Iowa Prep Sports Podcast

Listen to the high school portion of this week's Pinning Combination Iowa wrestling podcast with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher, The Predicament's G. Wyatt Schultz and former coach Dick Briggs. This week: • An interview with Jeff Voss, the head coach of the https://www.thegazette.com/subject/sports/iowa-prep-sports/wrestling/west-delaware-wrestling-is-perfect-in-2020-21-and-looks-to-keep-getting-better-20210128 (2A No. 1-ranked West Delaware Hawks) • After another https://www.thegazette.com/subject/sports/iowa-prep-sports/wrestling/as-iowa-girls-state-wrestling-grows-millie-peach-becomes-events-first-3-time-champ-20210123 (successful state tournament), what's https://www.thegazette.com/subject/sports/iowa-prep-sports/wrestling/iowa-wrestling-weekend-that-was-girls-state-tournament-keeps-getting-better-20210125 (next for girls' wrestling in Iowa)? • Full weekend recap and preview • The weekly "You Make The Call" segment

The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher, The Predicament's Wyatt Schultz and former coach Dick Briggs recap the weekend that was in Iowa high school wrestling and look ahead to this week's action on the Pinning Combination. Included is a look at girls' wrestling in Iowa with the state tournament set for this weekend. Participation numbers continue to grow, showing the interest is there. But it still isn't sanctioned by the IHSAA or IGHSAU and the wrestling community is making sure girls have opportunities to compete at a high level in the meantime. Subscribe to https://www.facebook.com/onthemats (On The Mats by K.J. Pilcher on Facebook) or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoFprQ14cWg (The Gazette on YouTube) to watch the full show.

Listen to the high school portion of this week's Pinning Combination Iowa wrestling podcast with The Gazette's K.J. Pilcher, The Predicament's G. Wyatt Schultz and former coach Dick Briggs. This week: • A https://www.thegazette.com/west-delaware-captures-team-title-at-talent-laden-bobcat-eckenrod-wrestling-tournament-20210110 (Bobcat Jerry Eckenrod Invitational) with eight ranked teams and around 60 ranked wrestlers did not disappoint. Plus a look around the state at last weekend's results • https://www.thegazette.com/subject/sports/iowa-prep-sports/wrestling/changes-planned-for-high-school-state-wrestling-tournament-20210101 (What the IHSAA state wrestling schedule and format could look like this year) (no changes have been determined yet) • Weekend preview, including the J-Hawk Invite at Cedar Rapids Jefferson Subscribe to https://www.facebook.com/onthemats (On The Mats by K.J. Pilcher on Facebook) or https://www.youtube.com/user/gazetteonline (The Gazette on YouTube) to watch the full show.

Wednesday morning, Gov. Kim Reynolds gave the green light for high school summer sports in Iowa. Within hours, the state’s governing bodies for interscholastic athletics proceeded. As a result, high school baseball and softball are all systems go. According to the Iowa Department of Education, team-organized practices for baseball and softball may begin June 1 “unless circumstances dictate a change in date.” Games may begin June 15. In both cases, a long list of mitigation efforts are required — in the words of the Department of Education — “to help ensure player, coach, and spectator safety during games.” After Reynolds’ announcement, the IGHSAU board of directors and IHSAA board of control met, and both voted to approve resuming the 2020 summer seasons under Department of Education guidelines. In this podcast, The Gazette's Jeff Linder, K.J. Pilcher and Jeff Johnson react to the news and discuss ongoing questions about what this season will look like. Read more: Jean Berger, Tom Keating and the after

We got a glimpse of fall Thursday when the Iowa High School Athletic Association released teams’ schedules for the 2020 prep football season. Here to discuss their initial reactions on the Iowa Prep Sports Podcast and takeaways are The Gazette’s Jeff Johnson and K.J. Pilcher. From Class 4A to 8-Player, it’s a look at the most notable games and overall schedules.

It was a surreal scene on Friday, March 13 at Wells Fargo Arena as the Iowa high school boys' state basketball championship games were played with limited fans in attendance due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has now suspended spring sports. On the latest edition of Call It Both Ways, The Gazette's Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder discuss how the IHSAA made the decision to finish the tournament while other states postponed or canceled. They also talk basketball, recapping both the boys' and girls' 2020 state tournaments and discussing The Gazette's all-area teams. Hopefully this helps pass some time as we commit to social distancing!

The field for the 2020 Iowa high school girls' state basketball tournament is set, with 40 teams advancing to Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. The Gazette's Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson preview the tournament on the latest episode of Call It Both Ways and break down how Clear Creek Amana upset No. 2 Marion in a Class 4A regional final. There are more regional recaps, plus an update on the boys' basketball postseason, with substate finals coming up shortly.

Now that we’ve had a week to digest the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s plans for the 2020 football season, The Gazette’s Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder talk about what it all means on the latest Call It Both Ways podcast. The basketball postseason tips off for Class 1A girls Thursday night and will soon be underway for teams around the state. There are a few seeding scenarios to discuss there, namely Cedar Rapids Prairie being ranked No. 9 and thus drawing a 2-seed. The final segment looks at some of the top upcoming regular-season games this weekend.

We'll have to keep waiting for the next Iowa high school football classification, district and playoff formats. The Gazette's Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson discuss the latest they've heard on the latest Call It Both Ways podcast. There's basketball talk, too, including a look back at the use of a shot clock at the Wells Fargo Advisors Shootout, the City High-Dowling and Marion-CPU girls' games and examining the area conference races.