• Game 1: Kishwaukee (33-22) vs. Wabash Valley (49-10), 9 a.m.
• Game 2: Iowa Western (43-11) vs. Loser 1, Noon
• Game 3: Iowa Western vs. Winner 1, 3 p.m.
Sunday
• Game 4: Matchup TBA, 11 a.m.
• Game 5: Championship (if necessary), 2 p.m.Sunday
COUNCIL BLUFFS — Iowa Western is ranked eighth in the nation, is hitting .402 as a team, has made three straight Junior College World Series appearances and is playing on its home field this weekend.
Still, Marc Rardin doesn't consider his baseball team the favorite in the NJCAA Northern District.
No. 5 Wasbash Valley, Ill., has that distinction, the IWCC coach said, heading into the three-team, double-elimination tournament this weekend at Doc Ross Field that will determine a qualifier for the upcoming JUCO World Series. The Warriors, who open the event against Kishwaukee, Ill., at 9 a.m. Saturday, are 49-10 this season.
“From what I hear, Wabash is the team to beat,” Rardin said. “They're loaded. They're ranked in the top (five), and they've put up some impressive numbers.”
Actually, all three teams have been impressive this season on offense. Iowa Western, Wabash Valley and Kishwaukee all rank in the top 20 nationally in team hitting.
The Reivers (43-11) top that list with a program-best .402 team batting average, which ranks second in the nation. Wabash is fifth at .375 and the Kougars (33-22) are 19th at .356.
IWCC is led by Region XI player of the year Brent Seifert, whose .520 batting average is the highest ever by an IWCC player and leads all Division I hitters with more than 100 at-bats. But he's hardly a one-man show. Every player in the Reiver lineup is hitting .364 or better.
Not to be outdone, Kishwaukee's Jake Lueneberg is right behind Seifert nationally at .507. And Wabash Valley's Tyler Oliver, a University of Kentucky recruit, is batting .458 and leading the nation in home runs (28) and RBIs (97).
There are 13 players on the three rosters hitting .400 or better. That could lead to a weekend of high-scoring games, which would be fine with Rardin, even though his team didn't put together big offensive numbers while going 3-0 in its regional last week.
In order to get back into the swing of things, the Reivers spent plenty of practice time this week in intersquad situations to get in some live hitting.
Rardin said his pitching staff is ready to go. Region XI pitcher of the year Jordan Kistler (7-0), who didn't throw last weekend, is scheduled to start in IWCC's opener at noon with Nick Hogue (6-1), Zach Willand (5-1) and Taylor Eikenberry (5-0) waiting in the wings.
“Pitching, for us, is throwing strikes,” Rardin said. “We'll give up runs, and that's fine.”
Iowa Western will meet the loser of the opening game between Kishwaukee and Wabash Valley in its district opener. Then it will play the winner of the opener at 3 p.m. Saturday.
If a team goes 2-0 on the first day, it will need only one win on Sunday to advance. If all three teams go 1-1, IWCC gets a host bye into the final and would meet the winner of a second game between the Warriors and Kougars.
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