Don Bosco dunks Central Decatur for second-straight trip to state
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Don Bosco senior Bryce Schares waves the Class 1A state baseball qualifier banner after the sixth-ranked Dons defeated Central Decatur 10-0 in five innings in Tuesday’s Substate 6 championship game at Marshalltown High School. Schares struck out four in a three-hitter and had an RBI double in Don Bosco’s 15th-straight victory.
The Don Bosco baseball team brought a 14-game winning streak into the Class 1A Substate 6 finals — one more win than Central Decatur accumulated the entire season.
The Cardinals couldn’t catch the Dons on Tuesday night, either.
Don Bosco senior pitcher Bryce Schares threw a three-hit shutout and Cael Frost homered to help the No. 6 Dons (28-4) secure the ninth state tournament berth in school history with a 10-0, five-inning triumph over Central Decatur (13-18) on Tuesday at Marshalltown High School.
It’s the sixth state tournament berth this decade for the Dons, who pounded out 10 hits and benefitted from four Central Decatur errors in a slow-starting but fast-developing blowout win. Don Bosco scored an unearned run in the bottom of the first inning, Frost hit a solo homer to lead off the third, and then things unraveled in the fourth for the road-weary Cardinals.
Central Decatur had to make its third hour-long trip to Moravia in a week for Monday’s postponed district title game, beating the host Mohawks to advance within a win of what would have been the school’s second state tournament berth. Instead, the Cardinals ran into Don Bosco’s scoring juggernaut with its top pitcher well-rested and without pitch count restrictions.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Don Bosco’s Cael Frost (1) kicks off the celebration outside the Dons’ dugout after defeating Central Decatur 10-0 in five innings on Tuesday night at the Marshalltown High School baseball diamond.
Schares pounded the strike zone with fastballs and had little trouble churning through the Central Decatur batting order, facing only three more than the minimum while not allowing a Cardinal runner to advance as far as third base.
Don Bosco, meanwhile, made up for its slow start by breaking free in the bottom of the fourth with seven runs coming on six hits, a leadoff walk and a pair of Cardinal errors. The Dons had five-straight run-scoring hits, highlighted by an RBI double for Schares and Fischer Ohrt’s two-run blooper to right to cap the rally.
Dillon Welter led off the fifth with a double for the Dons, took third on a wild pitch and scored one pitch later on a sacrifice fly by Kendall Becker to end the game early.
Don Bosco head coach Joel Schares said the first run, not the last one, was the biggest difference-maker.
“I think that was big to get that one in the first,” coach Schares said. “It’s been three out of the four (postseason) games we’ve scored in the first inning and that helps you put your nerves at ease.”
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Don Bosco senior pitcher Bryce Schares delivers to the plate during Tuesday’s Class 1A Substate 6 title game against Central Decatur.
Don Bosco, averaging 12.2 runs per game, was easily the odds-on favorite against a sub-.500 squad from central Iowa that finished middle of the pack in the Pride of Iowa Conference. The Dons, however, didn’t play like a team that took for granted the opportunity to get back to Principal Park in Des Moines for back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2013-14.
“That was probably the biggest thing we walked about today at batting practice was that you’ve got a job to do today, it doesn’t matter who you’re playing,” coach Schares said. “Everybody feels like they’re playing their best baseball of the year because they’re in the substate, so you’ve still got your work cut out for you.
“Now we’re back-to-back, it’s pretty special. It doesn’t get old.”
Each of Central Decatur’s three singles led off their respective innings. David Walker started the second with a hit to left, Dakota Davis opened the third with a high chopper before stealing second base, and Michel Evertsen slapped a single through the right side to begin the fourth.
Walker never got beyond first base, Davis was left stranded at second and Evertsen was erased on a double play to end the inning.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE
Schares didn’t walk anybody and the Dons made just one error behind him.
“We threw a ton of fastballs,” coach Schares said. “With Bryce, you’ve got to outhit us. We do feel like we’re a good hitting team and you need to outhit us to beat us. Bryce just threw a lot of fastballs and threw a lot of strikes.”
Schares needed just 55 pitches to get through the Cardinal lineup twice, improving to 9-1 on the year.
Frost, Ohrt and Welter each had two of Don Bosco’s 10 hits off Evertsen (1-5), who surrendered eight earned runs. He struck out three and walked one.
Welter, batting ninth, was 2-for-3 with a double, a triple and two runs scored, while Frost was 2-for-3 with a home run and an RBI single. Kendall Becker was 1-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Lewis Havel and Easton Larson each had RBI singles and scored a run.
State baseball tournament pairings had not been announced as of press time.
Substate Finals
Tuesday’s Scores
CLASS 1A
Alburnett 4, H-L-V, Victor 2
Coon Rapids-Bayard 9, Southeast Warren 1
Don Bosco 10, Central Decatur 0 (5 innings)
Martensdale-St. Marys 4, CB St. Albert 3
Mason City Newman 9, Newell-Fonda 2
Pekin 7, Calamus-Wheatland 0
South Winneshiek 7, Saint Ansgar 1
St. Mary’s, Remsen 7, Kingsley-Pierson 1
CLASS 2A
Central Lee 14, Wilton 0 (5 innings)
Des Moines Christian 8, Roland-Story 0
New Hampton 5, Oelwein 2
North Linn 8, Pella Christian 0
Underwood 4, Hinton 3
Van Meter 5, Ogden 3
West Branch 3, Camanche 2
West Sioux 3, Pocahontas Area 0
——
Don Bosco 10, Central Decatur 0, 5 innings
At Marshalltown
CD 000 00 — 0 3 4
DB 101 71 — 10 10 1
Michel Evertsen and Dakota Davis; Bryce Schares and Cedric Yoder. W–Schares (9-1). L–Evertsen (1-5). 2B–DB: Schares, Dillon Welter. 3B–DB: Welter. HR–DB: Cael Frost (6). LOB–CD 3, DB 5.
——
Wednesday’s Games
(All games 7 p.m)
CLASS 4A
Ankeny at Des Moines Roosevelt
Cedar Rapids Prairie, at Iowa City, West
Davenport Central at Western Dubuque
Indianola at Johnston
Pleasant Valley at Linn-Mar
Southeast Polk at Ankeny Centennial
Valley at Dowling Catholic
Waukee at Urbandale
CLASS 3A
ADM, Adel at Harlan
Boone at Ballard
Centerville at North Polk
Charles City at Cedar Rapids Xavier
Dubuque Wahlert at Central DeWitt
Fairfield at Davenport Assumption
Sergeant Bluff-Luton at Sioux City Heelan
Solon at Marion
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- T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE – Don Bosco senior Bryce Schares waves the Class 1A state baseball qualifier banner after the sixth-ranked Dons defeated Central Decatur 10-0 in five innings in Tuesday’s Substate 6 championship game at Marshalltown High School. Schares struck out four in a three-hitter and had an RBI double in Don Bosco’s 15th-straight victory.
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- T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE – Don Bosco’s Cael Frost (1) kicks off the celebration outside the Dons’ dugout after defeating Central Decatur 10-0 in five innings on Tuesday night at the Marshalltown High School baseball diamond.
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- T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE – Don Bosco senior pitcher Bryce Schares delivers to the plate during Tuesday’s Class 1A Substate 6 title game against Central Decatur.
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- T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE
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