Class 4A and 5A softball teams open up the playoffs on Thursday night with Quarterfinal games. Many teams have byes into the semifinal round. Here’s a look at area match-ups with 7:00 p.m. starts.

CLASS 4A

Region 2
Glenwood @ Creston
Lewis Central @ Denison-Schleswig

Region 3
Carroll @ Perry
Des Moines Hoover @ Newton

Class 5A

Region 1
Sioux City West @ Sioux City North

Region 2
Des Moines Roosevelt @ CB Abraham Lincoln

Shay Burmeister was sent home from second on a Quinn Grubbs bunt and a close play at the plate was called a safe slide. That Spartan run turned out to be the only one of the game and Exira-EHK grabbed a 1-0 win over the Audubon Wheelers in a Class 1A Region 2 Quarterfinal.

Burmeister led off the bottom of the 1st with a bloop single over first base and an errant Wheeler throw to second allowed her to advance to second. Alisa Partridge was unsuccessful bunting as the next batter and eventually flew out to center. Grubbs then went for the bunt. Wheelers Catcher Hannah Thygesen successfully threw out Grubbs but Spartan Coach Andrea Nulle sent Burmeister home. Nulle said they have left early chances to score out there and she wanted to chance it.

Both starting pitchers were strong. Macy Emgarten went the distance for the Spartans, racking up 7 strikeouts and gave up just 4 hits. Kali Irlmeier went 5 innings for the Wheelers and never faced more than 4 batters in a frame. Alexis Obermeier came on for the 6th. Coach Nulle thought both defenses were strong.

Exira-EHK improved to 21-6 on the season and will host the Region 2 Semifinal on Friday night against the winner of Logan-Magnolia at Woodbine. The Wheelers had a strong end to their season and end with a record of 15-11.

IRVING, Texas – Eight Iowa State players – Mike Rose (LB), Charlie Kolar (TE), Greg Eisworth II (DB), Breece Hall (RB), Xavier Hutchinson (WR), Colin Newell (OL), Trevor Downing (OL) and Will McDonald IV (DE) – made the 2021 Preseason All-Big 12 Football Team, announced today by the Big 12 Conference.

The team was chosen by media representatives who cover the league.

Rose, the reigning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, was selected to repeat as the league’s best defensive player in 2021. Kolar was the only unanimous selection.

A senior from Brecksville, Ohio, Rose has started all 38 games in his outstanding career. He was named to multiple All-America teams in 2020 and has earned All-Big 12 recognition in each of his three seasons in Ames, including first team honors a year ago.

This past year, Rose had the most tackles in the Big 12 (96) and was credited with 10.5 TFL, ranking third on the team. The Cyclone star also led all NCAA linebackers nationally with five interceptions, the most by a Cyclone linebacker in school history.

Kolar returns for his senior season as one of the best tight ends in the country. The two-time All-American and two-time First Team All-Big 12 choice was one of three finalists for the Mackey Award in 2020.

Kolar tallied 44 receptions for 591 yards and a team-high seven touchdowns in 11 games last year. His seven touchdown catches tied for seventh on ISU’s season list.

The Norman, Okla., native owns ISU career marks for tight ends in receptions (106), receiving yards (1,425) and touchdown grabs (17). His 17 career touchdown catches ranks fourth all-time in school history and he will enter the season with a 24-game streak with a reception, the fourth-best string in school history.

A native of Grand Prairie, Texas, Eisworth is the only Cyclone in school history to be named First Team All-Big 12 three times (2018-20). The heart and soul of the Cyclone secondary will enter his super senior season (sixth year) with 33 starts, 199 tackles, 9.0 TFL, 19 pass breakups and three interceptions in his career.

Eisworth, who was the 2018 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, was outstanding in 2020, registering 47 tackles, 1.5 TFL, four pass breakups and a fumble recovery.

Hall, who became ISU’s first unanimous first team All-American in 2020, finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy balloting and was one of three finalists for the Doak Walker Award last year. 

A native of Wichita, Kan., Hall, a junior, led the nation in rushing yards (1,572), 100-yard rushing games (9) and consecutive games with a rushing touchdown (12) in 2020, an active streak that ranks second in Big 12 history.

A native of Jacksonville, Fla., Hutchinson made an auspicious debut in 2020, earning Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year accolades.

The First Team All-Big 12 selection started all 12 games a year ago, leading the team in receptions (64) and receiving yards (771). He also recorded four touchdowns.

Hutchinson, who was second in the Big 12 in catches per game (5.3) and third in receiving yards per game (64.2), had five games with 80+ receiving yards in 2020. He had a monster performance vs. Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game with career highs in catches (10) and receiving yards (114)

Newell, a native of Ames, Iowa, started all 12 games and was a First Team All-Big 12 recipient in 2020. He will enter his senior season with 26 career starts.

Newell was the lynchpin of an offensive line unit that was one of 11 finalists for the Joe Moore Award in 2020, an award distributed annually to the nation’s best offensive line.

He’s been added to numerous preseason All-America teams.

Downing, a junior from Creston, Iowa, played in just one game on the offensive line in 2020, suffering a season-ending injury in the opener vs. Louisiana.

Downing started 12 games in 2019, earning Freshman All-America accolades from The Athletic and honorable mention kudos from the Big 12. With Downing in the lineup in 2019, the Cyclones broke school records in total offense (444.3), touchdowns (53), passing yards (4,047) and yards per play (6.4).

A Pewaukee, Wis., native, McDonald IV has developed into one of the most dominant pass-rushers in college football despite never starting a game in his career.

The junior was a First Team All-Big 12 selection in 2020 after leading the Big 12 and tying for first nationally in overall sacks at 10.5, setting a new ISU single-season record. He also recorded 33 tackles and ranked fourth in the league in TFL (13.5).

Iowa State, ranked ninth in the final AP Top-25 poll after tying a school record with nine wins in 2020, returns 19 starters from last year’s team.

The Cyclones season-opener is vs. UNI at MidAmerican Energy Field at Jack Trice Stadium on Sept. 4.

The Iowa High School Athletic Association has released the 2021 baseball playoff brackets for Class 3A and 4A schools. First Round play will be on July 16th, Second Round July 19th, and Substate Finals on July 21st. Here is a look at area match-ups.

CLASS 3A

Substate 7
Perry @ Grinnell
ADM @ Clarke
Creston @ Boone
Saydel @ Dallas Center-Grimes

Substate 8
Greene County @ Gilbert
Harlan @ Glenwood
Atlantic @ Winterset
Carroll @ Denison-Schleswig

CLASS 4A

Substate 8
CB Thomas Jefferson @ Norwalk
CB Abraham Lincoln @ Waukee
Des Moines Hoover @ Lewis Central

Check out all the brackets HERE.

With Jim Field.

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CLASS 1A REGIONAL QUARTERFINALS

Region 2
Bishop Garrigan @ Newell-Fonda
Ar-We-Va @ St. Edmond
Audubon @ Exira-EHK – ON KJAN 4:50pm
Logan-Magnolia @ Woodbine

Region 3
Moravia @ Wayne
Melcher-Dallas @ Twin Cedars
Fremont-Mills @ Lenox
Bedford @ Lamoni

Region 4
Southwest Valley @ Southeast Warren
Stanton @ East Union
St. Albert @ Martensdale-St. Marys
Riverside @ Griswold

CLASS 2A REGIONAL QUARTERFINALS

Region 2
Treynor @ Underwood
Tri-Center @ AHSTW
MVAOCOU @ West Monona
East Sac County @ Hinton

Region 3
Nodaway Valley @ I-35
Central Decatur @ Mount Ayr
ACGC @ Earlham
Panorama @ Kuemper Catholic

Hawkeye Ten Conference

Atlantic 15, Carroll 3 (Bodie Johnson 2-4 with 2 doubles.)
Dallas Center-Grimes 11, Harlan 1 (7 inn)
Lewis Central 10, Glenwood 5
Shenandoah 5, Lenox 0
St. Albert 12, Treynor 2

Western Iowa Conference

Audubon 13, South Central Calhoun 4
Riverside 6, Ar-We-Va 1
Underwood 6, CAM 2
West Harrison 6, Logan-Magnolia 4
Woodbine 4, Missouri Valley 3

Other Scores

Mount Ayr 10, Lamoni 2
Panorama 19, Southwest Valley 2
Pella 6, Martensdale-St. Marys 1
Sioux City North 5, CB Abraham Lincoln 3 (Game 1)
Sioux City North 13, CB Abraham Lincoln 4 (Game 2)
Southeast Warren 18, East Union 8
Wayne 9, Seymour 7
Woodward-Granger 4, ACGC 1

Regular Season Softball

Dallas Center-Grimes 12, Harlan 2

Maleana Woodward drove in 5 runs on two big hits to lead Atlantic to a 10-2 victory over Red Oak in the Class 3A Region 2 Quarterfinals on Tuesday. She brought two home on a single in the 2nd and cleared the bases with a triple in the 4th. Woodward reached base all four times to the plate and racked up three hits and also scored the opening run of the game.

Kennedy Goergen provided a solid start in the circle with 9 strikeouts while giving up 5 hits and 1 walk in 5 2/3 innings of work. Olivia Engler finished the game off with three strikeouts and a ground-out. The Trojans scored 5 in the fourth to grab a 9 nothing lead but Red Oak hung around with 2RBI double from Alexa McCunn in the 5th.

The Trojans improved to 31-5 on the season and advance to face Cherokee, Washington on Friday night in the Regional Semifinals. The Braves picked up a 12-0 win over OABCIG in three innings Tuesday to advance. Red Oak ends their season with a record of 4-24.

We’ll have the Atlantic vs. Cherokee match-up on Friday night with pregame at 6:50 p.m. and first pitch scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

CLASS 1A

Region 2
Bishop Garrigan 13, Glidden-Ralston 1
Ar-We-Va 14, West Bend-Mallard 0
Audubon 11, Boyer Valley 2
Woodbine 2, Coon Rapids-Bayard 0
Logan-Magnolia 5, West Harrison 2

Region 3
Moravia 9, Seymour 5
Twin Cedars 11, Moulton-Udell 0
Melcher-Dallas 10, Mormon Trail 0
Fremont-Mills 6, Sidney 0
Bedford 7, Diagonal 0 (Forfeit)

Region 4
Southwest Valley 15, Essex 8
East Union 6, Murray 0
Stanton 16, Orient-Macksburg 4
St. Albert 14, East Mills 1 (4 inn)
Riverside 3, CAM 0

CLASS 2A

Region 2
Treynor 2, Missouri Valley 1
MVAOCOU 12, Lawton-Bronson 2 (6 inn)

Region 3
Nodaway Valley 5, West Central Valley 4
ACGC 11, IKM-Manning 0

CLASS 3A

Region 2
Atlantic 10, Red Oak 2 – ON KJAN
Cherokee, Washington 12, OABCIG 0 (3 inn)
Okoboji 2, Bishop Heelan 0
MOC-Floyd Valley 13, Unity Christian 3 (5 inn)

Region 3
Albia 12, Centerville 2 (6 inn)
Clarke 10, Shenandoah 0 (5 inn)
Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 11, Des Moines Christian 0 (4 inn)
Chariton 13, Clarinda 3 (5 inn)