Karly Cochrane:

School: Mount Vernon High School.

High school highlights: Key member of a talented troop of girls that claimed state championships in volleyball, basketball and track in the 2009-10 school year. Competed in four state track meets, three state volleyball tournaments, two state softball tournaments and one state basketball tournament. A member of 10 state-championship relays in track. The starting shortstop for five years, she earned first-team all-state honors in 2009. Softball team placed fourth in 2010.

Future plans: Will compete in track and field at Wartburg College.

He said it: “There’s a reason she’s a three-year starter for me. A lot of the stuff she does doesn’t show up in stats. Instead of getting publicity, she’d rather be part of a championship team.” — Mount Vernon girls’ basketball coach Bob Kintzel, February 2010.

Jessica Gehrke:

School: Iowa City West

High school highlights: Won six individual/relay outdoor state championships in track and field, leading the Women of Troy to team titles in 2007, 2008 and 2010. Also captured six indoor state titles. She won three Drake Relays titles and holds West records in four events — the 100, 200, long jump and 400 relay. She anchored the 400-meter relay that owns an all-time Iowa best. An Elite all-stater in volleyball in 2008 and 2009, leading West to a 4A runner-up finish last fall. Averaged 4.2 kills per game and posted a .417 kill efficiency as a senior.

Future plans: Will compete in volleyball and track at Florida International University.

She said it: “They say I make it look effortless. They ask me if I’m running hard. Yes, I’m running hard. ” — Gehrke, at the J-Hawk Relays, April 11, 2009.

Kristen Hahn:

School:Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

High school highlights: A two-time Elite all-state libero, she averaged 6.1 digs per game as a senior. Led Cougars to the 4A state semifinals twice in volleyball, twice in basketball. Averaged 7.0 points per game in basketball as a senior. Earned 11 varsity letters — four in softball, three apiece in volleyball and basketball, one in track. Went out for track for the first time as a senior and qualified for state. Kennedy’s 2010 Female Athlete of the Year.

Future plans: Will play volleyball at Iowa State University.

She said it: “She’s definitely our team leader. She knows every position, where everyone should be. She’s intense, even in the non-intense drills.” teammate Haley Brightwell, August 2009.

Morgan Paige:

School: Marion High School.

High school highlights: Leaves Marion as the school’s leading basketball scorer in a single game (43 points), season (624) and career (1,795). Scored 34 points in the state-quarterfinal loss to eventual 3A state champion Sioux City Heelan. Averaged 25 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game as a senior. Earned first-team all-state honors three times in basketball, twice in volleyball. Led the Indians to a state volleyball title in 2008. Holds school assists records in a season (1,059) and career (2,678). Participated in track one year.

Future plans: Will play basketball at the University of Wisconsin.

He said it: “Morgan is a flat-out scorer, a very versatile scorer who can attack you a lot of ways.” — Marcus Paige, Morgan’s younger brother.

Jade Rogers:

School: Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

High school highlights: A four-time all-stater in basketball, averaging a double-double each year. She averaged 18.3 points and 11.4 rebounds per game as a senior, leading the Cougars to the Class 4A state semifinals. The Kennedy record-holder in rebounds in a career (952) and game (20), she ranks third in school history with 1,499 points. A four-time varsity letterwinner in volleyball.

Future plans: Will play basketball at the University of Iowa.

He said it: “They double-teamed and triple-teamed her all day. But you can’t keep her down. She’s a great player, a great competitor.” — Kennedy girls’ basketball coach Dennis Roloff, after the Cougars beat Ankeny in a state basketball quarterfinal, March 3, 2010.

-Male Finalists-

A.J. Derby:

School: Iowa City High.

High school highlights: Selected as the captain of the Class 4A all-state team after quarterbacking City High to the 4A state championship. Little Hawks finished 14-0. Passed for two touchdowns and ran for another in a 42-14 win over Marshalltown in the final. A key player on City High’s 2008 state-championship basketball team, he left City after the first semester and enrolled at the University of Iowa.

Future plans: Will play football at the University of Iowa.

He said it: “A.J.’s just basically a fun-loving guy. He’s a kid at heart who has a lot of fun with his teammates.” — City High football coach Dan Sabers, November 2009.

Max Martino:

School: Cedar Rapids Kennedy

High school highlights: A versatile three-sport athlete. Martino was a two-year starter at four different positions in football (receiver, quarterback, running back and safety) and earned second-team all-state honors. A two-year starter in basketball and the Cougars’ defensive player of the year two straight seasons. Won a Drake Relays title in the shuttle hurdle relay and a state-record holder in that event. Played baseball for two years.

Future plans: Will play basketball at the University of Northern Iowa.

He said it: “I’ll be whatever (UNI needs) me to be. I’ll go up there to play defense and see where it takes me.” — Max Martino, May 11, 2010.

Tanner Miller:

School: Mid-Prairie High School.

High school highlights: Two-time all-state running back, he finished his career with 4,005 rushing yards, 57 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He scored more than 1,000 points in basketball, averaging 19 points and 7 rebounds per game as a senior while earning first-team all-state honors. Captured the 400-meter hurdles championship in 2A as a junior and senior. His team won the state track title in 2008.

Future plans: Will play football at the University of Iowa.

He said it: “These four years, I’m going to miss it. Some kids can’t wait to be finished, but these memories will last forever. These really are the best times of your life, and I’m not ever going to forget them.” — Tanner Miller, April 2010.

Nick Moore:

School: Iowa City West.

High school highlights: One of 19 Iowa wrestlers to conclude their careers with four state championships. He ended his career with a 183-1 record, including 151 straight victories to cap it. Collected 113 pins, including 22 straight through one stretch. A member of two state-championship teams at West.

Future plans: Will wrestle at the University of Iowa.

He said it: “It’s special. It has meaning. It’s gratifying. I did what I came here to do.” — Nick Moore, after winning his fourth straight state title, Feb. 20, 2010.

James Morris:

School: Solon High School.

High school highlights: The cornerstone of the Spartans’ football dynasty, which captured three consecutive Class 2A state championships and won 41 straight games. A two-time Iowa Gatorade Player of the Year, he rushed for 2,248 yards and 40 touchdowns while collecting 70 tackles as a senior. His final career totals: 6,467 rushing yards (sixth all-time in Iowa), 113 TDs (third) and 686 points (third). A three-time state qualifier in wrestling at 215 pounds, earning fourth place in 2009 and 2010. Record the last three years was 107-14. A key relay member for the Class 2A state track champion, he ran on the winning 4×100 and runner-up 4×200 and shuttle hurdle units.

Future plans: Will play football at the University of Iowa.

He said it: “James is arguably one of the best players the state has ever had. There’s not a day that I don’t thank the good Lord for opportunities to coach kids like him.” — Solon football coach Kevin Miller, November 2009.

All of it has graduated. Half of it, today, is honored.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson’s Alex Jacobson and Morgan Allee were selected as part of the 20-girl Class 4A all-state first team, released by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association.

“They’re both very deserving,” said Niemeyer, the J-Hawks’ head coach. “They’re going to be hard to replace.”

Allee batted .469, scored 40 runs and batted in 34. Jacobson hit .403 with 27 runs scored and 31 RBIs. They anchored the left side of the infield — Allee was the shortstop, Jacobson the third baseman.

Jefferson advanced to the state tournament four times during the Allee-Jacobson years, falling short this summer in a regional final at Muscatine.

The J-Hawks were 34-7 this season.

Allee and Jacobson headline a list of 14 Gazette-area players to earn first-team accolades.

Three of them came from Clear Creek Amana, which finished 39-7 and placed fourth in the 3A state tournament. Caitlin Wnek (.557, 91 RBIs, 29 doubles), Fran Strub (.548, 80 runs, 72 RBIs, 18 triples) and Katy Sexton (.493, 76 runs) highlighted a team that averaged nearly 9 runs per game and batted .405.

Sexton was a senior; Strub and Wnek were sophomores.

Maquoketa (34-7, fifth place in 3A) and Mount Vernon (31-14, fourth in 2A) had two first-teamers apiece.

Maquoketa’s Hailey Bickford was 20-2 on the mound and hit .579 with 39 RBIs while Kelsey Bollman batted .438 with 56 RBIs.

Mount Vernon’s Karly Cochrane batted .336 and scored 39 runs; Sarah Ryan hit .412 with 36 runs.

Other area first-team picks are Abby Flannagan of West Delaware and Catie Flaucher of Independence in 3A and Julia Hunter of Iowa City Regina, Erica Soppe of state-qualifier Jesup and Bailey Bone of Monticello in 2A.

First Team

Pitchers – Kayle Gaunt, jr., Muscatine; Brittnie Krieser, sr., Lewis Central; Emma Remmy, sr., West Des Moines Valley; Riley Fisher, soph., Des Moines East; Jadyn Spencer, jr., Waterloo West; Catcher — Tiffany Gillespie, jr., Southeast Polk; Infield — Ashley Prettyman, jr., Des Moines East; Cassie Curtis, sr., Johnston; Katelyn Bakey, sr., West Des Moines Valley; Chloe Miller, fr., Pleasant Valley; Alex Jacobson, sr., Cedar Rapids Jefferson; Cassie Garrett, sr., Waukee; Morgan Allee, sr., Cedar Rapids Jefferson; Outfield — Annie Sarcone, sr., West Des Moines Dowling; Rebekah Doering, sr., Waterloo West; Shelby Michaelis, jr., Bettendorf; Taylor Michaelson, jr., Sioux City East; Utility — Sarah Sanopoli, jr., Des Moines Lincoln; Miranda Kramer, jr., Burlington; Kelsey Rose, jr., Bettendorf.

Pitcher of the year — Gaunt. Player of the year — Spencer.

Second Team (Gazette-area only)

P Hannah Peterson, soph., Cedar Rapids Jefferson; C McKenna Miller, sr., Cedar Rapids Xavier; IF Tatum Klein, soph., Iowa City West; IF Tyler Sampson, jr., Cedar Rapids Xavier; UT Jenny Drahozal, sr., Cedar Rapids Xavier.

Third Team (Gazette-area only)

IF Kristen Winter, jr., Cedar Rapids Xavier; IF Leah Beck, sr., Linn-Mar; OF Shelby Crist, jr., Cedar Rapids Prairie; UT Shelley Stumpff, soph., Iowa City West.

CLASS 3A

First Team

Pitchers — Jordan Gronewold, sr., Carlisle; Madison Frain, soph., Creston; Hailey Bickford, sr., Maquoketa; Jordan Johnson, sr., Sioux City Heelan; Hannah Washburn, sr., Keokuk; Morgan Louck, sr., Fort Madison; Catchers — Abby Flannagan, sr., West Delaware; Hally Lenzine, sr., Chariton; Infield — Katy Sexton, sr., Clear Creek Amana; Caitlin Wnek, soph., Clear Creek Amana; Katlin Briley, soph., Creston; Kelsey Bollman, sr., Maquoketa; Abby Foster, jr., Waverly-Shell Rock; Ashton Yossi, jr., Dallas Center-Grimes; Outfield — Fran Strub, soph., Clear Creek Amana, Jamie Shultz, sr., Sergeant Bluff-Luton; Seyerra DuBois, soph., Carlisle; Utility — Tanna Seuferer, jr., Chariton; Betsy Thomas, soph., Sergeant Bluff-Luton; Catie Flaucher, sr., Independence; Brooke Schaben, jr., Harlan.

Pitcher of the year — Gronewold. Player of the year — Gronewold.

Second Team (Gazette-area only)

IF Jenna Hermsen, jr., West Delaware; OF Lucy Libe, sr., Washington; UT Lauynn Lammers, jr., West Delaware; UT Kayley Hakeman, sr., Williamsburg.

Third Team (Gazette-area only)

P Greta Smeins, sr., Washington; IF Hannah Wilson, jr., Williamsburg; UT Mariah McKinnon, soph., Clear Creek Amana.

CLASS 2A

First Team

Pitchers – Jamie Fisher, sr., Conrad BCLUW; Cassandra Darrah, sr., Wayne; Maddie Woodruff, sr., Emmetsburg; Rachel Brisker, sr., Wilton; Jordan Kerns, sr., Westwood; Catchers — Nicole Fisher, sr., BCLUW; Alex Lock, sr., Emmetsburg; Infield — Julia Hunter, jr., Iowa City Regina; Kayla Bergman, sr., Sumner-Fredericksburg; Shelby Paustian, sr., Durant; Ashley Hagedorn, sr., IKM-Manning; Aspen Rhodes, jr., Van Meter; Karly Cochrane, sr., Mount Vernon; Steph Hayden, jr., Monroe PCM; Outfield — Erica Soppe, sr., Jesup; Sarah Ryan, jr., Mount Vernon; Haddie Vawter, sr., BCLUW; Bailey Bone, sr., Monticello; Utility — Jordan Florey, sr., Fort Dodge St. Edmond; Alexis Folkerts, sr., Albia.

Pitcher of the year — Fisher. Player of the year — Darrah.

Second Team (Gazette-area only)

C Amber Meyer, sr., Cascade; IF Becca Lowe, sr., Mount Vernon; UT Kylee Homewood, sr., Iowa City Regina; UT Olivia Lugar, fr., Mid-Prairie.

Third Team (Gazette-area only)

P Kelsey Lough, fr., Jesup; IF Madison McKone, sr., Turkey Valley; IF Callie Tope, jr., North Fayette.

CLASS 1A

First Team

Pitchers — Jordan Harris, sr., Akron-Westfield; Kelcie Bormann, jr., Preston; Alyssa Dunlop, sr., Woodbine; Mindy Lorimor, jr., Fremont-Mills; Bobbi Boomgarden, sr., North Butler; Kaitlin Floerchinger, jr., Treynor; Catchers — Savanah Bice, sr., Woodward-Granger; Sarah Parkinson, jr., Akron-Westfield; Infield – Rebekah Rolling, sr., North Sentral Kossuth; Susan Kies, sr., Newell-Fonda; Haley Sweet, soph., Martensdale-St. Marys; Sam Norris, jr., Martensdale-St. Marys; Emma Krier, jr., Remsen St. Mary’s; Lindsay Hoehns, sr., Twin Cedars; Jordan Henningsen, jr., Alta; Outfield — Morgan Halverson, sr., Martensdale-St. Marys; Jamie Meyers, sr., Woodward-Granger; Alaina Rigdon, sr., Don Bosco; Utility — Katie Steffen, sr., Woodbury Central; Brittany Roby, 8th, Twin Cedars.

Pitcher of the year Harris. Player of the year — Kies.

Second Team (Gazette-area only)

IF Caitlin Bisinger, sr., Alburnett; IF Cortney Wood, sr., Alburnett; IF Missy Olson, sr., Elkader Central.

Third Team (Gazette-area only)

P Jacqueline Naeve, soph., Alburnett; P Mackenzie Ginn, sr., Olin; C Alex Oletski, sr., North Tama; OF Jodi Schott, fr., Valley Community.

All of it has graduated. Today, half of it is honored.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson’s Alex Jacobson and Morgan Allee are part of the 20-girl Class 4A all-state first team released by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association.

“They’re both very deserving,” said Niemeyer, the J-Hawks’ head coach. “They’re going to be hard to replace.”

Allee batted .469, scored 40 runs and batted in 34. Jacobson hit .403 with 27 runs and 31 RBIs. They anchored the left side of the infield — Allee was the shortstop, Jacobson the third baseman.

Jefferson advanced to the state tournament four times during the Allee-Jacobson years, falling short this summer in a regional final at Muscatine. The J-Hawks were 34-7.

Allee and Jacobson headline a list of 14 area players on all-state first teams.

Three of them are from Clear Creek Amana (39-7), which placed fourth in the 3A state tournament. Caitlin Wnek (.557, 91 RBIs, 29 doubles), Fran Strub (.548, 80 runs, 72 RBIs, 18 triples) and Katy Sexton (.493, 76 runs) highlighted a team that averaged nearly 9 runs per game and batted .405.

Sexton was a senior, Strub and Wnek sophomores.

Maquoketa (34-7, fifth in 3A) and Mount Vernon (31-14, fourth in 2A) had two first-teamers apiece.

Maquoketa’s Hailey Bickford was 20-2 on the mound and hit .579 with 39 RBIs, Kelsey Bollman hit .438 with 56 RBIs. Mount Vernon’s Karly Cochrane batted .336 and scored 39 runs, and Sarah Ryan hit .412 with 36 runs.

Other area first-team picks are Abby Flannagan of West Delaware and Catie Flaucher of Independence in 3A and Julia Hunter of Iowa City Regina, Erica Soppe of Jesup and Bailey Bone of Monticello in 2A.

Wulkow has been with the IHSAA since 1980, including five years as executive director. A Lytton native, Wulkow was recently appointed president-elect of the National Federation of High School Associations.

Here’s the interview with Wulkow in its entirety.

Q: Tell me about the national appointment and how you feel about it?

A: It’s one of those things that you kind of dream about maybe when you’re in our business. There aren’t very many of us, there’s only 51 state associations, including the District of Columbia. There are eight sections across the country, and the board appointments are four-year terms. For instance, in section four there are five states, so every 20 years, Iowa has an opportunity to even have a board member. Then to have your colleagues and peers elect you to be the chairperson of a board such as that is probably one of the neatest things that has happened to me in my professional career. Other than maybe being named executive director of the Iowa High School Athletic Association. I’m humbled by it.

Q: How has the economy affected the IHSAA? How have you dealt with that?

A: This past year we noticed the affects of the economy, especially at the state tournament level. Less Harrison Barnes, of course. That was an incredible thing at the state basketball tournament. But it’s not that we’re down a lot. We still had a good fiscal year. But all of our tournaments were down some. You can go back and look at weather, you can look at matchups, the teams that are in and all those types of things that we always do. But when you look at it over the full year, people probably aren’t traveling quite as much. The teams farther away from the sites probably don’t have as many fans. The cost of gas, the overnights stays, things like that. So it had a little impact, but we had such a good year two years ago. We had a good year, but not quite as good as two years ago.”

Q: How concerned are you about schools finding enough money to run their activities programs?

A: That’s one of the biggest things we all face. The schools in our membership are certainly concerned about keeping a close eye on the costs they have for travel, getting to tournaments and things of that nature. We want to help them as much as we can, but on the other hand, there are limits as to what we can do. When you look at our revenue versus our non-revenue sports, we can do a little bit more for them in the revenue sports as opposed to the ones that aren’t going to make any money. The thing is that I hope we don’t have to cut programs and take away opportunities for kids. Participation activities are such a great thing. The values that they learn, all the positive things that come from them. I just hope that we can continue to find ways to keep the programs viable.

The other thing we’re faced with are sharing programs, mergers, reconsolidations. That’s something a lot of these smaller districts are going to be faced with because of the economy and the school finance issues that they have. Trying to maintain the programs they have to have to be a viable school and provide a good education. Those are definitely concerns and one of the bigger things that we and our membership face.

Q: The classifications have stayed the same for the most part for a long time, but the number of programs have continued to dwindle. Will there be changes in the number of classes for each sport anytime soon?

A: We activated our classification committee for the first time in about 12 years this year. Just to start looking and studying at enrollments, variances in enrollments, schools within classifications, the success of different quadrants of schools within that classification. Then the other thing we did was this (recent) football playoff committee meeting is appoint a sub-committee to look at football classifications. Because of the growth of 8-player and the demise of Class A football. We all know that when we have less schools in a class, especially when you play district football and you’re always playing against schools in your own class, you’ve got the greater travel to get games. As 8-player grows and Class A gets smaller, that’s something we really have to take a hard look at.

So we’ve made up a committee of members’ administrators, athletic directors and coaches of all the classifications: Class A, 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A. They’ve had one meeting already that was kind of a brainstorming session to let us know what data they want us to collect. They’ll be coming in in the next month to study some of the data that we’ve collected for them t0 look at if we want to stay with five 11-player classes and one 8-player class. Or whether we want to expand the enrollment cap in 8-player to allow more schools to move to 8-player if they want to. We’re seeking that type of information for them. I know in some of our surrounding states, they do have multiple classes in 8-player where they have their very smallest schools and the next level of small schools is in another class. Those are all things that we are looking at, and I’ll have a much better answer sometime during this next school year.

When we did a survey a year and a half ago, basically our schools told us that they were satisfied with the classifications in each of our sports. But that was a survey asking have we done a good job of classifying schools and things of that nature. I think we probably have. But as the big picture changes, we’ve got to study those things. Look at those things.

Q: Have you studied much the success of parochial schools as well? There are some grumblings out there that parochial schools have an unfair advantage, particularly in the smaller classes.

A: The classification committee first met two years ago. They wanted to meet every other year. And they addressed the parochial school issue – or the non-boundary school issue – two years ago. Because there were some grumblings out there, as you said. People were maybe concerned about the success some of the schools were having. As (the committee) looked at what options they had, they backed away and felt any changes they would make would be detrimental to all the programs. Their thing was maybe it’s more of a socio-economic thing than it is a private or public thing. They got into looking at the success of the suburban-type schools, some of the higher socio-economic districts, and some of them were having as much or more success than the non-public schools.

So they have taken a hard look at that. That committee is made up of administrators of schools from all classifications … of public and non-public schools. So that is something we continue to monitor and keep an eye on.

Q: Will the Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa Girls’ High School Athletic Union ever combine?

A: You say ever? Yeah, it’ll happen some day. To be straight out honest. Rick Wulkow’s opinion. You know 20 years ago, 30 years ago when I (first) came into the office, I thought it would happen during my time. Now I’m not sure that it will. But I think there’s going to be a time when it will be necessary. The thing that I look at right now, just to be straight out, is we look at what our schools are going through with their mergers and putting programs together and stuff, we need to take a look at it. But that’s got to be membership driven.

We’ve had committees and ad-hoc groups look at this before on two or three occasions since I’ve been with the Athletic Association, which is 30 years now. They’ve always come back and felt that what we’re both doing is to the benefit of the students that are involved and the programs. If we can make it work the way we’re doing it, then so be it. But it’s something that is continued to be looked at. To answer your question, I think there will be one day where we’ll have one activities association.

Q: You’ve proven with the state track meet, for instance, that you can work together, right?

A: Absolutely. State track, cross country, bowling now. I’m not sure that there might be a day when soccer might be a co-ed type of tournament situation. With the facilities that we have and the multiple fields that we have available and the calendars that we have, if we can put those things together and do it in one weekend instead of two weekends, it’s good.

Q: Do you think kids should transfer high schools strictly for athletics reasons?

A: No. I think open enrollment was put in place for the right reasons, even though we all know that some of the open enrollment is done for other than academic reasons, for educational purposes. When you look at our role, our purpose, our mission for our students in high school, it’s for participation and providing programs. I couldn’t be happier when one of our kids gets a scholarship. Harrison Barnes is a a great example, with the publicity the state of Iowa got. You couldn’t have had a better role model than Harrison, to have that status and carry that thing on. And you can name a lot of other athletes over in the Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Eastern Iowa area that have been great athletes. I couldn’t be more pleased for them.

But it’s not our mission to have elite athletes. Our mission is to provide programs for all kids that want to participate. We can proudly say that … if you include fine arts and music and speech and drama and all of those things, 80 percent of our kids are involved in activities. A lot higher percentage in some schools than others. But that’s what our role is. For students to strictly transfer for (athletic purposes), there are other tools that they can use within the schools to have opportunity for those programs. Through sharing programs and things of that nature.

Q: It seems like the multi-sport athlete, especially in the bigger schools, is a thing of the past. Is that an unfortunate thing, in your opinion?

A: Yeah, it is. I had that conversation with a gentleman today. Putting a whole year into one sport has really been the demise of some of our other programs. The participation numbers in some of our other programs. An example is right out here tonight. Solon is going to play in a state championship baseball game. I can guarantee there are players who were on the state championship football team, there are basketball players who were on their state championship game basketball team. Harlan is another fine example of that. Valley of West Des Moines have their head coaches involved in assisting in other sports. They are getting their football players into track and baseball and some of those other sports. I just think that there is too emphasis put on specialization.

Again, that’s my opinion. I’m a little old farm boy who grew up in Western Iowa and lettered in four sports and played three sports in college. The multi-sport thing is still in the best interests of everybody. It’s good for the school, it’s good for the kid to have other options and opportunities.

Starting in 2011, the largest 48 schools will be classified in 4A, the next 64 in 3A, the next 96 in 2A and the rest in 1A. Previously, 128 schools had been in 2A.

This means track and softball will be classified the same at 48-64-96-rest. Basketball and volleyball will remain with 48-64-128-rest.

“During the 2010 softball season, it became clear that a classification adjustment would be necessary for the 2011 season, as the number of 2A schools outnumbered the 1A schools who were participating in softball,” said an IGHSAU release Friday.

Area schools affected by the change, those that would have been 2A in 2011 and will now be 1A, probably will include Highland, Turkey Valley, Alburnett, Edgewood-Colesburg and Iowa Valley.

Mount Vernon failed to get a clutch hit in several key spots and dropped a 4-0 decision to Fort Dodge St. Edmond in the Class 2A third-place game at the state softball tournament Friday afternoon at the Rogers Sports Complex.

“We just couldn’t get a hit (when we needed it,” said Mustangs Coach Gary Stamp. “I wasn’t wild about the (strike) zone, but so be it. I’m not going to sour-grape it.”

St. Edmond (32-6) scored a run in the bottom of the first inning, then wiggled out of trouble repeatedly. Mount Vernon had a runner at second with one out in the first and loaded the bases with one out in the second. Both times, the Mustangs (31-14) came up empty.

Becca Lowe tripled with two outs in the third, but she couldn’t score. A leadoff hit in the fifth went for naught.

Marti Dencklau provided the dagger for the Gaels in the fifth, hitting a two-run single to make it 3-0.

Mount Vernon’s Karly Cochrane was named to the all-tournament team.

The fourth-place finish concluded a dynamite year for Mount Vernon girls’ athletics. The Mustangs won state titles in volleyball and basketball, then combined with Lisbon to grab a track title.

Mount Vernon …………………………. 000 000 0 — 0  5  1

Fort Dodge St. Edmond…………….. 100 021 x – 4  8  1

Emily Stoner (L), Jenna Pisarik (6) and Micah Wieditz. Jordan Florey (W) and Marti Dencklau.

Chariton finished 27-4; CCA ended at 39-7.

Clear Creek Amana struck first, on Mallory Madsen’s RBI single in the top of the second inning. Caitlin Wnek led off with a single, moved to second, then scored on Madsen’s hit.

Tenna Seuferer led off the fourth with a single, then Grgurich followed by sending a 1-2 pitch over the fence in left-center field.

Chariton added two runs in the fifth, on an RBI double by Amelia McGee and a run-scoring single by Seuferer.

Katy Sexton was 2-for-4 for the Clippers, who outhit the Chargers, 7-5.

Clear Creek Amana …………………….. 010 000 0 – 1  7  3

Chariton …………………………………… 000 220 x – 4  5  1

Mariah McKinnon and Cassie Downes. Tanna Seuferer and Hally Lenzine. HR: Chariton — Layne Grgurich.

Clear Creek Amana's Katy Sexton, left, and Mariah McKinnon react after their loss to Keokuk in a semi-final game Class 3A game at the state softball tournament, Thursday July 22, 2010 in Fort Dodge, Iowa. (Steve Pope/Freelance)

Two walks. Two errors.

Too much to overcome.

Sixth-ranked Keokuk capitalized on some seventh-inning misadventures by No. 2 Clear Creek Amana, scoring four times to dethrone the defending champion, 6-4, in a Class 3A semifinal at the state softball tournament Thursday at Rogers Sports Complex.

“Our kids kept hitting and kept battling,” said Keokuk Coach Merle Jones. “They stayed in the game, even after I thought we might have let it slip away.”

Keokuk (34-9) faces No. 1 Carlisle (37-2) for the title at 4 p.m. today.

The Chiefs’ rally was filled with irony. They had been excruciatingly passive on the base paths through much of the game. When they finally became aggressive and put some pressure on the Clippers (39-6), it paid off handsomely.

“We were fortunate to be in the lead,” said CCA Coach Jim White, referring to the fact Keokuk outhit the Clippers 11-5.

With the Clippers clinging to a 4-2 lead in the top of the sixth, White replaced starting pitcher Mariah McKinnon with Maliah Fligg. The move paid off initially — Fligg retired the Chiefs in order in the sixth. The seventh didn’t work out so well.

Alicia Jones walked. Hannah Washburn singled. Reagan Zutterlund walked.

“I put Fligg in a tough spot,” White said. “But I thought it was the best decision, because they had been hitting Mariah.”

The bases were loaded with no outs, and White reinserted McKinnon on the mound.

“I had faith in my team,” McKinnon said. “I thought we would pull through.”

Instead, the Clippers threw the ball away twice on infield grounders, the Chiefs scored four times and the dream of back-to-back titles died a swift, painful death.

CCA faces Chariton (26-4) in the third-place game at 3 p.m. today.

The Clippers broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the third. Fligg’s infield single drove in Fran Strub, and Caitlin Wnek followed Strub home on an errant throw.

Keokuk got within 3-2 in the fourth, but the Clippers got the run back in the fifth on Wnek’s RBI double.

Wnek also drove in a run with a first-inning ground out.

Mount Vernon's Micah Wieditz waits for and makes the tag on BCLUW's Nicole Fisher in a semi-final game Class 2A game at the state softball tournament, Thursday July 22, 2010 in Fort Dodge, Iowa. (Steve Pope/Freelance)

The unthinkable will go unrealized.

Top-ranked BCLUW scored six runs — five unearned — in the second inning and pasted No. 6 Mount Vernon, 7-0, in a Class 2A semifinal at the state softball tournament Thursday night at the Rogers Sports Complex.

Mount Vernon was bidding to become the first school in state history to claim all four major girls’ sports in one school year. But those hopes drowned in a sea of errors.

The Mustangs booted the ball five times in the second inning.

“It’s unfortunate to have one of those innings (on this stage),” said Mustangs Coach Gary Stamp. “I think they hit one ball out of the infield the whole inning. For whatever reason, we just weren’t making plays.”

The unexpected assistance was much more than necessary for hard-throwing pitcher Jamie Fisher, and the defending-champion Comets (40-3) sailed into today’s final when they’ll face No. 8 Wayne (27-3) for the crown at 6 p.m.

“They were the better team today,” said Mount Vernon’s Karly Cochrane, a key cog in the school’s title charges in volleyball, basketball and track. “They beat us fair and square.

“This doesn’t make our accomplishments this year any less special. It just wasn’t meant to be today, and it is something we’ll have to accept.”

Mount Vernon (31-13) meets Fort Dodge St. Edmond (31-6) in the third-place game today at 5 p.m.

The first inning was scoreless, but the Mustangs’ troubles in the second inning began immediately. Four infielders combined for the five errors.

“We tried to stay relaxed, but then the little things started to happen,” Cochrane said. “When that happens, it’s contagious sometimes.”

BCLUW collected 12 hits, including a 3-for-3 performance by No. 8 hitter Allison Sharp.

The Mustangs made decent contact against Fisher, striking out just five times. But it paid off for only three hits — by Cochrane, Micah Wieditz and Kari Martin.

“Give them credit. They played good defense,” Stamp said. “We put the ball in play, but the ball found their gloves.”