Tigers pull off upset of 1A No. 4 SE Warren

MILO — A shocker, to say the least. A major shake-up in the Class 1A Region 4 bracket.

The Iowa Valley softball team pulled off the big upset over 1A No. 4 Southeast Warren Wednesday 7-4, in a regional quarterfinal in Milo.

“I don’t even know how to explain it,” Iowa Valley coach Monica Miller said. “We just came out ready to go, and they played their best ball.”

The Warhawks have been a force in 1A of late, advancing to the state tournament each of the past four seasons.

“It was in our best interest that we did not know a lot about them heading into the game,” Miller said.

The Warhawks jumped to a quick 1-0 lead, and the Tigers had some errors early in the game.

“I just told them to forget them and move on to the next,” said Miller. “Win the next play or the next pitch. Whatever it takes.”

The Tigers strung some hits together for a big five-run fourth inning to take a 7-2 lead.

The game was all about holding the lead after that.

The Tigers led 7-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh. The Warhawks scored only two, making the final score 7-4.

“We’ve never had a win like that in our program, to beat a top-seed like that on the road,” said Miller.

“It was a team effort, and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

The Tigers totaled 10 hits from seven different players. Lydia Kriegel and Mallory Hauschilt each had two RBIs.

The team’s seventh win in a row also marks another important milestone. Now at 13-11, the Tigers will finish the season above .500 for the first time since 2011.

It’ll now be a South Iowa Cedar League dual in the regional semifinal, as Iowa Valley will face HLV-TC Friday night.

BGM 11, Hillcrest Academy 3

BROOKLYN — Joining HLV-TC and Iowa Valley in the Region 4 semifinals is another area team in the bottom of the bracket.

BGM defeated Hillcrest Academy in five innings.

The Bears strung together 10 hits from seven different players.

“We hit the ball well and strung things together to score early,” BGM coach Jill Hulsing said. “Hits came throughout the lineup.”

After trailing 1-0, the Bears scored seven in the second.

“We had a few errors, but we were able to overcome those,” said Hulsing.

Karagyn Minnaert had three hits and two RBIs, and Aiden Corona had multiple hits to go along with two runs knocked in.

On Friday, BGM will face Highland, who defeated North Linn on the road.

Three area teams remain of the four left in the region. The berth to state is wide open, with two of the top four teams being eliminated.