North Union set to open state softball quarterfinal vs. Louisa-Muscatine

SWEA CITY -- Fourth-year North Union head coach Kim Price and her No. 2-seeded Warriors softball team are getting prepped for their second straight appearance in the Iowa Class 2A state tournament.

North Union's quarterfinal game is at 1 p.m. Tuesday on the Kruger Seeds Field at the Harlan Rogers Sports Complex in Fort Dodge, Iowa.

The Warriors bring a lofty 32-3 record into their matchup against the No. 7-seeded Louisa-Muscatine Falcons (25-8), a member of the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division.

Louisa-Muscatine won its regional with victories over Camanche 10-0, Van Buren County 15-6, and Cardinal 2-0, while North Union won the Region 1 crown with victories over Western Christian 8-0, Sibley-Ocheyedan 2-0, and Ridge View 9-4.

"They (Louisa-Muscatine) are a good team," Price said. "Half of their games were against either (Class) 4A or 5A schools, so they've played good teams and will be ready to play.

"We had a pitcher from Iowa Lakes (Community College) come pitch to the girls today. She threw hard and our girls made contact with her, so that is a good sign. Every team we play at the state level has a good pitcher."

Louisa-Muscatine was the Class 3A state runner-up in 2019, losing 7-4 to Davenport Assumption in the title game. The Falcons won the 2018 Class 2A state championship with a 4-3 win over Iowa City Regina in its most recent trips to the state tournament.

North Union was 0-2 last year in the state tournament, losing 7-4 to Earlham in the quarterfinals and 5-3 to Pella Christian in the elimination bracket.

North Union also made the state tournament in 2015, 2016 and 2017 under then head coach Art Ingalls. This is the second time Price leads the Warriors to the state tourney. The program is looking for that elusive softball state title.

The Falcons' softball program has strung together seven winning seasons in a row, including back-to-back seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19 in which they posted a 38- and 35-win campaign.

The Falcons' last losing season came in 2014 where they finished 10-20-1.

Louisa-Muscatine has four batters hitting above the .400 mark -- McKenzie Kissell at .468, Morgan Stecher at .443, Jersey Lessenger at .426 and Piper Brant at .417.

Kissell leads the team with 37 runs scored and 13 doubles to go with two triples and one home run. Brant and Stecher lead the Falcons in the home run department with three apiece.

Lessenger has a team-leading 28 RBIs, while McKenna Hohenadel leads the team with 25 stolen bases out of 25 attempts.

The Falcons have a .360 team batting average, but only hit 10 home runs with only 20 sacrifice bunts. The Falcons are dangerous on the base paths as they have 102 stolen bases in 108 attempts compared to the Warriors' 47 steals in 55 attempts.

Brant leads the Falcons with a 20-3 pitching record with two saves, a 1.75 ERA, a 0.93 WHIP (walks plus hits divided by innings pitched), 29 walks and 180 strikeouts in 140 innings pitched.

The Warriors' leading hitter is Cassie Beadle at .544, followed by Sam Nielsen at .532 among their starting nine. As a team, the Warriors hit at an even .400 average coming into the state quarterfinals.

Emily Meyer leads North Union in the power department, drilling seven home runs and driving in a team-leading 58 runs, which is second in the state -- one behind Class 5A Johnston's Ava Smithson.

Nielsen has a team-leading 67 hits of which 61 are singles, which is fourth in the state.

The Warriors hit 20 home runs and scored 350 runs to this juncture of the season compared to 10 home runs and 223 runs for the Falcons so far.

North Union plays solid defense, committing only 15 errors, including none in the Region 1 championship game against Ridge View. Catcher Shelby Fraker is third in the state with 305 putouts.

"We do a lot of defensive drills in practice to prepare for this," Price said. "I feel the girls who were starters last year know what to expect and they are a loose group. I'm sure the girls who are new to the lineup will be a little nervous, but overall I think we will be ready."

Meyer is the Warriors' top pitcher, earning a state-best 32 victories with a 0.75 ERA, a 0.63 WHIP, 32 walks and 309 strikeouts, which is second behind Class 3A Saydel's Dakota Lake's 369. Meyer's 35 pitching appearances are tied for No. 1 in the state. She is tied with Class 2A Monona-Farmersburg-Luana MarMac's Lauren Haberichter.

"I think Central Springs is the favorite going in," Price said. "They've been to the state tournament something like eight years in a row, and this year they have the No. 1 ranking in 2A, but every team is good so you never know.

"We practice against the little things a team will do against us, so I believe we are prepared for the state tournament."

The other Class 2A state tournament quarterfinal games on Tuesday are as follows: No. 1 seed Central Springs (31-1) battles No. 8-seed Mount Ayr (17-9) at 3 p.m.; No. 3 seed Logan-Magnolia (28-0) faces No. 6 seed Wilton (26-6) at 1:30 p.m.; and No. 4 seed Iowa City Regina (21-11) battles No. 5 seed Van Meter (30-9) at 3:30 p.m.