Van Buren, Washington dominate All-GTNS team

Several of the best baseball teams in the state came from southeast Iowa this summer. Washington made it to the state semifinals in Class 3A. Van Buren went 26-2, with its only two losses coming at the hands of eventual state champion Davis County. Mount Pleasant finished its season with a record of 25-9 after bowing out to Washington in the first round of the district tournament.

Appropriately, the 2011 All-Golden Triangle News Service team is loaded with players from those three teams. In fact, 11 of the 14 members of the All-GTNS team come from those three teams.

Leading the way is Mount Pleasant?s Henry Krieger-Coble, who was named the captain of the All-GTNS baseball team for the third-straight year. Krieger-Coble, who was also a first team all-state selection and the Southeast Conference?s Co-Player of the Year, ranked among the leaders in Class 3A in several categories, including doubles (tied for second-most with 18), batting average (fourth with a .514 average), slugging percentage (sixth with a .917), RBIs (tied for 10th-most with 49) and home runs (tied for 11th-most with eight). The senior third baseman also led the Panthers in all of those categories.

Krieger-Coble was named to seven All-GTNS teams during his illustrious prep career, captaining four. He now moves on to the University of Iowa, where he signed to play tight end for the Hawkeye football team.

Krieger-Coble just edged out Van Buren stud Jory Heckenberg for the captain spot. Heckenberg, who takes one of the All-GTNS team?s utility spots, has been at the heart of Van Buren?s four-year tear that has seen the Warriors compile an 88-18 record to go along with four conference titles. The senior completed a stellar career that now includes four All-GTNS selections. As one of the best hitters in southeast Iowa, Heckenberg finished the 2011 season hitting .527 with eight home runs and a team-high 48 RBIs.

Heckenberg was just as impressive on the mound as a big game pitcher for the Warriors. He coupled a 2.86 earned run average with 49 strikeouts in 44 innings to finish a perfect 7-0 this season.

Like Heckenberg, New London senior Kyle Helmerson could do it all, and that?s why he takes the team?s other utility spot. The senior slugger, who was a third team all-state selection, batted .500 this summer with five home runs and 20 RBIs. On the mound, Helmerson was the Tigers? ace pitcher, going 7-0 this summer with a 1.10 ERA. He struck out 129 batters while allowing just 27 hits and 27 walks in 51 innings.

Utility players Heckenberg and Helmerson are great additions to the All-GTNS pitching staff, which is headed up by seniors Court Garrett of Van Buren and Josh Moore from Washington.

Garrett makes his second-straight All-GTNS squad, but during his senior season he really showed what he is capable of. Garrett, a third team all-state selection, became Van Buren?s clear-cut ace after putting together a season that concluded with a 1.24 ERA and a whopping 83 strikeouts.

Tasked with trying to hold down eventual Class 2A state champion Davis County in the district semifinals, Garrett gave up just two hits, one walk and no earned runs to the Mustangs, although Davis County ended up winning 2-0 in what would be its closest game of the postseason.

Moore, a right-handed reliever, was often charged with the task of getting Washington out of a jam or holding onto a lead. Still, the senior pitcher had one of the lowest earned run averages in Class 3A before giving up a few runs at the state tournament in Des Moines. His 1.35 ERA for the season was still the 12th best in Class 3A. He finished the season with a 7-2 record, striking out 51 batters while walking just 14 in 52 innings. Opposing batters hit just .197 against Moore, who will play his collegiate baseball at Quincy University.

Mount Pleasant?s Ross Heitmeier was the best catcher in the area this season. Few runners dared to try to steal second base against the junior, and he was also solid at the plate, hitting .415 with nine doubles, a home run and 30 RBIs.

The All-GTNS infield is loaded with star players, as all four batted over .400, and they combined to smack 25 home runs.

Keota?s Tanner McClenahan leads the way. McClenahan?s .578 batting average ranked fifth in Class 1A and seventh in the entire state. The senior shortstop, who earned second team all-state honors, also belted six home runs, drove in 32 runs and stole 20 bases.

New London?s Austin Allen batted .477 this summer with four home runs, seven doubles and a triple. The senior first baseman also stole a team-high 24 bases and drove in 17 runs.

Van Buren shortstop Blake Scott came into his own during his junior season in 2011, staying right on pace with the Warriors? stellar group of seniors. Scott was second on the team with 47 RBIs as he blasted eight home runs, legged out four triples, 11 doubles, and finished the season as a .409 hitter. He was also solid on the mound, going 7-0 with a 1.77 ERA, and will now be looked upon to carry an even heavier load in his senior season at Van Buren, where winning has become tradition in recent years.

Washington?s Brad Weatherman had an outstanding senior season, and was named the Southeast Conference?s Co-Player of the Year with Krieger-Coble after batting .400 with seven home runs and a team-leading 36 RBIs. Weatherman, who played shortstop and was also the Demons? ace pitcher, will continue his baseball career at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside.

Weatherman?s teammates, senior Anthony Ossman and junior Jake Redlinger, take up two of the three All-GTNS outfield spots. Washington?s outfield of Ossman, Redlinger and senior Jordan Gier was one of the most talented and experienced in the area this summer, and had a lot to do with the Demons reaching the state tournament.

Ossman used his speed to make a number of running and diving catches for the Demons in centerfield this summer. He also used that quickness to swipe 45 bases, the second-most in Class 3A. Ossman, a second team all-state selection, batted .368 this season with eight doubles and 19 RBIs, and will play collegiate baseball at William Penn University next year.

Redlinger, who is also quite speedy, legged out eight triples this season, which was tied for second most in Class 3A. The right fielder also batted .333 with five doubles, four home runs and 33 RBIs. Redlinger will be looked to as a leader on a Washington team that hopes to return to Des Moines next summer.

Van Buren senior Chris Wilson takes the other outfield spot. Wilson raised his batting average by more than 200 points from his junior to senior seasons and finished an impressive 2011 campaign with a .435 average in the middle of the Warrior lineup. He also stroked five home runs, drove in 26 and was about as good of a back-end starting pitcher as they come. His 1.21 ERA was the best on the team and it earned him a perfect 5-0 record.

In his fourth year since taking over as the head coach of his alma matter, Washington?s Nathan Miller led the Demons to their first state tournament appearance since Miller was a senior pitcher and right fielder in 1998. Miller?s Demons finished the season with a 30-8 record, breaking the school record for wins in a season, and for that Miller was named the GTNS Coach of the Year.

The 2011 All-GTNS baseball team was selected by Carson Tigges of the Fairfield Ledger, Travis Brown of the Washington Evening Journal and Ashlee Stallinga of the Mt. Pleasant News.