Ranking Iowa City's high school baseball teams as the regular season comes to a close

Just as quickly as the high school baseball season started, it is about to come to an end.

Though each of Iowa City's teams had to get through the many different ebbs and flows that come throughout the summer, that has not stopped them from having regular seasons to remember.

Which team has stood out the most over the past two months?

Based on multiple factors such as level of competition, current trends, team statistics, schedule and state rankings, here is how the area teams stack up against one another at the end of the regular season:

All statistics are as of Monday, July 2, and courtesy of Bound.

1. City High Little Hawks (26-12)

Ranked No. 6 in Bound's ELO rankings, the Little Hawks look like one of the hottest teams in all of eastern Iowa.

Since June 19, they have won nine straight games. During that win streak, the Little Hawks have averaged 9.8 runs per contest while holding opponents to just 1.9 runs.

It would not be a surprise to anyone if City High advances to its second straight state tournament.

2. Clear Creek Amana Clippers (18-11)

The Clippers had to integrate many new faces into their dugout this year, but you wouldn't know it based on how they played this season.

The Clippers' 18 regular-season wins are their second-highest total since 2019. They have increased their team batting average, slugging percentage and fielding percentage over last summer's totals.

Those marked improvements across the board have cemented the Clippers as a top-75 team. Clear Creek Amana has knocked off other top teams including Marion, Solon and Grinnell.

3. Liberty Lightning (18-16)

While Lightning players and coaches would admit that they have been a bit streaky this season, that has not stopped them from making big strides under new head coach Uby Martinez.

One of their biggest areas of improvement has been their performance against conference opponents. Last season, the Lightning won 40 percent of their conference games; this year they have improved that number to 50 percent.

Liberty has knocked off top-15 teams Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Wahlert Catholic and Cedar Falls. The team looks poised to make another deep postseason run.

4. Solon Spartans (21-18)

No strangers to adversity, the Spartans have taken their bumps and bruises but appear ready to go ahead of the start of the postseason.

Known for racking up hits and aggressive base running, those skills will make life difficult for opposing teams. The Spartans have 162 stolen bases as a team, meaning that pitchers always have to be aware of what is going on around them.

From there, the Spartans can take advantage of potentially errant throws and add to the 47 runs they've scored on errors this summer.

5. Iowa City West Trojans (16-20)

Despite the past couple of weeks not exactly being kind to the Trojans, you won't find anyone in their dugout hanging their heads.

Under longtime head coach Charlie Stumpff, the team has learned not to let short-term struggles affect them long-term, making them more than capable of turning their recent rough stretch into a respectable playoff run.

For that to happen they will need their pitching staff to play some of its best baseball this season. Through their first 36 games, the group is allowing an average of 7.8 hits a game and a 5.10 ERA. Once they can cut down on those figures, they can trust their batters to do the rest.

6. Regina Regals (13-18)

Even though the Regals finished the regular season with a sub-.500 record, they have proved that they are much better than what their record reflects.

Regina's schedule featured teams from every class, including Clear Creek Amana, Solon and West High.

Despite not coming out on top in those games, the Regals managed to learn from their mistakes and got the better of their fellow Class 1A opponents. A prime example of that was their 8-0 win over Wapello in their Class 1A-5 first-round matchup.

Raven Moore covers high school and college sports for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. Contact her at RSMoore@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Raven_XReport.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Ranking Iowa City's baseball teams as regular season comes to a close