Prairie Baseball

Prairie does what it takes to get win

Cedar Rapids Prairie baseball coach Matt Thede got a message Friday night before the Hawks played Waterloo West in a Class 4A substate quarterfinal at Prairie.

“I got a text right before the game tonight that said win pretty or win ugly, but just win, and tonight we did what we had to and got the win," he said.

Prairie nipped Waterloo West, 6-4, in eight innings.

The Hawks will find out Saturday night if they'll host Linn-Mar in the substate semifinals Monday night or if they'll draw a second-round bye. Mason City's game against Waterloo East was postponed Friday and rescheduled for Saturday, putting the rest of the substate schedule on hold. If Mason City wins, Prairie will host Linn-Mar on Monday. If Waterloo East wins, the Hawks don't play until the substate final on Wednesday.

Prairie was the No.2 seed and playing at home against the No.5 seed Friday night, but the seedings did not mean a thing. The score was tied, 4-4, after seven innings and the game was up for grabs.

They flip a coin to determine the home team for substate games. Waterloo West won the toss, so Prairie was the visiting team when it came to bat in the top of the eighth inning.

The Hawks put runners on second and third with one out in the top of the eighth. Dustin Carlson hit a sacrifice fly to break the tie and make it 5-4, then Tyler Butz followed with an RBI single for an insurance run.

Anthony Gagliardi went the distance for the Hawks. He gave up two earned runs on two hits, with 10 strikeouts. He also hit a home run.

“Gags didn’t have his best stuff tonight, but we just had to play around our mistakes, stay positive, and play relaxed,” Thede said.

Nonetheless, Gagliardi had enough to pitch eight innings and help Prairie advance.

"I didn’t feel like my fastball had much velocity tonight, but my curve was my pitch tonight,” he said.

Prairie scored in the first inning on a ground ball by Brayton Carlson and scored again in the second on a passed ball to take a 2-0 lead. Waterloo West came up with three runs in the third inning on two walks, two errors and a two-run single by Conrad Bush.

Gagliardi tied it in the fourth inning, 3-3. with a solo homer to left. Prairie took the lead in the fifth on an RBI double by Brennan Hammer, but Waterloo West pushed across an unearned run in the sixth to knot the score 4-4.

Butz went 3-for-4 to lead Prairie. Hammer and Gagliardi had two hits.

“I see a lot more breaking stuff at the varsity level,” said Butz, a sophomore. “I really have to concentrate on keeping my weight and hands back and make good contact.”

Prairie moved its record to 25-15 and Waterloo West ended its season at 8-31.

PRAIRIE (6)
Hammer, dh, 3 1 2 1, Joens, cf, 0 0 0 0, Utley, 1b, 3 0 0 0, B. Carlson, 2b, 4 1 1 1, Gagliardi, p, 3 2 2 1, Votroubek, rf, 3 0 0 0, Meyer, ph, 1 0 0 0, D. Carlson, c, 3 0 1 1, Allard, cr, 0 1 0 0, Meyer, 3b, 1 0 0 0, Butz, 3b, 4 0 3 1, Boots, lf, 4 1 1 0, Mougin, ss, 2 0 0 0. Totals 30 6 10 4.

WATERLOO WEST (4)
Brown, cf, 4 1 0 0, Vaughn, ss, 1 1 0 1, Fricke, c, 3 0 0 0, Jenkins, cr, 0 0 0 0, Bush, 1b,  3 0 1 1, Stokes, 3b, 4 1 1 0, Kullen, rf, 3 0 0 0, Fisher, dh, 4 0 0 0, Brauer, p, 0 0 0 0, Trebon, p, 0 0 0 0, McClain, 2b, 2 1 0 0, Christensen, lf, 3 0 0 0. Totals 28 4 2 0.

Prairie                   110 110 02 - 6 10
Waterloo West      003 001 00 - 4  2

Brauer, Trebon (5) and Fricke. Gagliardi and D. Carlson. W - Gagliardi. L - Trebon. 2B - Hammer 2, Butz. HR - Gagliardi. SB - Gagliardi, Boots, Velvick.

Carlson shows college coach (and ump) what he can do

Dustin Carlson figured his college baseball coach came to Monday night's games to watch him play. He had no idea Justin Schulte was there as one of the umpires.

"That was pretty different," Carlson noted.

Carlson is a pitcher and catcher at Cedar Rapids Prairie and he's committed to play for Schulte at Southeastern Community College next season. So has Anthony Gagliardi, one of Carlson's teammates, so it was not unusual for their future coach to attend Monday's games at Marion to check them out.

However, Carlson never figured Schulte would be on the field instead of in the stands.

Schulte was the base umpire for the first contest, which was the completion of a suspended game from June 25. Then he worked behind the plate in the nightcap, which was odd because Carlson was the starting pitcher in that game.

Carlson was pitching, and his future college coach was calling the balls and strikes.

"I saw him at the start of the game and I was like, 'What's he doing back there?' " Carlson said. "I thought he was scouting or something. It was a little different, but I got comfortable with it."

Carlson pitched five strong innings as Prairie won the second game, 10-7. And after he got done pitching, he caught the final two innings with Schulte peeking over his shoulder.

Marion won the completion of the suspended game, 12-2, in six innings.

Schulte plans to use Carlson primarily as a catcher at Southeastern Community College, but he also might be used as a relief pitcher. Carlson proved he can do a little of everthing Monday - pitch, catch and hit.

He went 4-for-6 as a batter, tossed a two-hitter as a pitcher and was solid behind the plate.

Carlson said he tried to forget about Schulte being the umpire and just play the game. "But at the end, he's still the coach back there," Carlson said. "I did the best I could.

"I'm not going to lie. I tried to impress him. But I tried to stay even-keeled, I guess."

Carlson allowed only one run during his five-inning stint on the mound. He struck out the side in the third inning, getting all three batters on called third strikes, and left the mound with a 6-1 lead.

Carlson is having a solid season for Prairie (23-15). He has a 6-3 record with 49 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings as a pitcher, and he's hitting .324 with three homers and 23 RBIs. He's also one of the top defensive catchers in the Metro area, with a strong arm.

The Marion Indians (23-14) had a 10-2 lead after three innings when their game against Prairie was suspended on June 25 as part of the Marion tournament. Both coaches agreed to finish that game and play a second game Monday to get their money's worth.

The Indians scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning of the suspended game on a two-run single by Andrew Charipar for the 12-2 victory.

Kasey Semler and Zach Nielsen scored three runs apiece for Marion in the first game. Semler, Nielsen, Trev Biery, Addison Johnson and Charipar all had two hits. Charipar drove in three runs, while Nielsen and Biery had two RBIs apiece.

Gagliardi, Tyler Votroubek and Tyler Butz all socked home runs for Prairie during its 10-7 victory in the nightcap. Gagliardi hit a solo homer and went 3-for-4. Votroubek and Butz both smashed three-run homers. Butz was 3-for-3 in the first game.

Brayton Carlson, Votroubek, Dustin Carlson and Chaz Boots had two hits for the Hawks in the second game.

Marion trailed, 10-2, entering the bottom of the seventh, but the Indians scored five runs and brought the tying run to the plate to make it exciting before running out of time.

Mitch Wagner went 3-for-4 with two doubles for the Indians in the second game. Semler and Nielsen had two more hits.

Completion of suspended game

PRAIRIE (2)
Whitters, dh, 2 0 1 0, Hammer, ph/dh, 2 0 0 0, Pond, p, 0 0 0 0, Utley, 1b/p, 3 0 0 0, B. Carlson, 2b, 3 2 1 1, Butz, 3b, 3 0 3 1, Gagliardi, rf/cf, 3 0 1 0, Joens, cf, 2 0 0 0, Votroubek, rf, 1 0 0 0, Meyer, c, 0 0 0 0, D. Carlson, ph/c, 2 0 2 0, Hilgenkamp, cr, 0 0 0 0, Allard, lf, 0 0 0 0, Boots, ph/lf, 1 0 0 0, Mougin, ss, 3 0 1 0. Totals 25 2 9 2.

MARION (12)
Semler, 2b, 3 3 2 1, Wagner, 3b, 4 1 1 1, Nielsen, ss, 3 3 2 2, Albaugh, rf, 3 1 0 1, Biery, 1b, 4 0 2 2, Alex Charipar, ph, 0 1 0 0, Johnson, c, 4 0 2 1, C. Cannoy, cr, 0 1 0 0, Andrew Charipar, cf, 4 0 2 3, Fish, dh, 1 1 0 0, Stekl, dh, 1 0 0 0, Q. Cannoy, p, 0 0 0 0, Hedtke, p, 0 0 0 0, Davila, lf, 3 1 1 0. Totals 30 12 12 11.

Prairie     101 000 -  2   9 2
Marion    325 002 - 12 12 0

Pond, Utley (4) and Meyer, D. Carlson (4). Q. Cannoy, Hedtke (4), Lochner (6) and Johnson. W - Q. Cannoy. L - Pond. 2B - Butz, Semler, Nielsen, Biery, Johnson, Andrew Charipar. HR - B. Carlson. SB - Hilgenkamp.

Scheduled game

PRAIRIE (10)
Hammer, dh/p, 5 1 1 0, Meyer, c, 0 0 0 0, Utley, 1b, 4 1 1 0, B. Carlson, 2b, 4 0 2 1, Gagliardi, cf, 4 2 3 1, Allard, lf, 0 0 0 0, Votroubek, rf, 4 2 2 3, D. Carlson, p/c, 4 0 2 0, Allard, cr, 0 1 0 0, Allard, pr, 0 1 0 0, Butz, 3b, 4 1 1 3, Boots, lf/cf, 3 0 2 0, Mougin, ss, 3 1 1 1. Totals 35 10 15 9.

MARION (7)
Semler, 2b, 4 1 2 0, Wagner, 3b, 4 1 3 1, Nielsen, ss, 4 0 2 2, Albaugh, rf, 4 1 1 0, Biery, 1b, 4 0 1 0, Alex Charipar, pr/lf, 0 1 0 0, Johnson, c, 1 1 1 3, C. Cannoy, cr, 0 0 0 0, Andrew Charipar, cf, 3 1 1 0, McGarvey, dh, 1 0 0 0, Fish, ph/dh, 2 1 0 0, Davila, lf, 3 0 0 0. Totals 30 7 11 6.

D. Carlson, Hammer (6) and Meyer, D. Carlson (6). Lochner, Q. Cannoy (2), Connelly (4), Stekl (7) and Johnson. W - D. Carlson. L - Q. Cannoy. 2B - B. Carlson, Gagliardi, D. Carlson, Mougin, Semler, Wagner 2, Albaugh, Andrew Charipar. HR - Gagliardi, Votroubek, Butz, Johnson. SB - Boots.

Utley leads Prairie's assault on record book

It was all Utley all night Friday as Prairie took a pair of Mississippi Valley Conference games from Iowa City High, 11-1 and 13-5, at the Prairie field.

The Prairie offense pounded out 24 runs, 27 hits and 11 extra-base hits. D.J. Utley led the way, going 8-for-8 with six RBIs, three doubles and a home run. The homer was Utley's 14th for the season, setting a school record.

The Hawks (22-14, 17-9) won for the 12th time in 13 games and set school records for total wins and league wins.

“I’m in a good spot in the lineup and they have to pitch to me because the guys behind me are hitting home runs, too,” said Utley, who bats second. “It feels great to have the team wins record and I am excited about having the home run record.”

Utley passed Joe Martin in the Prairie record book. Martin hit 13 homers in 2004.

Prairie’s 17-9 record in the Mississippi Valley Conference gives the Hawks their first winning season in the MVC since they joined the conference in 1986. Their 22 wins are the most they've ever had in a season, and they've clinched their first winning season since 1994.

“It was a record-breaking night. Some people could have written us off early, but this group of guys was not going to let that happen,” said Coach Matt Thede.

The first game saw Utley go 4-for-4 with two RBIs. Brennan Hammer and Tyler Votroubek both contributed two hits and two RBIs. Dustin Carlson also chipped in with two hits and Anthony Gagliardi hit a home run.

Gagliardi went the distance in the opener, a six-inning game. He gave up one run on three hits with 11 strikeouts. Brent Hamm had two of the City High hits.

“My splitter was working, my curveball was sharp, but my fastball was not so accurate tonight,” said Gagliardi. “As a team, we are very comfortable with each other because we have been playing varsity ball for three years now.”

Iowa City High (17-19, 10-16) managed five runs on six hits in the nightcap, with Hamm collecting two more hits, but five runs were not nearly enough.

The Prairie Hawks delivered 13 runs on 14 hits, with Utley going 4-for-4 again with four RBIs. Three of those RBIs came on his record-breaking homer in the second inning.

Ty Mougin had two hits and four RBIs. Hammer and Chaz Boots contributed a pair of hits.

Bryce Alberts picked up the victory. He went five innings and struck out four batters before giving way to Hammer, who faced the minimum in the last two innings while striking out two.

Game 1

IOWA CITY HIGH (1)
Hamm, p, 3 1 2 0, Simpson, cr, 0 0 0 0, Crosby, dh, 3 0 1 0, Winegarden, rf, 0 0 0 0, Prybil, 1b, 0 0 0 0, Alberhasky, ss, 3 0 0 0, Duncan, cf, 1 0 0 0, Mrstik, 3b, 3 0 0 0, Wieland, 2b, 3 0 0 0, Stika, c, 2 0 0 0, Hartley, lf, 3 0 0 0. Totals 21 1 3 1.

PRAIRIE (11)
Hammer, dh, 3 2 2 2, Joens, cf, 1 0 0 0, Utley, 1b, 4 1 4 2, B. Carlson, 2b, 3 1 1 0, Hilgenkamp, ph, 1 0 0 0, Gagliardi, p, 3 2 1 2, Votroubek, rf, 2 1 2 2, Dr. Pond, rf, 2 0 0 0, D. Carlson, c, 4 0 2 1, Schulte, cr, 0 1 0 0, Butz, 3b, 1 1 0 0, Meyer, 3b, 1 0 0 0, Boots, lf, 0 0 0 1, Allard, lf, 1 1 0 0, Mougin, ss, 3 1 1 1, Whitters, ph, 1 0 0 0. Totals 30 11 13 2.

Hamm, Hartley (5) and Stika. Gagliardi and D. Carlson. W - Gagliardi. L - Hamm. 2B - Hammer, Utley (2), B. Carlson. 3B - Hamm. HR - Gagliardi. SB - Gagliardi.

Game 2

IOWA CITY HIGH (5)
Hamm, 2b, 4 2 2 0, Dildine, pr, 0 0 0 0, Crosby, c, 3 1 1 1, Wieland, 2b, 1 0 0 0, Prybil, 1b, 3 1 1 1, Alberhasky, ss, 2 1 0 0, Mrstik, 3b, 4 0 1 1, Hartley, dh, 1 0 0 0, Duncan, p, 0 0 0 0, Simpson, lf, 3 0 1 2, Winegarden, rf, 3 0 0 0, Stika, c, 3 0 0 0. Totals 27 5 6 2.

PRAIRIE (13)
Hammer, 1b, 4 2 2 0, Utley, dh, 4 3 4 4, Alberts, p, 0 0 0 0, B. Carlson, 2b, 3 1 1 2, Gagliardi, p, 4 0 0 0, Votroubek, rf, 3 1 1 2, Allard, ph, 1 1 0 0, D. Carlson, c, 3 0 1 0, Whitters, ph, 1 0 0 0, Butz, 3b, 3 1 1 0, Dr. Pond, 1 0 0 0, Boots, lf, 3 3 2 1, Mougin, ss, 3 1 2 4. Totals 33 13 14 2.

Iowa City High     101 030 0 - 5   6
Prairie                241 230 x - 13 14

Duncan, Wieland (5) and Stika. Alberts, Hammer (5) and D. Carlson. W - Alberts. L - Duncan. 2B - Hamm, Prybil, Utley, D. Carlson, Mougin. 3B - Butz. HR - Utley, B. Carlson. SB - Alberhasky, Boots.

Prairie hits 8 homers, sweeps Dubuque Senior

DUBUQUE - The Cedar Rapids Prairie baseball team slugged eight home runs Tuesday and drubbed Dubuque Senior in a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader.

Anthony Gagliardi socked three homers and D.J. Utley knocked two over the fence as Prairie won the first game, 19-5, in five innings.

Utley, Brayton Carlson and Tyler Butz hit home runs in the nightcap as the Hawks waltzed, 16-4, in five innings.

Prairie scored 35 runs and collected 35 hits in 10 innings of baseball.

Gagliardi went 4-for-4 in the first game with seven RBIs. Utley was 4-for-5 with six RBIs. Butz went 3-for-3.

Brayton Carlson went 4-for-4 with two RBIs in the second game. Dustin Carlson was 2-for-2 with two RBIs. Butz was 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Nick Whitters was 2-for-4 with two RBIs.

Prairie raised its records to 19-14 overall and 15-9 in the conference. The surging Hawks have won nine of their last 10 games.

Dubuque Senior fell to 14-21 overall and 10-14 in the conference.

Game 1

PRAIRIE (19)
Hammer, dh, 4 2 1 2, Meyer, c, 0 0 0 0, Utley, 1b, 5 3 4 6, B. Carlson, 2b, 2 2 0 0, Gagliardi, cf, 4 4 4 7, Votroubek, rf, 4 1 1 0, D. Carlson, p, 3 1 1 0, Butz, 3b, 3 2 3 1, Boots, lf, 3 2 2 1, Mougin, ss, 3 1 0 0. Totals 31 19 16 17.

DUBUQUE SENIOR (5)
Grant, rf, 3 0 0 0, Janes, 2b, 2 2 0 0, Jantsch, 1b, 2 2 2 2, Merritt, 3b, 3 1 1 2, Jones, ss, 2 0 0 0, Hanson, dh, 2 0 1 0, Steines, p, 0 0 0 0, Kremer, lf, 2 0 0 0, Clemens, cf, 2 0 0 0, Capesius, c, 1 0 0 0. Totals 19 5 4 4.

Prairie                  318 16 – 19 16 0
Dubuque Senior    302 00 –  5   4 1

D. Carlson and Meyer. Steines and Capesius. W – D. Carlson. L – Steines. 2B – Janes. HR – Utley 2, Gagliardi 3. SB – B. Carlson.

Game 2

PRAIRIE (16)
Hammer, 1b, 4 1 2 2, Alberts, ph, 0 0 0 0, Utley, p, 3 3 2 1, Scott, ph/1b, 0 0 0 0, B. Carlson, 2b, 4 3 4 2, Henry, ph/2b, 0 0 0 0, Gagliardi, cf, 1 2 1 0, Schulte, ph/cf, 2 0 0 0, Votroubek, rf, 3 0 1 1, Drew Pond, ph/rf, 2 1 0 0, D. Carlson, c, 2 1 2 2, Dylan Pond, c, 0 0 0 0, Butz, 3b, 3 1 2 3, Meyer, ph/3b, 1 0 1 2, Boots, lf, 3 2 2 0, Allard, ph/lf, 1 0 0 0, Whitters, dh, 4 2 2 2, Mougin, ss, 0 0 0 0. Totals 33 16 19 15.

DUBUQUE SENIOR (4)
Grant, ss, 2 3 2 3, Janes, c, 3 0 1 0, Jantsch, lf, 2 0 2 0, Merritt, 3b, 2 0 1 0, Jones, 2b, 3 0 0 1, Powers, rf, 2 0 0 0, Blake, dh, 3 0 0 0, Clemens, p, 0 0 0 0, Sabers, 1b, 3 0 0 0, Foley, cf, 1 0 0 0. Totals 21 4 7 4.

Prairie                  342 70 – 16 19 0
Dubuque Senior    110 20 –  4   7 0

Utley, Hammer (5) and D. Carlson, Pond (5). Clemens and Janes. W – Utley. L – Clemens. 2B – Hammer, B. Carlson, Meyer, Whitters. HR – Utley, B. Carlson, Butz, Grant 2. SB – Gagliradi, Grant.