All-SEISC baseball team announced

Highland made its second trip to state in school history, and that mark helped them earn numerous postseason awards when the All-Southeast Iowa Super Conference teams were released last week.

The Huskies had a pair of first-team selections earn their way on the team, and both were able to be near the top of the state in their categories.

Chase Rath finished sixth in the state (regardless of class) in strikeouts, posting 116 on the season. That, plus a 1.05 ERA and an 8-2 record, helped earn him first-team honors as a pitcher.

Rath held opponents to a .142 batting average, walking 26 batters in 73 2/3 innings in his junior campaign.

He also was strong at the plate for the Huskies, batting .390 with a .492 on-base percentage and a team-best .630 slugging percentage.

He was the team leader in triples (5), homeruns (3), RBIs (33) and hits (39), while also finishing second on the team with 34 runs scored and drawing 20 walks.

Rath was joined on the first-team list by speedster Spencer Wieland, who finished second in the state in stolen bases with 53 on the season.

Wieland, Highland?s only senior this season, batted .411 with a .555 on-base percentage, scoring a team-best 39 runs on the year and notching 37 hits.

The Huskies also had a pair of second-team selections to the squad, with catcher Garrett Colbert earning a spot on the team.

Colbert batted .277 on the season, getting on base at a clip of .376. He also drove in 25 RBIs, good for second on the team, and claimed 26 hits on the year.

Billy Burton was another second-team selection for the Huskies, after batting .381 on the season. Burton posted an on-base percentage of .496 and stole 42 bases on the season, while also driving in 18 runs and notching 37 hits on the year.

He also finished third on the team with 33 runs scored.

Josh Michel (.295 average, 10 RBIs batting, 5-1 record, 3.50 ERA pitching) and Caleb Brase (3-2, 3.50 ERA, .302 average, 19 RBIs) were honorable mention selections for the Huskies.

Iowa Mennonite had one second-team selection to the All-Conference team, with junior Drake Brezina getting the nod.

Brezina led the team in hitting (.358 average, 19 RBIs, 18 runs scored, 24 hits, two homeruns), and also did some of his work on the mound.

As a pitcher, he threw 37 1/3 innings and posted an ERA of 2.63, striking out 53 batters.

He was joined by teammates Cole Ours and Reggie Bontrager, who both earned honorable mention selections.

Ours finished the season batting .261 with an on-base percentage of .469, while leading the team in runs scored with 19.

Bontrager batted .265 this season, claiming 13 hits on the year, while being a primary relief pitcher for IMS.

He appeared in eight games, posting a 3.82 ERA through 7 1/3 innings.

Columbus earned a pair of honorable mention selections, with Tucker Morrison (.319 average, 15 hits) and Erik Reese (.297 average, .404 on-base percentage) each claiming a spot.