POI names all-conference baseball teams

Five area teams placed athletes on the Pride of Iowa all-conference baseball lists after the season concluded Friday with Lynnville-Sully winning the Class 1A title 7-1 over Remsen St. Mary’s.

East Union

East Union made it to the district 16 semifinals where they fell 10-1 to Southwest Valley. The Eagles placed four athletes on the all-conference teams.

Seniors Seth Hudson and Austin Lack both earned first-team honors, Hudson as a pitcher and Lack as an infielder. Both athletes broke numerous single-season and career school records at East Union.

Lack had 30 runs on 81 at bats this season. This record tops 25 held by Wyatt Mairet from 2021. Lack has 79 career runs, most coming from his junior and senior seasons. Mairet also held this previous record with 59 scored from 2018-2022. His batting average was .383.

In the infield, Lack had 34 outs and 29 assists on 77 total chances, a .818 fielding percentage.

On the mound, Hudson crushed three records — career wins, strikeouts and innings pitched.

Hudson has pitched 52.2 innings over nine games, striking out 65 batters for a 2.26 ERA. His strikeouts rank third in the POI this season. In his career, he’s pitched seven winning games, topping six by Ethan Mitchell from 2017-2021. Finishing at 156 2/3 innings pitched breaks the record of 143 1/3 held by Ryan Bryson from 2008-2011. Mitchell held the strikeout record of 169 from 2017-2021, but Hudson’s 186 is now the school record.

East Union junior Fischer Buffington earned second team honors as an outfielder. He set a batting record for the Eagles with 16 doubles, topping 15 by Braden Martinez from 2015-2018. Buffington led the Eagles in walks (18) and RBIs (21). He scored 25 runs this season.

Buffington’s 27 stolen bases is second in the POI this season.

Junior Terrian Islas was named to honorable mention after a great season at the plate, leading the POI with a .500 batting average. With 28 hits and 16 walks on 56 plate appearances, Islas also leads the POI with a .635 on-base percentage.

Lenox

The Tigers made it to the district 15 championship game where they fell 4-3 to Tri-Center. Lenox placed five athletes on all-conference teams.

Sophomore Dawson Evans was one of three athletes unanimously selected for first-team recognition. This is his third consecutive year earning all-conference honors. He also earned a spot on the first team all-district Southwest team as a short stop.

Evans led the POI in five statistics - runs (39), hits (44), doubles (12), triples (5) and bases (72). His .458 batting average was second to Islas. In 96 at bats, Evans struck out only eight times.

Despite earning his first-team position as an infielder, he was also a stellar pitcher for the Tigers. He pitched 10 games, striking out 35 batters and allowing 20 runs for a 1.45 ERA. Against him, batters had a .149 batting average.

In the infield, he had 35 outs and 48 assists on 94 chances for a .883 fielding percentage.

Senior Carter Reed, junior Gabe Funk and sophomore Laramie Stoaks all also earned first-team honors on the all-conference and all-district teams.

Reed earned his POI position as a utility player, alternating between pitching, catching and some infield. He was named to all-district as a catcher. This is his third consecutive year as an all-conference player and all-district player. His senior season was capped by a five-inning perfect game against Sidney, 10-0, in their postseason opener.

He pitched 10 games for the Tigers, winning five with a 2.01 ERA. His 53 strikeouts led the Lenox bullpen. On defense, his fielding percentage was .967 with 86 outs, 33 assists and only four errors on 123 total chances. He threw out five runners stealing, the fifth-most in the POI.

On the plate he had 27 hits, 27 runs and led the Tigers with 25 RBIs. With nine walks and 12 times hit by the pitch, his on-base percentage was .453.

Funk, a state track and field champion, led the POI in stolen bases with 29 on 31 attempts. His 38 runs were second only to teammate Reed’s 39. With 30 hits, 16 walks and 10 times hit by the pitch, Funk’s on-base percentage was .505.

In the outfield, Funk had 41 outs and 14 assists on 58 chances. With only three errors, he had a .948 fielding percentage. He earned his position on both teams as an outfielder.

Stoaks earned a first-team POI spot as a pitcher and all-district spot for utility. Pitching 12 games for the Tigers, he was consistent, striking out 52 batters and walking 22. His had a 1.99 ERA on 49.1 innings pitched.

From the plate he had 31 hits and 24 runs. He was walked a team-high 21 times for a .546 on-base percentage. He led the team with 21 RBIs.

Eighth-grader Jack Reed was the fifth Lenox player earning all-conference honors as he was placed on the honorable mention team. Jack had 23 hits, including four doubles and a triple, to earn 26 runs. He hit in 18 runs. He was walked 19 times and had a .446 on-base percentage.

Mount Ayr

The Raiders fell 6-3 in a tough postseason opener against Bedford, who would go on to make the state tournament. Mount Ayr placed three athletes on the all-conference teams.

Senior Preston Fleharty and eighth-grader Adler Reed both earned first-team honors.

Fleharty was named as a catcher. He had 96 outs and only three errors on 103 total chances. He threw out eight runners stealing bases, the third-highest in the conference.

On the plate, Fleharty led the Raiders with 27 runs. He had 24 hits, two homers and 17 RBIs. He was 100% on stolen base attempts, stealing 24 - the third-highest in the POI behind Funk and Buffington.

Reed was dynamite behind the plate for the Raiders this season, leading in runs (27), RBIs (19), batting average (.435) and on-base percentage (.533). His four home runs led the Pride of Iowa. He earned his first-team spot as an infielder.

Mount Ayr freshman Hayes Stogdill earned honorable mention honors. On defense, he had 27 outs and 15 assists for a .875 fielding percentage. From the plate, he had a .400 batting average, scoring 14 runs on 18 hits.

Southwest Valley

The Timberwolves made it to the district 16 championship game where they were bested 2-0 by Bedford. Southwest Valley had three athletes earn all-conference honors and two earn all-district recognition.

Seniors Brayden Maeder and Owen Paul earned second-team POI honors for pitching and utility, respectively. Maeder also earned a second-team all-district spot for pitching.

Maeder pitched 12 games for the Timberwolves, throwing 35 strikeouts. He had a 3.04 ERA on 53 innings pitched. He had eight runs on 29 hits, hitting 20 RBIs. Also serving as the Timberwolves catcher, Maeder had 103 outs, 21 assists and only two errors on 126 chances for a .984 fielding percentage.

Paul led the Timberwolves with 30 hits on 87 at bats. He scored 21 runs and had 19 RBIs. He had the team’s only homer this season.

Sophomore Gavin Wetzel earned second-team all-district honors as a second baseman. He had 43 outs and 23 assists for a .880 fielding percentage. At the plate he had 22 runs on 26 hits and 13 RBIs. He was hit by the pitch 13 times for a .475 on-base percentage. He went 17-17 on stolen base attempts.

Senior Ethan Bruce earned POI honorable mention. He had 27 hits, 14 runs and 20 RBIs.

Nodaway Valley

The Wolverines fell 13-1 to Ogden in the first round of the postseason. Nodaway Valley placed two athletes on the all-conference teams.

Junior Paul Berg earned second-team honors as an infielder. He led the team in hits (17), runs (8), doubles (4) and triples (4). His triples were second-highest in the POI after Evans of Lenox.

On defense, Berg had 22 outs and 28 assists on 58 chances for a .862 fielding percentage.

Senior Deakon Mullen was recognized with honorable mention. Mullen had 10 hits, four runs and five RBIs. He stole nine bases on 10 attempts.