Pleasant Valley caps off historic season in dominant fashion winning the class 4A baseball championship
IOWA CITY, Iowa (BVM) — Pleasant Valley baseball went into the IHSAA State Tournament with zero championships in the history of their program. However, after Saturday’s win, their trophy room was no longer empty.
Pleasant Valley was able to rout defending champion Johnston 14-5 through the help of two massive six run innings in the fourth and fifth and impressive pitching from Matthew Meyer and Barrett Lindmark.
Johnston was able to take an early lead in the top of the third inning with a solo home run from Spencer Campidilli and an RBI single from Gabe Swansen.
Pleasant Valley responded immediately in the bottom of the third through Drew Micek’s RBI double and Caden McDermott’s RBI single to tie the game 2-2.
After the third, it was all Pleasant Valley.
In the bottom of the fourth and fifth innings, Pleasant Valley combined for 10 hits, 12 runs, and showed plate discipline drawing five walks as a team in those innings.
Ryan Mumey and Matthew Meyer led the bats for Pleasant Valley with three RBIs each in the game. Alex Clemons and Seth Clausen were just behind them with two RBIs a piece.
Johnston was unable to match the pace of Pleasant Valley’s offense, as they were unable to score in the sixth and seventh innings to make a rally towards a comeback.
After a season of domination through defense and pitching, Pleasant Valley used their offense to close out their historic season, capping off 14 runs in the championship game. This was their first time reaching 14 runs in a game this season, previously their best was 13 against Cedar Rapids Jefferson.
For head coach Derek Stecklien and his program, they now have their first baseball state championship in school history in their first championship appearance.
Though it is their first championship, things are looking up for the Spartans as their roster still has some experience coming back, including sophomore outfielder Caden McDermott, junior shortstop Barrett Lindmark, and junior right fielder Drew Micek.
Having the ability to go down as history-makers is a huge accomplishment for not only the entire program of Pleasant Valley athletics, but for their community as a whole. Coming into next season, the Spartans intend to continue their run as the top dogs in the state of Iowa.
