Hawks soaring to State! ...

Members of the Kee baseball team swarm the infield in celebration of qualifying for the Class 1A State Tournament with their Class 1A Substate 3 win over Mason City Newman, 8-5, Tuesday, July 15 in Decorah. The eighth-rated Hawks overcame a 2-0 early deficit and held off a later charge from the ninth-rated Knights to secure the win and claim their 21st berth in the summer season grand finale and their first State Tournament qualification since the 2021 season when the Hawks finished as the Class 1A State Tournament Runner-Up. Details and photos from Kee’s Substate 3 victory can be found on Pages 14-15 in this week’s edition of The Standard. Seeded fifth in this year’s Class 1A State Tournament field of eight teams, the Hawks were scheduled to begin their season grand finale quest at Merchants Park in Carroll with a Monday, July 21 opening-round game against fourth-seeded Martensdale-St. Mary’s, with the winner of that first-round contest then advancing to a semifinals match-up Wednesday, July 23 at 4:30 p.m. to take on the winner of the first-round match-up between top-seeded Remsen-St. Mary’s and eighth-seeded Hillcrest Academy, with that semifinals winner then advancing to the Class 1A State Championship game scheduled for 5 p.m. Friday, July 25. Photo by Danielle Potter.