Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
Jersey concluded an excellent baseball season and careers of several seniors on Monday night, losing to Highland 8-1 in the Class 3A championship at Jersey.
Crick Kimble concluded his high school career with a home run in his first at-bat. He will play baseball next year at Southeastern Iowa College. He smashed the ball over the outfield fence with his smooth stroke at the plate.
“Crick did get us out to a good start,” Jersey coach Darren Perdun said. “I think he will be a good player in college.”
The versatile Jake Varble also concluded his storied athletic career at Jersey. Varble was a standout all-state player in football and a starter on the basketball and baseball teams. Varble will attend Southern Illinois University-Carbondale on a football scholarship. He is slated to be a tight end at SIU-C.
“Jake is a great athlete and just a great kid,” Perdun said. “It is always hard when you lose the seniors. That is the toughest part of coaching, seeing them so much for four years then losing them.”
Levi Staples, Will Mortland, Michael Sheldon, Brenden Kennedy and Hunter Bryant rounded out the Jersey seniors who played their last game on Monday.
“The seniors were key parts of our regional championship team last year and got us there again this year,” Perdun said. “We were only one game out of the Mississippi Valley Conference race. We are now pretty much a force to be reckoned with in baseball.”
Jersey concludes the season with an 18-16 record.
“We competed and battled in every game,” Perdun said. “We were very close to a 20-win season. It was a great season overall. There is a lot of parody around the region, but we held our own.”
