It all came together for G.I. baseball team
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By RYLY JANE HAMBLETON / Lincoln Journal Star
The beginning of the high school baseball season didn’t at all go the way coach Rick Kissack and his Grand Island team thought it would.
The Islanders were coming off a 22-5 season with Kash Kalkowski, the honorary captain of last year’s Journal Star Super-State team, returning. Granted, the Islanders did lose six position starters from that team, but there were good players ready to step in.
Grand Island went 6-10 to start the season. Injuries took their toll. Pitcher Eric Schwieger was out early after shoulder surgery. Catcher Slade Bolles also missed time during the season, as did middle infielder Pete Kropp, who suffered a broken foot during basketball season.
Class A Pvs.
1. Grand Island (20-14) -
2. Millard West (31-8) 4
3. Creighton Prep (27-4) 1
4. Millard North (24-7) 2
5. Lincoln North Star (20-10) 8
6. Omaha Westside (25-7) 3
7. Lincoln Southeast (18-9) 6
8. Papillion-LV South (25-7) 5
9. Millard South (17-11) 7
10. Bellevue East (15-9) 9
Class B Pvs
1. Elkhorn (21-10) 2
2. Omaha Skutt (16-13) 5
3. Omaha Gross (16-12) 3
4. Lincoln Pius X (15-13) 4
5. Omaha Roncalli (17-4) 1
Class A
Comments: Grand Island vaults to the top of the ratings. The Islanders were ratings contenders going into district play. Millard West made a valiant run, but playing four games in less than 24 hours proved to be just a bit too much. Creighton Prep gets the nod over Millard North because of the entire body of work this season. North Star proved itself to be one of the top programs in the state tournament. Southeast moves ahead of Papillion-La Vista South because of a regular-season win against the Titans.
Class B
Comments: Elkhorn, which won the state title last year with just one class, backed that up this season with the Class B title, the first awarded since 1981. Omaha Skutt beat Omaha Gross and Pius X on the way to the championship round and forced a second game with Elkhorn before running out of pitching. Omaha Roncalli made a quick exit from the tournament after riding the top of the Class B ratings throughout the regular season.
The Islanders, who were the preseason No. 6 pick, dropped out of the ratings prior to postseason play. They won 14 of their last 18 games to cap off their first state championship season.
“Early on, we had to exorcise some demons,” Kissack said during the state tournament. “We had good players, but some were inexperienced. Getting players back really helped.”
Kalkowski, a Nebraska recruit who pitched two complete-game victories in the tournament, as well as earning a save in the final game, said the team finally gelled.
“Early in the season, we were making errors on routine plays. The fielding is the big difference,” he said. “Everybody started making plays.”
Elkhorn won the first Class B title awarded since 1981 after winning the one-class championship last year. A new pitching staff came through for the Antlers, who were the preseason No. 1 pick, using 14 games against Class A teams to hone their skills.
The top four teams in Class B, longtime competitors in high school baseball, all had schedules heavily weighted with Class A teams. Omaha Gross played 16 Class A teams, Lincoln Pius X played 15 and Omaha Skutt played 10.
Ryly Jane Hambleton at 473-7314 or rhambleton@journalstar.com.
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