Smoldt, Barkema, Mapel earn all-state baseball honors

   Joe Smoldt, a senior on Gladbrook-Reinbeck's baseball team, was named to the second team of the 2017 Class 1A All-State Baseball Team as voted on by members of the Iowa Newspaper Association. Clayton Mapel, a senior on Dike-New Hartford's baseball team, was honored with third-team status on the Class 2A team.
   Smoldt was selected as an infielder for the 1A team. He led the Rebels with a .427 batting average, hitting eight doubles and driving in 25 runs batted in.
   As a pitcher for the Rebels, Smoldt was 4-2 overall, allowing six earned runs in 34 2/3 innings with 46 strikeouts and 13 walks. Smoldt threw a no-hitter, striking out 16 in a district semifinal with North Tama on July 13.
   Smoldt was a first-team selection for the NICL West all-conference team, the third time he has been awarded that status.
 
 
 
 

   D-NH's Mapel earns third-team spot on 2A team
   Mapel was selected as a utility player on the third team. He led the team in hits (41), runs scored (38), doubles (10) and stolen bases (27). He batted .380 with 18 RBI, a triple and a home run with a .472 on-base percentage as the Wolverines' leadoff hitter.
   On the mound, Mapel was 5-0 in 17 appearances for the Wolverines, allowing one earned run in 22 2/3 innings pitched, striking out 32 batters with only eight walks.
   As the team's shortstop, Mapel had a .935 fielding percentage. He was named the North Iowa Cedar League East's Most Valuable Player and was a first-team all-district selection at utility.
   
 
 
 
 

   Barkema earns third-team spot on 2A team
   Brad Barkema, a junior on the BCLUW baseball team, was selected as a third-team catcher by the INA in Class 2A.
   Barkema batted .417 for the Comets. He led the team in doubles (14), home runs (3), on-base percentage (.510), slugging percentage (.714) and tied for the team lead in stolen bases with 14. He also drove in 27 runs, the third-best total on the team.
   In 12 1/3 innings on the mound, Barkema was 1-1, allowing four earned runs on eight hits and striking out 15 with four walks.
   Barkema was a first-team All-Central District pick this year at catcher and was a unanimous first-team selection at catcher on the NICL West All-Conference Team.
   Click here for the full list of all-state selections.