The Illinois high school baseball season kicks off on March 17, opening day for regular season action under IHSA regulations. Over the next two weeks, leading up to opening day, we’ll be publishing our team previews ahead of the 2025 spring season, touching on programs spanning all state classifications, counting down through the official Prep Baseball Illinois Preseason Power 25 Rankings.

Perennially, we’ve submitted a preseason questionnaire to high school head coaches across the entire state. Their responses have been flooding in and we’re using the detailed insight they’ve provided in our team-by-team preseason analysis.

Our 2025 preseason coverage continues today.

High School: Libertyville Wildcats
Preseason Rank: 5
Head Coach: Matt Thompson
Classification: 4A
Conference: North Suburban Conference
2024 Record (Finish): 26-10-2 (Regional Champion - Lost in Sectional Semi-Final)
Key Players Lost: None

 

---

ROSTER PREVIEW

No. of Returning Positional Starters: 9
No. of Returning Starting Pitchers: 3
No. of Returning Relief Pitchers: 3
Team Strengths: Pitching and overall defense.

---

X-FACTOR

C Quinn Schambow (2025; Oklahoma State commit) has long been one of the top catchers in the state, and he’s even in the discussion now as one of the top catchers in the country. The recent Super 60 standout will be looked to as the leader of not just the pitching staff, but also the offense as a whole, and we expect him to fully encompass this role - coming off a spring in which he earned Third-Team All-State honors after hitting .418 with 10 doubles, one triple, six home runs, 31 RBI and 30 walks. If Schambow can replicate his success, he will be the glue this offense needs to thrive. He’s a premier defender that will help limit the run-game tremendously, and he’s also one of the more dangerous bats in the entire state with the ability to leave the yard at any time.

---

NEWCOMER TO WATCH

No name gained as much helium over the winter in the state of Illinois as RHP Brady Buenik (2027) after his showing at our Preseason All-State Underclass event, giving arguably the loudest bullpen we have ever seen at that event. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-hander blew everybody away with a fastball that sat 95 mph out of the windup, dipping down in the 93-95 mph range in the stretch. He also shows a true wipeout slider and feel for an advanced splitter that will both surely garner plenty of ugly swings throughout the year, especially paired with 95 mph that's coming from a lower, deceptive slot. The Wildcats already have a deep rotation, and if Buenik can step up and perform, they very well might have the best rotation in the entire state.

---

TEAM OUTLOOK

Staying on the topic of pitching, let's look at a couple former Future Gamers the Wildcats will be trotting out in their rotation with LHP Joshua Holst (2025) and RHP Chase Lockwood (2026).

Holst, a physical 6-foot-2, 230-pound workhorse, returns 50 innings on the mound in which he had a 5-2 record, 86 strikeouts to only 23 walks, and a 1.40 ERA. The big southpaw has a power fastball up to 92 mph that he can bully opposing hitters with, earning consistent swings and misses on the offering even when in the zone. The Wildcats have to feel extremely confident any time Holst takes the mound, and with good reason, as he’s also the No. 23 ranked player in the state.

Lockwood saw a notable amount of time on varsity last spring as only a sophomore, and he will be looked to once again to eat a bulk of innings. He has impressive feel over his entire arsenal, featuring a mid/upper-80s fastball to go along with a curveball, slider and changeup that he can fill up the zone with and throw at any time. The right-hander returns 52.2 innings from a season ago, leading the team with eight wins, 56 strikeouts and a miniscule 0.67 ERA.

Looking to help fill out the rotation is RHP Anthony Fry (2025; Illinois Wesleyan), and extremely reliable right-hander for the Wildcats. He returns 24 innings on the bump to the tune of a 0.88 ERA.

Pairing these three with the aforementioned Buenik makes for one of the more talented and deep rotations in the state.

The Wildcats look to have a stable of arms in their bullpen as well, with seniors RHP Charlie Gretz (2025; St. Norbert), RHP Judson Graeb (2025), RHP Stevan Gavric (2025; Illinois State) and RHP Zachary Seiler (2025) - all of which will cruise in the low-80s, with Gavric bumping upper-80s.

LHP Nico Harper (2026) will be looked to as the main southpaw out of the ‘pen, and he is a talented junior with a fastball up to 87 mph, currently ranked No. 118 in the state. He also features a high-spin slider and running changeup to help mix up the pace.

On the other side of the ball, the aforementioned Schambow will be the field general behind the plate, and we can also expect to see Chase Lockwood see time at both corner infield positions. Also expect Holst to see time at first while hitting in the heart of the lineup - as both him and Chase hit over .340 last spring.

Another big bat for the Wildcats will be junior outfielder Ryan Wilberding, who returns a .270 average in 89 at-bats as just a freshman. Currently ranked No. 16 in the state, Wilberding is one of the top bats in the IL 2027 class with big power potential and the ability to hit for average as well.

MIF Cole Lockwood (2025; Valparaiso) and MIF Trevor Wallace (2026) will likely be the dynamic duo on the infield, both seeing a significant amount of time last spring.

Lockwood is an athletic defender that will provide a quality glove on the dirt, and he also has an upside lefty swing that looks to spray line-drives around the yard.

Wallace, another underclassman that saw time as a sophomore last spring, returns a .317 average in 60 at-bats, and he will surely look to build off that this coming season.

INF Bode Rohrbach (2026), OF Brock Williams (2027), OF Johnny Leoris (2025), OF Johnny Sellers (2025), OF Jack Senar (2026) and OF Carson Holmes (2026) are some more names we can expect to see help out on the offensive front.

BOTTOM LINE & DIRECTOR'S NOTE

The Wildcats should be very sound on the defensive side, boasting athletes around the diamond, one of the top catchers in the country, and one of the deepest and most talented pitching staffs in the state that returns well over 100 innings from last spring. On top of this, they have a solid offense that has some dangerous bats lurking throughout, and they should be a tough battle especially come playoff time. 

"After winning 26 games last spring, Coach Thompson looks to have the most talent he has ever had on one roster before. The Wildcats have one of the highest ceilings in the state entering this spring." Drew Locascio

---

Find more information on the 2025 Libertyville program below:

+ Follow them on X: @baseballLVille
+ Visit the Prep Baseball Illinois Preseason Power 25 homepage

Related Content