Opening round substate games for Class 4A and Class 3A tipoff on Monday, Feb. 19. Eight teams from each class advance to the 2024 IHSAA State Basketball Tournament presented by Iowa Farm Bureau, set for March 4-8 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

Link to pdf for Class 3A: Basketball-Substate-Brackets-2.12.24-3A.pdf (iahsaa.org)

Link to pdf for Class 4A: Basketball-Substate-Brackets-2.12.24-4A.pdf (iahsaa.org)

The Iowa State men are in the nation’s top 10 as they get ready for Tuesday night’s game at Cincinnati. Defense and toughness have led the Cyclones to a 7-3 Big-12 record and they begin the week alone in second place. They are up to 10th in the latest AP top 25.

That’s ISU coach T.J. Otzelberger who says the Cyclones are a hardworking team that also has great chemistry.

Cincinnati is 4-6 in the Big 12 and like the Cyclones is a program known for defense and physical play.

Otzelberger says the Bearcats have been competitive in their first season in the Big-12.

The Drake men take an 11-3 Missouri Valley record on the road to Evansville Tuesday night. The Bulldogs beat the Aces 97-48 in Des Moines last month but Evansville leader scorer Ben Humrichous missed that game due to injury.

That’s Drake coach Darian DeVries who says Humrichous makes everyone around him better.

Drake is 20-5 overall after Saturday’s win at Bradley. In his sixth season as head coach DeVries has led the Bulldogs to six seasons of 20 or more wins. That happened once at the school in the previous 47 seasons. *

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico – In the most up-and-down game of the tournament, Iowa State (2-2) defeated Long Beach State (0-4) by a score of 7-5 on Sunday afternoon, using a five-run seventh inning and a triad of home runs to close the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge the way it started – with a win.

The Cyclones went down 3-0 and slowly chipped away, using three solo homers to eventually knot the game in the top of the seventh. The team would then add four more insurance runs. Iowa State has now hit six long balls in the first four games, mashing one per game in the previous three before exploding for three today against The Beach.

Angelina Allen led the way for the Cyclones, going 3-of-4 at the plate with three singles. Milaysia Ochoa and Olivia Wardlow each had two hits and four other Cyclones notched hits. Ochoa, Carli Spelhaug and Isabelle Nosan each had solo homers on the day, while Ashley Minor and Spelhaug each had multiple RBI.

Aziza Rodriguez got her first collegiate start this afternoon, going 1.2 innings and allowing just two hits. Saya Swain (2-1) replaced Rodriguez, going the remaining 5.1 innings and striking out three as she picked up her second win of the season.

Both Ochoa and Swain were named to the All-Tournament Team.

Jacquelyn Bickar led The Beach with three hits. Lilyanna Martinez led LBSU with two RBI. Long Beach had just two extra-base hits on the day.

Shannon Haddad (0-2) pitched six innings for The Beach, allowing four runs and striking out five. Kate Barnett and Sophia Fernandez replaced Haddad and finished out the seventh inning as ISU made its comeback.

 How it Happened

Iowa State and Long Beach felt each other out the first two innings, as neither team was able to score a run. ISU was held hitless for the first two innings while LBSU tallied a pair but was unable to cash them in.

Long Beach did most of its damage in the third inning, scoring three of its five runs. A leadoff single and an ISU error allowed for the first run to come across. With a runner on and one out, LBSU strung together a single and a double to plate two and take an early 3-0 lead.

The Cyclones got their first hit in the top of the third but were still held scoreless in the third and fourth. They broke through though in the top of the fifth, as with two outs and no one on, Ochoa belted her first long ball of the season to cut the deficit to two.

A scoreless bottom of the fifth gave way to the sixth, where Spelhaug cranked her second homer of the season. Swain would lock down LBSU in the bottom of the frame to set up a one-run game headed to the seventh.

The inning began with a pinch hit. Isabelle Nosan came to the plate for her first-ever collegiate at bat and promptly sent a ball over the left-center fence to knot the game up at three-all. A pair of singles from both Ochoa and Allen followed by a Tatum Johnson walk loaded the bases with one out. Minor then broke it open, singling through the right side of the defense to plate two and give ISU its first lead – 5-3. A Spelhaug sac fly would plate another and an Olivia Wardlow single scored the seventh run before the inning ended.

Long Beach didn’t go down quietly though, stringing together two singles and a triple to tack on two more but weren’t able to finish the job as they fell 7-5.

Sunday Notes

Home Runs

Iowa State: Milaysia Ochoa (1), Carli Spelhaug (2), Isabelle Nosan (1)

Long Beach: N/A

 WP – Saya Swain (2-1): 5.1 IP, 7 hits, 5 runs (3 earned), 1 walk, 3 strikeouts

SV – N/A

LP – Shannon Haddad (0-2): 6.0 IP, 8 hits, 4 runs, 3 walks, 5 strikeouts

 On Deck

Iowa State will return to action next weekend when it travels to Las Vegas for its second tournament of the season – the UNLV Desert Classic. The Cyclones will open tournament play against UC Santa Barbara on Friday, Feb, 16. Friday’s game is set to begin at 2:30 p.m. CT.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The University of Iowa men’s golf team concluded day one of play at the Puerto Rico Classic. The Hawkeyes currently sit in third place after posting a first round 274 (-14).

Freshman Noah Kent leads the field by three strokes after firing an opening-round 63 (-9). Kent’s 63 ties Alex Schaake ’21 for second for the lowest round in program history (4/21/2019 Hawkeye Invitational).

Kent’s 63 is just one stroke off the all-time low round in program history, set by Chad McCarty with a round of 62 at the Johnny Owens Invitational in 1997. Kent was bogey free on Sunday and led the field with nine birdies.

Sophomore Hogan Hansen also completed his first-round bogey free. Hansen shot 3-under par and currently sits in a tie for 17th place. Graduate Josh Lundmark knocked in five birdies to get to 2-under par. Lundmark is in a tie for 35^th place.

North Florida currently leads the field at 17-under par trailed by Tennessee in second place at 16-under par.

HAWKEYE SCORECARD

*Competing Individually

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH TYLER STITH

“We’re happy with that start. The guys have been good in practice, so I’m pleased to see that translate in a tournament. We know there’s more work to do the next two days.

“What needs to be said about bogey free 63? Just an awesome round of golf from Noah. He was in total control of his game today. It was fun to watch.”

HAWKEYE NOTABLES

• Iowa’s par four average of 3.94 (-3) was third of all the teams in the field.
• Noah Kent’s par four average of 3.50 (-5) led all players in the field.
• Noah Kent led all players with nine birdies. Josh Lundmark was second on the Hawkeyes with five birdies.
• Noah Kent was one stroke away from tying the lowest round in program history (62, Chad McCarty, 4/3/1997, Johnny Owens Invitational).

UP NEXT

Round two is tees off Monday morning at Grand Reserve Golf Club.

CLEARWATER, Fla. – The University of Iowa softball team fell to 13th-ranked Utah, 3-1, on Sunday morning to close out the NFCA Leadoff Classic at the Eddie C. Moore Complex.

Sophomore Jalen Adams (1-1) got the start for the Hawkeyes. She gave up three runs on nine hits and struck out one Utah hitter.

Freshman Soo-Jin Berry was named to the NFCA Leadoff Classic all-tournament team after collecting hits in four out of five games.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Utes threatened in the bottom of the first getting runners on the corners with two outs. Adams was able to strand both, getting a ground out to third base to end the inning. Senior Brylee Klosterman had a leadoff single to start the second inning but wasn’t able to make it past second base.

Utah struck first in the bottom of the second after their leadoff batter reached on a double and came around on an RBI single to make it 1-0. Freshman Jena Young and Klosterman made back-to-back diving grabs to get the Hawkeyes out of the inning. Iowa was able to get runners on to start the third but some key defensive plays for the Utes kept the Hawkeyes off the board.

Junior Rylie Moss went over the right field fence to rob a home run for the first out of the home half of the third. The Utes threatened again the start the fourth as they had runners on first and third with no outs. Iowa caught a break as a Utah hitter was called out for being out of the box on a play where a run came home. The Utes continued to utilize the small ball as a run came home a squeeze bunt to make it 2-0.

Iowa caught some momentum in fifth as sophomore Anna Streff and Moss reached base with two outs but were unable to cash in as the top half of the inning ended. Adams escaped a jam in the bottom of the fifth to keep the score, 2-0, Utah heading into the sixth.

Berry continued to swing a hot bat as she drove a one-out double to left center. She came around to score on a ball put in play by freshman Devin Bowman to cut the deficit to one. Utah pushed their lead back to two on an RBI single to make it, 3-1, heading into the seventh. Iowa was retired in order in the top of the seventh to finish the game.

The Hawkeyes finished the game one run on four hits and had one error.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH RENEE GILLISPIE

“There were a lot of great takeaways from this opening weekend. We played a really good Utah team to close out the tournament and if we clean up a few things on defense it’s a different ball game. This is just the beginning for team 46 and I am looking forward to what is to come the rest of the season.”

NOTABLES

• Freshmen Berry (.438) and Young (.364) lead the team in hitting after the opening weekend.
• Seven Hawkeyes started all five games with four of them hitting over .300 on the weekend.
• The pitching staff finished the weekend with a 1.35 ERA and struck out 14 batters.
• Iowa closed out the NFCA Leadoff Classic going 3-2 on the weekend.

UP NEXT

The Hawkeyes will return to action on Friday Feb. 16 at The Spring Games in Leesburg, Fla. Iowa will face Southern Illinois and Liberty on Friday with action beginning at 1:30 p.m. CT. Games will be streamed live on FloSoftball (subscription required) and be broadcasted on the Hawkeye Radio Network.

San Francisco tight end and former Iowa Hawkeye star George Kittle says the 49ers did not take advantage of enough opportunities in a 25-22 overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Sunday’s Super Bowl. It was a game the 49ers led 10-0 in the opening half.

Kittle on coming up short for the second time against the Chiefs.

Kittle feels the 49ers will have a chance to make another run.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback and former Iowa State star Brock Purdy passed for 255 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s 25-22 overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. He led the 49ers to a field goal on their opening possession in overtime.

It was a heartbreaking loss to the 49ers, who had a 10-0 lead in the second quarter.

Purdy says the lead could have been bigger in the opening half.

Purdy says the 49ers hope to get another chance down the road.

The Iowa Hawkeye men rallied from a 20-point second half deficit to beat Minnesota 90-85. The Gophers made 11 of their first 15 three point attempts and led 62-42 four minutes into the second half. It was the second biggest comeback in program history. Patrick McCaffery scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half.

Iowa went to a trapping defense in the second half.

Iowa coach Fran McCaffery says the Hawkeyes did a good job of chipping away.

Iowa improves to 6-7 in the Big Ten. Gopher center Dawson Garcia scored 18 first half points but left the game early in the second half with an injury and did not return.