All-district baseball: Grundy Center trio on first team

Several area high school baseball players are listed on the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association’s all-district teams released recently.

Grundy Center’s Brayden Sawyer, Dayne Zinkula and Logan Knaack earned first-team recognition on the Class 2A Central District team; Dike-New Hartford’s Gus Varney and Lewis Textor were named to the first and second teams, respectively, on the 2A Northeast District team.

In Class 1A, Gladbrook-Reinbeck’s William Kiburis and Nick Tscherter received first-team spots on the Central District team; AGWSR’s Landon Benning and BCLUW’s Walker Ashton were second-team picks.

Brayden Sawyer, pitcher: Sawyer, a senior, finished with a 10-2 record on the mound for the Spartans. In 60 innings pitched, he struck out 77 batters with only three walks, allowing six earned runs toward a 0.60 earned run average. At the plate, Sawyer hit .372 with nine doubles, one home run and 31 runs batted in, 10 stolen bases and 17 runs scored.

Dayne Zinkula, second base: Zinkula, a senior, led Grundy Center with a .391 batting average, including eight doubles, one triple, a home run and 27 runs batted in, 17 stolen bases and 27 runs scored. He threw 42 and two-third innings with a 6-1 record, 33 strikeouts, 11 walks, and a 1.15 ERA.

Logan Knaack, outfield: Knaack, a senior, was perfect out in centerfield with no errors in 28 chances. At the plate, he hit .383 with three doubles, 15 runs batted in and a team-leading 28 runs scored along with 16 stolen bases.

Gus Varney, utility: In his junior season, Varney had a .510 batting average, 11 doubles, four triples, six home runs and 47 runs batted in with seven stolen bases. He was 5-0 on the mound in 33 and two-third innings pitched, with a 3.33 earned run average, 36 strikeouts and 18 walks.

Lewis Textor, pitcher: Textor, a freshman, hit .361 with six doubles and 26 runs batted in and was 4-0 on the mound in 37 and two-thirds innings pitched with 45 strikeouts and 18 walks.

William Kiburis, pitcher: Kiburis, a junior, was 9-0 on the mound in 55 innings pitched, striking out 95 with 33 walks and a 0.89 earned run average. He hit .393 at the plate with five doubles, two home runs, 27 RBI, 42 stolen bases and 56 runs scored.

Nick Tscherter, catcher: Tscherter, a junior, led the team with a .451 batting average, adding eight doubles, two home runs, 49 RBI and 28 runs scored. Behind the plate, he threw out six base stealers. He threw 47 and one-third innings with 32 strikeouts and a 5.03 ERA.

Landon Benning, pitcher: Benning, a sophomore, hit .266 with two doubles, one home run and 11 runs batted in at the plate for the Cougars this summer. He also stole six bases and was 4-4 on the mound in 33 and one-third innings pitched, striking out 39 with 12 walks and posting a 1.68 earned run average.

Walker Ashton, utility: In his junior season with the Comets, Ashton hit .397 with eight runs batted in and stole 15 bases on 16 attempts. He pitched 37 and one-third innings on the bump with a 3.38 ERA and 45 strikeouts to 17 walks.