The #9 (2A) Grundy Center baseball team was outmatched by Cascade, falling 7-2 in Tuesday’s 2A Substate 3 Final at Vinton-Shellsburg, as aired on 99 The Wave.
The Cougars were sizzling at the plate throughout the first two innings, scoring three each in the first and second. The Spartan defense gave Cascade extra outs to work with by committing five errors. Ryker Thoren singled to drive in Judd Jirovsky after a brief spurt of offense in the first inning, but Cascade’s defense held strong. The teams settled in for two scoreless innings, after which, Pete Lebo doubled to drive in Thoren to cut the deficit to 6-2 in the fifth. But another run by Cascade in the top of the seventh helped seal the win, and the Spartans couldn’t generate a comeback in the bottom of the seventh.
“You just can’t play that level of baseball at this level and expect to win, particularly against a team like Cascade,” Head Coach Pat Brown Jr. says. “I mean, Cascade is loaded. It’s just a baseball tradition rich area. They were geared up, they were ready. I believe they got beat by a run last year in the substate finals to Wilton. Those kids were hungry. And it’s not that our kids weren’t hungry. It’s substate finals, and you can’t make five errors and expect to win a ball game.”
The team was held to four hits for the second consecutive game. Despite a rough start, pitcher Judd Jirovsky bounced back to record 11 strikeouts and one walk while pitching one out short of a complete game due to reaching 110 pitches.
The season has ended at 23-4.
Pat Brown interview:
