A BASEBALL REPORT
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
The regular season in Class 1A has reached its midpoint, and three teams remain undefeated. Flatirons Academy, McClave, and Eads begin the week without a blemish, and there is a number of teams with only one loss. This week has some great match-ups that will have a big impact of the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index. Here’s a look at how the top-10 have done so far, and what they have on tap this week. The rankings come from the Tuesday morning Seeding Index.
#1 FLATIRONS ACADEMY (9-0)
The Bison have only allowed more than three runs in a game three this season. One of those was a 19-9 decision over Wiley last Saturday. Another came on Monday in an 11-5 victory over Dawson School. Caleb Doughty is hitting .552, with seven extra base hits, including five doubles. He is second on the team with 14 RBI. Braxton Kelley is second with a .533 average, and leads with 18 RBI, and 10 XBH. He has the team’s lone home run so far. Flatirons Academy has a 3.18 ERA as a squad, highlighted by Doughty, who has given up five earned in a team-high 17 innings, good for a 2.06 ERA. Doughty has punched out 25 and walked 11. The Bison go to Lyons on Thursday, and then visit #2 Haxtun on Saturday.
#2 HAXTUN (6-1)
Haxtun started the season with a six-game winning streak, but suffered its first loss in the nightcap of doubleheader with #6 Merino last Tuesday. Along with the win over Merino in the opener of that DH, the Fightin’ Bulldogs own two wins over #8 Otis, and one against #12 Prairie. They have a big doubleheader with 2A #5 Yuma on Tuesday, and then the huge clash with Flatirons Academy looms on Saturday. Haxtun will also travel to Sedgwick County for two on Monday. Kanin Koberstein leads the offense with a .524 average, and he’s scored 10 runs. Leading in that category is Madden Larsen, who has 11 to go with a .474 average and three home runs. Koberstein has worked a team-leading 15 innings, posting a 2.33 ERA with 13 Ks and five walks.
#3 MCCLAVE (7-0)
The Cardinals have outscored the opposition 90-15 so far, with three shutouts on the ledger. They have two wins over #10 Wiley, and another over 2A #11 Crowley County. The latter of those, a 10-5 victory, was the closest for McClave this season. They have a doubleheader at #23 Cheyenne Wells on Monday, and will host #16 Holly for two on Friday. The first game of each twin bill will count in the District 4 standings. Kielan Mallard has been the ace this season, throwing two no hitters an posting a 0.00 ERA. He’s allowed three unearned runs in 17.2 innings. He’s also been tough on the base paths, stealing nine bases, second to Drew Howe‘s 11. Howe’s .609 average has helped him score 14 runs and drive in 12. Ryan Steinbrunn tops the squad with a .625 average, and 15 RBI.
#4 EVANGEL CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (5-1)
Evangel Christian’s lone loss came in the season opener against Flatirons Academy, 10-1. Since then, the Eagles have two wins over #15 Elbert, one against 2A Calhan, one over #13 Custer County, and the latest, beating #11 Kiowa. They have a road trip to 2A #22 Front Range Baptist on Tuesday, and then have a round robin with #5 Eads and 3A #26 Harrison on Saturday. Anderson Schultz entered the week hitting .455 with 10 runs scored and 10 driven in. He has one of the team’s two home runs. Jax Castro has the other, along with a team-best 12 RBI. A. Schultz and Jackson Schultz both have ERAs under two, and have combined to allow eight earned runs in 36 total innings. They’ve struck out 46 and walked 11.
#5 AKRON (5-1)
Akron has not lost since dropping its opener to Flatirons Academy by a 9-3 count. The pitching depth of the Rams will be tested this week, with four games in four days. That stretch starts with a road game at 2A #3 Wray on Tuesday. They follow that with a trip to 2A #19 Wiggins on Thursday, and wrapped up with two at home against #17 Caliche. Jakzon Livesay has a 0.00 ERA in nine innings, and he’s struck out 12. Jax Kusel is at 3.15 in a team-leading 13.1 innings. He also has a team-high 16 punch outs. Kusel has also been a terror at the plate, recording a .615 average with team-highs in runs (9), RBI (9), and home runs (1).
#6 MERINO (5-4)
After opening the season by taking the first of two against 2A #5 Yuma, the Rams lost their next three, including two to Wray. But they got hot and reeled off three straight wins before the loss to Haxtun. The Rams are looking to build upon the win in the second game against Haxtun, with a pair against Holyoke on Tuesday. That’s followed by a trip to Otis for one on Saturday. Freshman JJ Powell is the only one hitting above .300 on the season, as he checks in at .345, with a team-leading 10 hits. Zachary Mackintosh tops the team with 11 RBI, and Mickey Swiger has scored a team-high 14 runs, and also leads with eight stolen bases. Merino has five pitchers who have worked more than 12 innings, led by Kaleb Knutson with 17.
#7 EADS (5-0)
Eads has been tough on its District 4 opponents to start the season, allowing one run in the three games that count in the standings. In the second game of their two doubleheaders this season, the Eagles have given up 12. The Eagles will travel to Wiley for two on Tuesday, and then take part in the round robin this Saturday with ECA and Harrison. Johnathan Vasquez leads the attack with a .529 average, and Brantley Buller is at .467. Both have a pair of doubles for the only XBH of the season. Weston Mitchek has driven in a team-leading seven runs. Adyn Hough is the clear ace for Eads, as he’s posted a 0.00 ERA in 15 innings. Hough has allowed one unearned run, and owns a 26:1 strikeout to walk ratio on the year.
#8 OTIS (7-4)
Until last Saturday, Otis had only played doubleheaders, with the Bulldogs sweeping two,, being swept in one, and splitting two. They picked up a 16-1 run rule victory over Briggsdale last Saturday, sending them into a busy week on a high note. Otis hosts Weldon Valley in a single game on Tuesday, goes to Kiowa on Thursday for one, and then hosts Merino for one on Saturday. Gavin Price is among the state leaders with his .600 average. He has 13 XBH in his 24 hits, and leads the Bulldogs with 21 RBI. Austin Hornung isn’t far behind with his .588 average, eight XBH including a HR, and 19 RBI. Four Bulldogs have scored at least 20 runs, led by Mitchell Stivers with 24. Stivers has also stolen 20 bags. The pitching has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride for Otis, as the staff has allowed 84 earned runs in 62 innings, resulting in an ERA of 9.48.
#9 STRATTON (4-1)
Stratton has a pair of doubleheader sweeps bookending a loss to Wiley. The Eagles opened the season by sweeping Baca County, dropped the 11-7 decision to Wiley, and then swept Granada last Thursday. They have five games on the road this week, starting with two at Holly on Tuesday. They follow that with one at 2A #8 Limon on Thursday, and then two more at Cheyenne Wells on Friday. Dominic Hornung (.417) and Von Isenbart (.308) are the only two to have played in every game for Stratton. Isenbart hit the team’s lone homer against Granada last week. He also pitched a one-hit shutout in his first start on the hill. In that game, he struck out seven and walked two. The Eagles have used seven arms this season, compiling a team ERA of 2.52 so far.
#10 WILEY (7-6-1)
The Panthers won three of their first four, a run that included a split of a wild doubleheader with Otis. Wiley lost the opener 13-12, but then responded with a 16-13 win in the nightcap. They put together a three-game winning streak that started against Stratton, but the Panthers have since lost their last two to Caliche and Flatirons Academy. They were outscored 31-17 in those two contests. It doesn’t get any easier for the Panthers, who host Eads for two on Tuesday. That’s followed by one at Baca County on Friday. Noah Summers leads the hitting parade with a .389 average, and he’s second with 18 runs scored, and 17 stolen bases. Grant Mauch is right on his heels with a .387 average, to go with team-highs in runs (19), RBI (10), and stolen bases (18). Nine of his 12 hits have gone for extra bases. Panther pitchers have allowed 126 runs in 67 innings, with 50 of them being unearned. Still, the squad has an ERA of 7.94 on the season.
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