Western Dubuque topples Davenport Assumption to win Class 3A state baseball title
IOWA CITY — For all the muscle Davenport Assumption had flexed at the Class 3A Iowa state baseball tournament, Western Dubuque wasn't having any of it when the championship lights flipped on.
The No. 2 seed Bobcats struck early and let southpaw starter Isaac Then take it from there, resulting in Friday's 7-1 win over the top-seeded Knights at Duane Banks Field in Iowa City. The victory gives Western Dubuque its first baseball state title in program history.
"There have been a lot of great teams to come through here recently. We maybe didn't have the biggest names," senior Tucker Nauman said, "but it feels great to bring this title to W-D."
Getting to this stage saw Assumption cruise with two run-rule victories. Western Dubuque, meanwhile, had to fight off elimination with a walkoff win in the quarterfinals, followed by a tough win over Sergeant Bluff-Luton in the semis. But none of that mattered once Friday's championship game commenced. The Bobcats quickly showed this opportunity wasn't too overwhelming.
It certainly wasn't for Isaac Then, who finished the season unbeaten after a strong mound effort all the way through. Then yielded just two hits, one unearned run and a walk with nine strikeouts over seven solid frames. He gave up a hit in the first and didn't allow another until the sixth.
"Isaac's a warrior," Nauman said. "He's been doing that for us all year."
The Bobcat bats took their cue from Then and gave him the support he needed. Western Dubuque grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first, tacked on two more in the third before scoring single runs in the fourth and fifth innings. Two more arrived in the sixth to cement the dominant effort.
Then helped out with some of that, delivering a two-run single in the third that gave Western Dubuque some breathing room at 3-0. He was one of three Bobcats with a multi-hit game, joining left-fielder Brett Harris (2-for-3, 2 runs) and second baseman Jake Goodman (3-for-4, run, RBI).
More: Neela Applegate pushes Winterset softball past Dallas Center-Grimes in Iowa state championship
All drama had been long removed by the time Western Dubuque piled in jubilation near the mound. A school that has churned out several titles across multiple sports in recent years has a hard-earned baseball trophy coming back home.
"We had to keep the pressure on them," Western Dubuque coach Casey Bryant said. "They had been boat racing everybody. Assumption is a fantastic team, and our goal was to beat them at their own game. Get our fast guys on and make some things happen. We did a great job of that."
Dargan Southard covers Iowa and UNI athletics, recruiting and preps for the Des Moines Register, HawkCentral.com and the Iowa City Press-Citizen. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Western Dubuque knocks off No. 1 seed Assumption for 3A baseball title
