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Spartans’ Jirovsky repeats as NICL West’s Player of the Year

T-R FILE PHOTO - Grundy Center’s Tate Jirovsky pitches against Gladbrook-Reinbeck during an NICL West Division baseball game June 26 at George F. Wilhelm Sports Complex in Grundy Center.

Grundy Center senior Tate Jirovsky repeated as the Player of the Year in the NICL West Division to highlight the Spartan baseball team’s seven all-conference selections.

The Spartans shared the NICL West crown with South Hardin and finished with a league-leading four first-team honorees as voted on by the conference coaches.

Jirovsky was one of two unanimous first-team picks for the Spartans, joined in that distinction by sophomore batterymate Pete Lebo. Junior second Brody Zinkula and sophomore utility Judd Jirovsky also gained first-team honors for Grundy Center, which finished 9-3 in league play.

Tate Jirovsky was on the mound for most of those conference wins as he went 7-0 in league play with a 0.76 earned run average. He pitched 36 2/3 innings, allowing just 22 hits while striking out 58 batters. He walked only five. Offensively, Tate hit .421 in divisional play with four doubles, 11 RBIs and 12 runs scored.

Jirovsky was a four-time all-conference selection, earning honorable mention as a freshman and three-straight first-team honors.

Lebo batted .343 in league play with one double, a triple, seven RBIs and 16 runs scored. Defensively, the sophomore catcher also threw out 3-of-12 would-be base-stealers.

Zinkula was Grundy Center’s leading hitter in conference games, hitting .425 with six doubles, two triples, 10 RBIs and 16 runs scored. Judd Jirovsky hit .424 with a triple, 10 RBIs and 13 runs scored. He also stole 14 bases, while Zinkula swiped 13.

Third-place finisher East Marshall had a pair of first-team all-conference honors in sophomores Blake Neuroth and Jackson Bidwell. Neuroth, a shortstop, batted .429 with four doubles, seven RBIs and nine runs scored. Bidwell batted .304 with four RBIs and four runs scored.

East Marshall head coach Justin Frost, who stepped down after the season, was voted as the conference’s Coach of the Year.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck finished fifth in the conference but was represented on the first team by a pair of players — junior first baseman Drew Eilers and sophomore outfielder Hudson Clark.

Eilers earned his third all-conference honor with his second-straight unanimous first-team selection after batting .391 with three doubles, 10 RBIs and six runs scored. He also posted a 1-2 record with a 2.44 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings pitched. Clark finished with a .290 average, five RBIs and six runs scored.

Grundy Center’s second-team selections were junior pitcher Ryker Thoren and senior outfielder Tanner Laube, while G-R senior Isaac Clark was a second-team pick at shortstop.

East Marshall had four second-team honorees: senior third baseman Connor Kriegel, junior pitcher Joryn Shively, junior outfielder Jacob Farrington, and freshman first baseman Jackson Busch.

Honorable mention went to East Marshall senior Alex Jacobson, Grundy Center sophomore Brayden Davie, and Gladbrook-Reinbeck eighth-grader Chad Gutknecht.

All-NICL West Division Baseball

(* — unanimous selection)

Outstanding Player of the Year — *Tate Jirovsky, sr., Grundy Center

Coach of the Year — Justin Frost, East Marshall

FIRST TEAM

*Tate Jirovsky, sr., P, Grundy Center

Garrett Anderson, fr., P, South Hardin

*Pete Lebo, so., C, Grundy Center

*Drew Eilers, jr., 1B, G-R

Brody Zinkula, jr., 2B, Grundy Center

Blake Neuroth, so., SS, East Marshall

Landon Benning, sr., 3B, AGWSR

Jackson Bidwell, so., OF, East Marshall

Kaden Abbas, sr., OF, AGWSR

Hudson Clark, so., OF, G-R

*Peyton Welch, so., UT, South Hardin

Judd Jirovsky, so., UT, Grundy Center

SECOND TEAM

Joryn Shively, jr., P, East Marshall

Ryker Thoren, jr., P, Grundy Center

Jaxson Drury, jr., C, South Hardin

Jackson Busch, fr., 1B, East Marshall

Casey Williamson, fr., 2B, South Hardin

Isaac Clark, sr., SS, G-R

Connor Kriegel, sr., 3B, East Marshall

Carter Roder, jr., OF, AGWSR

Tanner Laube, sr., OF, Grundy Center

Jacob Farrington, jr., OF, East Marshall

Tristen Dennis, so., UT, AGWSR

Joshua Spindler, 8th, UT, South Hardin

HONORABLE MENTION

AGWSR — Remington Kerns, 8th

East Marshall — Alex Jacobson, sr.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck — Chad Gutknecht, 8th

Grundy Center — Brayden Davie, so.

South Hardin — Braden Weig, 8th

Final Conference Standings

Grundy Center 9-3

South Hardin 9-3

East Marshall 7-4

AGWSR 2-9

Gladbrook-Reinbeck 1-9

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