KOHAWK BASEBALL ON THE RISE

Third-place conference finish bodes well for program’s future

CEDAR RAPIDS—Coming off of a third-place finish in the tough Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the Coe Kohawks have reserved space in the trophy case for the years ahead.  

“I feel like last year was our hump year,” said sixth-year head coach Steve Cook. “We’re now in the upper half and will contend for conference titles.”

The Kohawks finished 22-21 in 2001 (12-12 IIAC) and fielded four All-Conference players in catcher Matt Schirm (Anamosa, Iowa), shortstop Nate Iverson (Luana, Iowa), third baseman Kyle Bassett (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) and first baseman Nick Nissen (Mount Vernon, Iowa). All but Schirm return in 2002 along with the Kohawks’ single-season home run king (12 in 2000) and 2001 Verizon-CoSIDA Academic All-District outfielder Tim Vinyard (Ottumwa, Iowa).

Filling the void left by Schirm is senior Nick Bjork (Mt. Vernon, Iowa), a transfer from St. Ambrose. Rounding out the lineup are second baseman Wes Digmann (Dubuque, Iowa) and center fielder Jon Schroeder (Cedar Rapids, Iowa). Matt Walters (Iowa City, Iowa), Ben Griffin (Dubuque, Iowa), Aaron Kroll (Burlington, Iowa), Eric Blaser (Dubuque, Iowa) and Ian Cooper (Burlington, Iowa) will compete for time in rightfield and as designated hitter, Cook said.

The team ranked 16^th nationally in 2001with 45 home runs in 43 games, while also compiling 82 doubles and a .503 slugging percentage. Scoring nearly seven runs per game, seven Kohawk regulars hit better than .300.

Coe’s major loss is two-time All-Central Region outfielder Justin Gibson, a high school All-State player from Burlington, Iowa, who closed out a stellar Kohawk career as Coe’s all-time leader in hits (294), at bats (494), doubles (35), triples (7), runs scored (118), RBI (99) and stolen bases (39). He’s second all-time in home runs with 23. His .342 career batting average ranks seventh all-time.

Starting 10 games each, pitchers Aaron O’Neil (4-1, 4.74 ERA) and Matt Knebel (7-4, 5.53 ERA) earned half of the Kohawks’ victories. O’Neil (Waukon, Iowa) tied a school record for appearances in a season with 14. Knebel (Hills, Iowa) tied the school record for season wins and career appearances (42). This year, the pitching responsibilities fall on juniors Mike Wieseler (Mount Vernon, Iowa) and Bryan Boettcher (Muscatine, Iowa) and a trio of freshmen who led their high school teams to post-season play.

“We feel like we’re going to reload,” said Cook. “With young pitchers, the key will be in our relievers. Our hitting will be strong again, so we need the starting pitchers to get us to the fifth inning for the relievers to finish up.”

The 2001 Kohawks sported a team ERA of 7.52, but “this team is better,” Cook insists. A 5.0 team ERA is among the goals for 2002.

That will require quality outings from newcomers Mitch Bockenstedt (among the region’s leading high school strikeout pitchers from Strawberry Point, Iowa), Tom Hauck (Mundelein, Ill.) and Cedar Rapids Kennedy All-Stater Travis Kisner.

Nissen, Bassett and Iverson, also an Honorable Mention All-Region selection, are infielders who double as relief pitchers. Bassett set a school record with four saves in relief last year, which also ties Coe’s career record.