The 2021 WIAA season is starting to come to an end, with the D-1 state quarterfinals taking place this Friday at Herr Baker Stadium, home of the Marian University Sabres and the Northwoods League’s Fond du Lac Dock Spiders.

Eight teams from across the D-1 landscape will square off on Friday with one goal in mind - a win. Doing so will earn them a ticket to Appleton on Thursday, July 1, where we’ll eventually crown the D-1 state championship.

Today, we’ll bring you a quick rundown of the eight teams set to take the stage on Friday in Fond du Lac. Be sure to follow us on Twitter at @PBRWisconsin for consistent updates on the state playoffs for all four divisions. 

SUN PRAIRIE

From start to finish, it was Sun Prairie that held the top spot in our Power 25 rankings throughout the WIAA season and there wasn’t really ever a debate about it. The Cardinals’ lineup is loaded with Division I caliber talent scattered throughout and there’s a few college level bats that fill in right behind them for added thump.

INF Carson Shepard (2021; Ohio), INF Davis Hamilton (2022; uncommitted), INF Liam Moreno (2021; Missouri State), and Player of the Year candidate C Josh Caron (2021; Nebraska) make up the most potent middle-of-the-order in the state. OF Addison Ostrenga (2022; Iowa) and sophomore INF Jackson Hunley (uncommitted) are two more high-end level offensive threats opposing pitchers have to deal with when navigating through the Sun Prairie lineup. Add in senior OF Durlin Radlund (uncommitted) and CIF Carter Wambach (2021; McHenry CC) to the mix and suddenly this team has little-to-no holes offensively.

While their depth on the mound doesn’t match what some of the other teams in the state quarterfinals bring to the table, head coach Rob Hamilton’s squad can score runs in bunches and keep up with the best of them. They’ll draw Onalaska on Friday, scheduled for an 11:30 a.m. start.

BAY PORT

The Pirates earned the No. 2 overall seed per the WIAA’s seeding committee and rightfully so. They lost one game all season and have been red-hot ever since, cruising past De Pere during the sectional semifinals and outlasting a top-10 caliber Kimberly squad in the sectional championship game.

It’ll be hard to beat the Pirates in any game that RHP Theo Zeidler (2022; Bradley) toes the rubber, as the Bay Port star junior has been excellent all season on both sides of the ball. RHP Gavin Rusch (2021; Concordia MN) and RHP Eli Frank (2021; Wisconsin-Whitewater) are two more staple arms this team will trot out behind Zeidler that give them a chance to compete with anyone. Aside from their arms, Bay Port is a highly experienced bunch with a lineup full of seniors from top to bottom and all of them are committed to play college baseball at some level, too. OF Jacob Kleeman (2021; Lake County CC), INF Carl Cano (2021; University of St. Thomas), INF James Bornick (2021; Marian University), and the aforementioned Zeidler/Frank duo have all had strong offensive seasons for Bay Port.

At their best, the Pirates are capable of matching up with anybody on any given day and, for that reason, they didn’t drop out of the top-3 in our Power 25 rankings all spring. They’ll draw West Bend East on Friday, scheduled for a 2 p.m. start.

UNION GROVE

Union Grove enters this Friday’s quarterfinals as one of the state’s more battled tested teams, squaring up against multiple highly competitive teams and individual arms throughout the season - and still finishing with 25 wins. They barely lost to Sun Prairie earlier in the year, defeated the two-headed monster atop Westosha Central’s pitching staff, and did the same against Elkhorn’s formidable front. Union Grove also beat Middleton twice, swept through Burlington three times, won against Muskego in the sectional championship, and defeated Wauwatosa East at our WIAA invitational.

Plenty of seniors on both sides of the ball anchor this team and the other surrounding non-senior athletes make for a team that nobody will want to face on any given day. The Broncos boast arguably the state’s deepest pitching staff, with the likes of RHP Noah France (2021; Madison JC), RHP Isaiah Cerfus (2021; Madison JC), LHP Taylor Brauer (2021; McHenry CC), and LHP Kaden Pfeffer (2021; Century JC) making up that bunch. INF Nicklas Williams (2021; Wabash Valley), OF Remmi Sweet (2022; uncommitted), and C Brady Katterhagen (2021; Wisconsin-Platteville) are all all-conference type bats that make for a competitive middle-of-the-order, with sophomores OF Owen Nowak and INF Nathan Williams jumpstarting the offense for them at the top of this lineup.

On Friday, Union Grove will square up against Eau Claire Memorial in the state quarterfinals at Fond du Lac - a game that should make for one of the day’s most competitive matchups.

PEWAUKEE PIRATES

Moving up to the D-1 level this spring, the Pirates dominated their competition all season long. They won 27 games and lost just twice this spring, scoring eight or more runs in 21 of their 29 games. Pewaukee put an exclamation point on arguably the most successful season in school history by crushing through their sectional, outscoring opponents 28-0.

Now, the Pirates head to the state playoffs for the first time since 2015 with hopes of making a deep run that ends in a state championship. They’re equipped with the talent to do so, led by the high-octane trio of INF Grant Ross (2021; Valparaiso), RHP/INF Logan Dobberstein (2022; Kansas State), and OF Carson Hansen (2022; uncommitted). Filling in behind those three are several quality complimentary pieces, like OF Nick Doubek (2022; uncommitted), RHP Luke Sopha (2022; uncommitted), and 1B/LHP Vince Zipperer (2021; Cornell College), who were all excellent for Pewaukee this spring. OF Logan Schill (2023; uncommitted) and C Jack Sandvik (2022; uncommitted) are two more everyday contributors to this Pewaukee squad worth highlighting.

In what will be arguably their toughest test all season, the Pirates will host an extremely competitive, streaking Menomonee Falls team on Friday at 9 a.m. in the state quarterfinal.

MENOMONEE FALLS

The Phoenix had a rather impressive season, earning a Greater Metro Conference title en route to a 25-win season. They have several quality wins on their resume, including a win over rival Wauwatosa East in the regional championship and defeating Arrowhead last Monday for a sectional title.

This Falls’ team is led by OF Luke Nowak (2021; East Carolina), who’s one of the most valuable players in the entire WIAA, regardless of class, because of his impact bat and double-plus speed. Senior OF/RHP Cole Fialco (2021; McHenry CC) does everything for the Phoenix and has taken over the reins of staff ace, pitching them to victories in both of their playoff championship wins. INF/RHP Billy Howard (2021; Mchenry CC) contributes heavily on both sides of the ball, while sophomores INF Keli Grennier and RHP/CIF Zach Wolfram continue to positively produce in their first taste of varsity action.

Menomonee Falls won’t have an easy path to the D-1 state semi-finals, as they’ll have to defeat a Pewaukee Pirates team first that just scored 28 runs in their two sectional games. That game will kick off the quarterfinal action at 9 a.m. this Friday.

EAU CLAIRE MEMORIAL

We slotted Eau Claire Memorial into our preseason Power 25 rankings and, internally, were relatively high on the Old Abes’ talented roster. They endured several ups-and-downs throughout the spring that ultimately dropped them out of our top-25, but this is a team that got hot at the right time and has multiple high-quality victories on their resume; two wins against Hudson, two wins against Eau Claire North, and three wins against River Falls.

The Old Abes’ everyday lineup is made up of nine upperclassmen, with three juniors making up the 1-2-3: OF Luke Erickson, INF Peyton Platter, and INF/RHP Dylan O’Connell. They’re really strong up the middle, with O’Connell at shortstop, OF Campbell Kapanke (2021; Wisconsin-Oshkosh) in center field, and senior C Jake Becker (2021) captaining the ship behind the plate. Left-handed hitting OF Jack Redwine (2022; uncommitted) brings some added thump into the lineup and INF Austin Baker (2022; uncommitted) has been swinging it well as of late, driving in four runs in the Old Abes’ two sectional games.

Eau Claire Memorial has a true ace in RHP Vincent Trapani (2021; Arkansas), a nationally recognized prospect on the mound that gives them a chance to win each game that he toes the rubber. O’Connell has a fairly electric arsenal on the mound as well, with a mid-to-high 80s heater and swing-and-miss spin on his breaking ball. Platter and RHP Roman Trapani (2023; uncommitted) are two more arms this Memorial team can deploy for quality, competitive innings.

Despite earning the sixth overall seed in the WIAA playoffs, the Old Abes aren’t a team that anyone will want to draw in the state quarterfinals; especially if Trapani is on the mound. They’ll face off against Union Grove in a must-watch game on Friday afternoon.

WEST BEND EAST 

A late addition into our Power 25 rankings, the Suns started to turn some heads as of late with a handful of quality wins down the stretch. They beat Greendale and Sussex Hamilton as the regular season started to unwind, cruised through Cedarburg in the sectional semi-final, and also beat a Manitowoc Lincoln team coming off a strong win against Neenah.

There are several names on this West Bend roster that we aren’t completely familiar with, so it’ll be an exciting first look for us at what the Suns’ have to offer. Nolan Gawryck and RHP/INF Sam Geldnich (2021; uncommitted) hit out of the top two spots in this lineup and are also key pieces on the mound; both of them throwing important playoff games for East thus far. Senior INF George Seaman is a physical 6-foot-2, 185-pound middle-of-the-order type presence that has provided the Suns’ with some much-needed power throughout. There are several other names that factor into this lineup, like Dawson Rondorf and C Evan Roell (2021).

Things only get tougher the further you go into the playoffs and that’s exactly what West Bend East will have to deal with on Friday. They’ll draw easily their toughest assignment of the entire spring - a matchup with Bay Port at 2 p.m.

ONALASKA

The Hilltoppers got hot at the right time, entering their regional as a three seed. They defeated Tomah and Baraboo en route to a regional championship, setting up a matchup with top-seed La Crosse Central in the sectional semi-final; a game that Onalaska won. They then squeaked by Middleton in a 2-1 ballgame to earn a sectional championship plaque and a trip to the state playoffs.

Now that they’re in, Onalaska will unquestionably have the hardest matchup of any team in the playoffs and it’ll certainly be the toughest task they’ve faced all season, arguably by a wide margin. They’ll draw top-seeded Sun Prairie - a team that we ranked as the number one team in the state all spring that also hasn’t lost in almost a month. The Hilltoppers are streaking right now, however, and they’ll look to pull off yet another playoff upset.

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