For the second year in a row, the Gehlen Catholic baseball team ended their season in the substate final losing to No. 5 Newman Catholic by the score of 4-2.
The Jays battled hard with a Newman team that qualified for state for the 27th time in their school’s history. It was not until the late innings that the Knights ended up taking the lead for good. Head coach TJ Britton says he was proud of the way his team competed.
Gehlen was the aggressor early scoring first in the second inning and having the lead for a couple of innings after taking the advantage in the third. Coach Britton says scoring first was crucial for getting an early advantage in the mental side of the game.
The Jays could not settle into their patient approach at the plate during the game. Gehlen has been known for drawing walks, but they did not draw any walks against Newman Catholic. Coach Britton says that is because Newman’s pitcher Kameron Kropp was too effective and was not making mistakes.
Gehlen’s pitching staff pitched very well throughout the game too. The only major blemish came in the fifth inning when Newman had hitters record a double and a home run in back-to-back at-bats. Coach Britton says his staff’s stuff was good at keeping hitters off balance.
The Jays close the season with a record of 24-8 following the loss. They will also graduate five seniors off this year’s team. Coach Britton says those seniors that graduate all contributed something different, and they will all be missed.
This marks the second year in a row that Gehlen has finished the baseball season one game away from a state tournament berth. Coach Britton says the guys that come back next year will be motivated to push past this point and get back to the state tournament.
Newman Catholic advances to state for the 27th time in school history, and they will open the tournament against Ankeny Christian on Monday in Carroll.
