Iowa receiver Matt VandeBerg says the biggest changes under new Hawkeye offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz have been in the passing game. The son of Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz took over the offense following the retirement of Greg Davis and the Hawkeyes released a two-deep this week that includes two tight ends in the starting lineup.

And that new passing game will be directed by a brand new starter at quarterback. Sophomore Nathan Stanley and Junior Tyler Wiegers will continue their competition in fall camp.

A healthy VandeBerg is crucial for an Iowa receiving corps short on numbers and experience. The native of South Dakota suffered a broken bone in his foot following the Big Ten opener and missed the remainder of the season. He suffered the same injury in spring practice.

(Learfield Sports)

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

CLASS 4A STATE TOURNAMENT
Wednesday’s quarterfinals (80-minute rain delay before first game started)

Waukee 1, Cedar Rapids Prairie 0

Johnston 7, Linn-Mar 1
Iowa City West 12, Cedar Rapids Washington 2 (six innings)
Dowling Catholic (34-8) vs. Mason City (26-17), postponed

Thursday’s quarterfinals
9 a.m. — Dowling Catholic (34-8) vs. Mason City (26-17)

Also taking place Thursday (7/27), are the 1A & 2A Semifinals

Class 1A:

11 a.m. —Newman Catholic (33-3) vs. Remsen St. Mary’s (28-7)
1:30 p.m. — Martensdale-St.Marys (40-4) vs. Akron-Westfield (32-2)

Class 2A:

5 p.m — Iowa City Regina (28-7) vs. Beckman Catholic (29-11)
7:30 p.m. — Centerville (24-10) vs. Kuemper Catholic (21-12)

Former Atlantic Athletic Director and longtime Official in multiple sports Bob Sweeney has been inducted into the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s Officials Hall of Fame. Sweeney was honored in an on-field ceremony at Principal Park at the State Baseball Tournament Tuesday.  Sweeney was recognized for his 49 years of officiating, including 40 years working varsity baseball. The description below was the bio included in the 2017 State Baseball program.

“A native of Cylinder, he graduated from Emmetsburg in 1969 after the two schools merged following his freshman year. He earned 14 varsity letters in five sports, earning a variety of all-conference and all-state honors in football and basketball. 

He started umpiring baseball while still in high school working with veteran Ike Fogartry. While at Emmetsburg Junior College where he played basketball and baseball, he got his IHSAA official’s license in 1969 and worked sub-varsity games at Emmetsburg High School and also worked area basketball church tournaments with hall-of-fame official Dick Preston. 

He earned his undergraduate degree in Business Management and Education and his M.S. in School Administration each from Northwest Missouri State University. He has been a teacher, coach, or an administrator at Indianola, Charles City, Greene, Atlantic, and Shenandoah until retiring in 2015. An active professional he was honored with a hall of fame induction by the Iowa Association of High School Athletic Directors.

He curtailed his umpiring for nine years while coaching baseball at Indianola and Charles City where he also followed his daughter’s softball career. 

In his 49 years of officiating, he has worked varsity baseball 40 years. He also officiated football and basketball, primarily at the sub-varsity level and middle school level. 

His varsity résumé includes 37 years of post season baseball tournaments including 15 years at the State Tournament. Going into this season he has been on semifinals and championship contests five times. In addition, he has been assigned post season varsity softball tournaments and boys and girls basketball. 

He and his wife Kathy live in Atlantic and have raised three adult children-Kari, Kristi, and Kevin, who he introduced officiating in 1993. They enjoy seven grandchildren.”

The second-seeded Harlan Cyclones took care of business Tuesday night at Principal Park, rolling over the seventh-seeded Oskaloosa Indians 6-0 in the final Class 3A state quarterfinal game.

The Cyclones needed just seven hits, as Indian pitchers waked or hit eight Harlan batters in the contest.

Harlan starter Brett Sears finished the night with an impressive line in his 5 2/3 innings of work. He allowed just three hits and struck out two batters while walking three. He didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning in the victory.

Oskaloosa starter Rian Yates only went 1 1/3 innings before being taken out of the game. He allowed five runs on five hits in one inning and hit two opposing batters in the loss.

The Cyclones wasted no time asserting their dominance, putting up three runs in the first inning. Dillon Sears got things started for Harlan, singling and stealing second base. Ryan Doran knocked him in with an RBI single. Josh Cheek followed it up with a double, putting Harlan runners at second and third. Another run scored on a passed ball, and a third tally crossed home plate via a single from Sears.

Harlan’s successful first inning rolled over into the second. Yates hit the first two Harlan batters and was pulled from the game in favor of Nick Harrington. The Cyclones capitalized, and Doran was right in the middle of it again. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Doran cleared the bases by blasting a double off the right-center field wall, giving Harlan a 6-0 advantage — a score that held up for the last five innings.

It took until the fifth inning, but Tyler Miller picked up the first hit for the Indians, dumping a single into left field. But, like the four previous innings, Oskaloosa hardly threatened to score.

The bats in general went quiet. Miller’s hit was just one of two knocks between both teams in the third, fourth, and fifth innings.

Oskaloosa broke the lull with two hits in the sixth inning, but it couldn’t plate a run and break the goose egg after Sears, who moved to second base for Harlan, started and completed a double play to end the inning and the Indians’ best chance in the game to rally.

Before this season, unranked Oskaloosa (28-14) had only made it to the state tournament one other time, in 1998, when it fell in its first game. The Indians came to Des Moines winning six-straight games.

No. 1-ranked Harlan (35-2) has had much more success. The Cyclones are in the midst of their seven-straight state tournament and 17th overall. They won it all in Class 3A in 2016.

Harlan will play Bishop Heelen Catholic, which beat Saydel earlier Tuesday evening, at 11 a.m. Friday in the Class 3A semifinal.

(from IHSAA)

CLASS 4A STATE TOURNAMENT
Wednesday’s quarterfinals
11 a.m. — Cedar Rapids Prairie (29-12) vs. Waukee (28-13)
1:30 p.m. — Johnston (38-3) vs. Linn-Mar (21-18)
5 p.m. — Iowa City West (31-8) vs. Cedar Rapids Washington (24-15)
7:30 p.m. — Dowling Catholic (34-8) vs. Mason City (26-17)

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Harrison Bader doubled leading off the ninth inning for his first major league hit and slid across the plate to score the winning run of his debut on Jedd Gyorko’s short sacrifice fly, lifting the St. Louis Cardinals over the Colorado Rockies 3-2 Tuesday night. The 23-year-old was brought up before the game when Dexter Fowler was placed on the disabled list with a strained left wrist.

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — Perennial Football Championship Subdivision power North Dakota State sits atop this year’s Missouri Valley Football Conference preseason poll, but narrowly. The Bison received 21 first-place votes and 380 total points to edge South Dakota State, which got 19 first-place votes and 379 total points.

CHICAGO (AP) — Willson Contreras drove in four runs and Carl Edwards Jr. provided some timely relief, helping the Chicago Cubs beat the Chicago White Sox 7-2 Tuesday. Ben Zobrist reached four times from the leadoff spot as the Cubs won for the ninth time in 11 games since the All-Star break.

CLASS 3A STATE TOURNAMENT
Tuesday’s quarterfinals
Assumption 12, Bondurant-Farrar 2 (five innings)
Wahlert Catholic 5, Marion 4
Bishop Heelan Catholic 4, Saydel 1
Harlan 6, Oskaloosa 0

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — Perennial Football Championship Subdivision power North Dakota State sits atop this year’s Missouri Valley Football Conference preseason poll, but narrowly. The Bison received 21 first-place votes and 380 total points to edge South Dakota State, which got 19 first-place votes and 379 total points. The two schools were conference co-champions last season.

The poll is conducted by league coaches, media and sports information directors. The No. 3 spot is held by Youngstown State, which reached the FCS title game last season. Northern Iowa and Illinois State round out the top five, followed by Western Illinois, South Dakota, Southern Illinois, Missouri State and Indiana State.