Baseball substate games feature some veteran teams

One of the class 4A sub-state baseball matchups tonight involve rated teams as fourth ranked Lewis Central plays number-three Sioux City North. Lewis Central will be without ace pitcher Justin Toole who suffered a knee injury late in the regular season.Lewis Central coach Lee Toole says freshman Jimmy Waters will start, as he says he’s climbed the ladder and throws very well. Waters is 6-0 with a 1.74 ERA. Toole says North will be tough to beat as they’re a big ballclub with some guys who can hit the ball out of the park, and they also have some good pitching. With a victory, Lewis Central would earn a third trip to state in four years. He says they always try to compare themselves to the wrestling program which he says is above and beyond everything else. He says they’ve won their conference four straight years. In class 1A sub-state action fifth rated Mason City Newman collides with number two Valley of Elgin. Newman coach Tony Adams says Valley will be tough to beat as they’re a solid ballclub that plays a lot of 2A schools.Adams says this year’s team remembers the heart-break of losing to Eagle Grove in last year’s substate final. He says it’s in the back of their minds and they realize anything can happen. He says it’s their goal to get to state and it will come down to execution.