Prep Baseball Report

Become a Member

More +

WIAA State Championships: Day 1

June 14, 2022
Maddox Durst
PBR Wisconsin Staff

The WIAA Division 1 Quarterfinals and Semifinals kicked off this week in Appleton, WI at Fox Cities Stadium. Tuesday featured six games between the eight qualifying Division 1 teams. 

#5 MENOMONEE FALLS vs #4 WESTOSHA CENTRAL

The day’s first matchup was between the Menomonee Falls Phoenix and the Westosha Central Falcons. After a couple of quiet innings offensively for both teams, the Phoenix broke open the scoring with an RBI single from OF Jack Anderson (2023), putting them up 1-0 after three innings of play.

RHP Zach Wolfram (2023) was the starter for the Phoenix in game one. After dominating last week’s sectional semifinal, Wolfram maintained his momentum at the state tournament. He held the lead for the Phoenix while throwing for six innings, striking out five Falcons, and walking zero.  

The Phoenix were able to add some insurance in the 6th inning with back-to-back hits from Wolfram and OF Caden Wilson (2022), who extended the lead to 4-0. 

 

In the 7th, the Phoenix added two more runs via a single from INF Derek Steinbrenner (2023) to add to their lead and make it 6-0. The Falcons put up one run in the bottom half of the frame, but it was not enough as the Phoenix advanced to the semifinals with a 6-1 victory.


#8 BAY PORT vs #1 SUN PRAIRIE

In the second quarterfinal matchup of the day, the Bay Port Pirates and Sun Prairie Cardinals took the field in a rematch of last year’s WIAA Division 1 state championship. After losing to the Cardinals last year, the Pirates turned the tables and pulled off an upset.

Sun Prairie started the scoring in the bottom of the 1st with the help of OF Jackson Hunley (2023), who stole home after a throw down from Bay Port’s catcher. Hunley was the only Cardinal with multiple hits, as he finished 3-for-4 on the day, with two stolen bases.

Bay Port would answer in the top of the second, with an RBI double from INF Connor Labar (2023), who tied the game at one. The Pirates added two more runs in the third with an RBI single from RHP Cole Bensen, giving them a 3-1 lead. 

Bensen also got the job done for the Pirates on the mound. In 6 ⅓ innings, he struck out four batters and only allowed one run. 

In the sixth inning, Bensen got his second hit of the game, and scored via an RBI single from OF John Nickel (2022), giving the Pirates a 4-1 lead. 

Sun Prairie made some noise in the 7th inning with a single and a couple of walks, but they were only able to produce one run out of it, as Bay Port pulled off a 4-2 win in upset fashion. The Pirates will match up against the Menomonee Falls Phoenix in the semifinal of the WIAA Division 1 State Tournament. 

#7 GREENDALE vs #2 EAU CLAIRE NORTH

In the two games prior to the matchup between the Greendale Panthers and the Eau Claire North Huskies, the lower seed earned a victory. The Panthers continued that trend on Tuesday afternoon with yet another upset win.

The Huskies got the scoring started right away in the first inning with the help of a double from INF Gabe Richardson (2022) and a sacrifice fly from 1B Sam Feck (2022). A passed ball allowed Eau Claire North to extend their lead to 2-0 after the first inning.

After a couple of errors from Greendale, the Huskies capitalized and scored via a bunt single from OF Roscoe Rennock (2022), and increased the lead to 3-0 in the 2nd inning. 

Greendale chipped away at the lead in the 4th inning due to a throwing error, and cut the lead to 3-1. In the 7th, the Panthers’ offense broke through as INF Andy Justus (2022; MSOE) drove in two runs after an error. INF Cameron Bueno (2025) got an infield hit with the bases loaded to tie it at four.

RHP Jack Bauer (2024) shut down the Huskies’ offense for the last three innings of the ballgame, as he scattered two hits and two walks without giving up a run. 

In the 8th inning, OF Keegan Norton (2022; Saint Mary’s-Minnesota) broke the tie with an RBI single. A sacrifice fly from Justus gave the Panthers a 6-4 into the bottom half of the inning.

Bauer was able to hold down the Huskies in the last inning, and Greendale got the third upset of the day with a 6-4 victory over Eau Claire North. 

 

#6 MILTON vs #3 ARROWHEAD

In the fourth and final matchup of the WIAA Division 1 quarterfinals, the Milton Red Hawks and Arrowhead Warhawks faced off.

Milton got out to an early 3-0 lead courtesy of a two-RBI triple from OF Owen Holcomb (2022), and a double steal that was executed to perfection. The Red Hawks then added three more runs in the third inning, extending their lead to six. 

Throuhgout the game, Milton took advantage of a plethora of free bases as Arrowhead pitchers combined to walk 10 Milton batters, three of which brought home runs.

The Warhawks were able to gain a little momentum though in the bottom of the 4th, as INF Mason McKellar (2022; Wisconsin-Superior) launched a two-run home run out of Fox Cities Stadium. That inning cut down Milton’s lead from six to three. 

RHP Jack Campion (2022) got the job done for Milton both on the mound and at the plate. In the 5th inning, Campion sent a 2-run home run over the left field wall to extend the Red Hawk’s lead to 8-3. On the bump, Campion threw 6 ⅔ innings before being removed due to pitch count. In that time, he struck out two batters and only walked one. 

Arrowhead added two more runs in the 6th inning, but it was not enough as Milton was able to pull off the 4th upset of the day, winning 8-5. A relay from OF Ashton Goll (2022) and INF Gavin Kilen (2022; Louisville) was one of the multiple defensive plays that the Red Hawks made to support Campion. 

Milton advanced to the semifinals were they faced off against the Greendale Panthers in the night cap. 

#8 BAY PORT vs #5 MENOMONEE FALLS

The evening sessions of state games kicked off with a semifinal battle between the Bay Port Pirates and the Menomonee Falls Phoenix. RHP Derek Steinbrenner (2023) took the mound for Menomonee Falls, and faced off against Bay Port’s RHP Craig Kabat (2024). 

Bay Port scored one run in the first two innings of the game, giving them a quick 2-0 lead. Three errors in the first two innings helped the Pirates score those runs. 

Without getting a hit, the Pirates added on two more runs in the 4th inning to create a 4-0 margin. There were three more errors committed by the Phoenix, which eventually led to more runs for Bay Port. 

The Phoenix had their bats quieted by Kabat for the first four innings of the ballgame. In the 5th, they were able to break through with a leadoff double from C Evan Falkner (2022), who scored on a bases loaded walk from INF Keli Grennier (2023). An error forced by OF Jack Anderson (2023) led to the second run of the inning being scored by the Phoenix, cutting Bay Port’s lead in half at 4-2.  

After five strong innings from Kabat, Bay Port reliever LHP Ethan Plog (2024) was able to hold on to the lead for the Pirates, as the Phoenix made a threat in the bottom of the 7th. INF Zach Wolfram (2023) drove in a run via an RBI single. Plog got a flyout against the next batter, and secured a 4-3 win for the Pirates.

Bay Port will be making its return to the WIAA Division 1 state championship game for the second year in a row. They will match up against the winner of #7 Greendale and #6 Milton on Thursday, June 16th at 6p.m.

#7 GreendALE VS #6 MILTON

The nightcap of day one of the WIAA State Tournament featured two teams that upset higher seeded teams earlier in the day. 

The Milton Red Hawks were able to score on Greendale’s starting pitcher, RHP EJ Kuster (2023), after he hit two batters. A couple of bunts and an error allowed Milton to score two runs in the 2nd, giving them an early 2-0 lead. 

Greendale answered in the top half of the 3rd, with an RBI single from OF Keegan Norton (2022; Saint Mary’s-Minnesota commit), which cut the Red Hawk’s lead in half. INF Jack Bauer (2024) added another run in the 4th with an RBI single, tying the game at 2-2. 

After that inning, RHP Trey Jones (2025) shut down the Panthers. The freshman has played a key role in a number of Milton’s wins this year and continued his solid freshman campaign as he struck out three batters and only walked one through 3 ⅔ innings. 

Milton used that pitching to create a lead. OF Ashton Goll broke the tie with an RBI single in the bottom of the 4th. They scored at least one run in the last three innings of the ballgame, including a four-run sixth. 

INF Gavin Kilen (2022; Louisville) and OF Brendan Bastian (2023) each had singles that drove in runs for the Red Hawks. By doing so, Milton extended their lead to 8-2, and went on to win the ballgame. 

By winning two games on Tuesday, the Red Hawks will match up against #8 Bay Port on Thursday night at 6 p.m. for the WIAA Division 1 State Championship.  

 

RELATED CONTENT