March 28, 2024

Belger, Hartman guide Rams to another state title

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DES MOINES — Late in Saturday night’s championship game, Southeast Polk third baseman Cole Hauser took a hot chopper off his chin, quickly recovered and picked up the ball, and fired a strike across the diamond to end Iowa City West’s sixth inning.

Assistant coach Dave Hartman, a Creston native and former Panther player and assistant coach, greeted Hauser with a bear hug, showing his appreciation for the gritty play.

After the Rams’ prevailed 6-2 to cap a three-game offensive barrage of 32 runs at the state tournament, head coach Scott Belger said the play epitomized his team’s successful defense of the Class 4A state championship.

“Our third baseman cut his chin open on that play,” said Belger, a former all-state shortstop at Creston for his father, longtime Panther coach Vic Belger. “That says it all right there. Our attitude was, we’re just going to get there, and make stuff happen.”

Likewise, junior Thomas McLaughlin battled on the mound all night for the Rams, allowing only one earned run on six hits and two walks with five strikeouts over seven innings. On a visit with Belger, McLaughlin had a clear message.

"He's so competitive," Belger said. "He told me, 'You cannot take me out of this game, coach.' He's a quarterback in football. He's a leader. He's a great asset to our team."

Seventh-ranked Southeast Polk, considered an upset victor over West Des Moines Dowling Catholic in the substate final, ended up tying a state tournament record with 42 hits in three games — matching St. Edmond’s mark set in 2009.

Not bad for a team ranked 30th among 48 Class 4A teams in batting average deep into the regular season. Thirteen seniors — including all of the state tournament pitchers — graduated from the 2014 state championship team. Belger had to replace seven starters.

Hartman serves as the first base coach and the team’s pitching coach, manipulating a new staff down the championship stretch.

“We weren’t supposed to do this,” Belger said. “But the guys got better as the course of the year went along. We scored 12, 14 and six runs up here. It’s a tribute to the guys. They stayed with it and eventually broke through at the right time. I couldn’t be prouder.”

Southeast Polk, coming off a wild 14-10 semifinal win over Waukee Friday night, got an early lead with a four-run first inning against Iowa City West.

Iowa City West fired back in the bottom of the first as Connor McCaffery, son of Iowa basketball coach Fran McCaffery, hit an RBI single. Tanner Lohaus, son of former Iowa basketball center Brad Lohaus, ripped an RBI triple for the Trojans to cut it to 5-2 in the bottom of the fourth. McCaffery finished with two hits.

The Rams dropped 18 hits Friday on Waukee, which was missing three senior starters suspended for rule violations before the state tourney. A seven-run second inning broke open an 8-0 lead.

Waukee closed it to 8-5, then Southeast Polk spurted ahead again 14-5, then had to hold on as the Warriors shaved it to 14-10 late in the game.

“We had a lot of confidence at the plate, but we kind of had to ride the (momentum) waves there,” Belger said. (Waukee coach) Dave Dirkx met me on the field one inning and said we might end up in a 15-14 game. He wasn’t too far off.”

Belger said Hartman, his longtime assistant coach dating back to their days together at Des Moines Hoover when current major leaguer Jeremy Hellickson was on the mound, serves a valuable role on his staff.

“Dave works with our pitchers and infielders,” Belger said, “but he has his hands on just about everything we do, to be honest with you. Dave is the best coach that I know. To have him as an assistant coach, he’s the backbone to what we do.”

The respect for Hartman is evident in that he was named head coach of the Large School West team for the upcoming Senior All-Star Series.

Southeast Polk finished with a 33-14 record.

Harlan second

In Class 3A, top-seeded Waverly-Shell Rock exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the fifth inning in defeating third-seeded Harlan 11-1 in the championship game Saturday.

Harlan starter Brett Croghan was pushed from the game six batters into the Go-Hawks’ fifth-inning outburst. He was replaced by Brandon O’Neill, who was unable to quiet the W-SR attack.

Waverly-Shell Rock posted a state tournament-best 0.41 ERA (one earned run in 17 innings) during the three games.

A member of the Waverly-Shell Rock team is former Creston resident Jaedon Foreman.

Harlan reached the final with a seventh-inning rally against Pella in Friday’s semifinal matchup.

Down 5-4 and with runners on second and third and two outs in the top of seventh inning, eighth-grader Brett Sears looped the game-winning two RBI single down the left field line to propel the Cyclones to a 6-5 come-from-behind win over second-seeded Pella.

Josh Cheek started the game for Harlan, although O’Neill earned the win in relief for the Cyclones. O’Neill improved to 9-1 on the year with 3 1/3 innings of one-run ball in which he allowed five hits.

Pella bowed out with a 34-5 record. Harlan’s final record was 28-8. The champion Go-Hawks were 35-4.