The Union Baseball Team recently had several players selected as members of the NICL East All-Conference team. As a team, the Knights finished with a 15-6 conference record which was good enough for second place in the league. Union plated four players on the first team, one on second, and a honorable mention selection.

Senior Alex Barz was selected as a First Team Utility player. A four year letter winner, Barz played a variety of positions this year spending most of his time behind the plate, pitching, or playing first base. In conference play, Barz hit .353 on 24 hits with nine doubles. His nine doubles was enough for a tie of the second most in the league. His 29 RBIs lead the conference. From the mound, Alex had a conference record of 3-3 with a 4.07 ERA while pitching 32 2/3 innings and striking out 34. Alex also tied the school record for the most doubles in a season with 17.

Another senior, Justin Carey, also received honors as a First Team Outfield selection. Carey played a solid centerfield for the Knights while hitting .323 in league play. Justin used his hitting abilities to collect 21 hits, drive in nine runs, and score 19 runs himself. He stole 16 of 17 bases which was good enough for the third most in the conference. Carey was a mainstay in the conference pitching rotation where he had a solid year. He threw 35 1/3 innings (7th most in the league) with a 3-2 record while striking out 50 batters (3rd most in the league). Justin’s 1.98 ERA was a career best and 7th best in the conference.

Brady Driscol earned First Team Pitcher with a 7-1 record with three of the wins being shutouts. Driscol was able to collect a win against each of the conference teams. His seven wins was the highest amongst conference pitchers as was his 51 innings pitched. Brady’s 1.10 ERA was second best in the league while his 40 strikeouts placed him 6th. He showed great control walking just 8 batters in his 51 innings of work.

Brady set several school pitching records:

– most wins in a season – 10

– most career wins – 20

– fewest walks in a season – 12

– most career complete games – 23

– most shutouts in a season – 3

– most shutouts in a career – 5

Senior Austin Kiler earned First Team Second Base. Austin hit .267 with 16 hits, 8 RBIs, and five for five in stolen bases. Defensively, Kiler was solid at second base as he committed no errors in league play while collecting 31 putouts and 26 assists. No errors put him at the top of the league for second basemen.

Sophomore Cael Lambe earned Second Team First Base. Cael hit .311 on 19 hits, along with 17 RBIs, and 9 runs scored. Cael showed great bat control striking out just three times in 61 plate appearances. He was also 1-0 on the mound in league play with 6 innings pitched. He struck out seven and did not give up a run during his shutout performance vs Sumner-Fredricksberg.

Fellow sophomore Derek Holschlag earned Honorable Mention All-Conference. Holschlag was a true, and very valuable, utility player to the Knights this year. Depending on who was pitching, Derek played key defensive positions very well such as shortstop, centerfield, and third base. He hit .333 in league play with 23 hits, 23 runs scored, and stolen 15 of 16 bases. Derek also pitched 9 innings in conference play with a 1.56 ERA.

Brady Driscol was also voted Co-MVP of the league. While his pitching stats ranked at or near the top of the league, his offensive numbers were just as high. Brady hit a league leading .485 on 32 hits, which also lead the league. He stolen 18 bases which also topped the league. As did other Union players this year, Brady showed great bat control striking out just twice in 66 plate appearances.

Seniors Alex Barz, Justin Carey, and Brady Driscol each recently received Northeast Iowa Class 3A All District honors. Teams included in this District were: Center Point-Urbana, Marion, West Delaware, Waverly, Benton Community, Vinton-Shellsburg, South Tama, Decorah, Charles City, Waukon, Maquoketa Valley, Independence, Oelwein, and Dubuque Wahlert.

Brady Driscol earned First Team All-District Pitcher honors. Brady had a regular season record of 10-2 with a 1.24 ERA. He struck out 52 batters and walked just 10 in his 67 2/3 innings pitched. Brady was only one of two pitchers in Class 3A to end the regular season with 10 wins. His innings pitched were the second most in Class 3A. Brady also had a solid year at the plate hitting .471 in regular season play which was good enough for 10th best in the state. He scored 39 runs (9th in state), collected 49 hits and stole 23 bases. He struck out just four times in 104 plate appearances.

Alex Barz earned Second Team All-District Utility. Alex spent the majority of the season either catching, pitching, or playing first base. On the offensive side of things, Alex hit .365 during the regular season on 38 hits. Of those hits, 17 were doubles which was the third most in Class 3A. His hits were very productive this year as he drove in 36 runs which was the 8th most in the class. From the mound, Alex was 3-3 with a 3.35 ERA during his 39 2/3 innings pitched. Alex was a Second Team All-District Catcher as a sophomore.

Justin Carey earned Second Team All-District Outfield. During the regular season, Justin hit .376 with 38 hits, and 12 RBIs. Justin scored 29 runs which was the third highest on the team this year. He showed his speed on the base paths as he stole 21 bases which was the second highest on the team. Justin earned a 3-2 record on the mound with 38 1/3 innings pitched. He had an impressive ERA of 1.83 with 52 strikeouts.

Congratulations to all three players on a good season and this well deserved honor.