Top 10 Stories of 2024: No. 8 Four Champions Crowned in WIAA State Tournament
December 20, 2024
At the end of each calendar year, the PBR Wisconsin staff reflects back on the 10 most intriguing headlines that surrounded the baseball scene in the Badger State. Through the end of the month, we will break down the most impactful storylines from an eventful 2024 campaign, ending with our No. 1 story revealed Dec. 31.
Part of this story ran as recaps from the WIAA State Tournament in June.
The WIAA State Tournament featured two heavyweights of high school baseball in the Division I championship in De Pere and Sun Prairie East, a first-time state participant-turned-champion in Eleva-Strum, private school powerhouses in Madison Edgewood and La Crosse Aquinas and future (and now-current) college players littered throughout the rosters. Of the hundreds of high school baseball teams in the state, just four finished their season with the finality of a victory at Fox Cities Stadium in Appleton, Wis.
De Pere caps off stellar season with Division 1 Championship
By: Maddox Durst
After LHP Landon Raygo (2024; Bryant & Stratton (WI) commit) turned in a scoreless inning, the Redbirds’ offense got back to work, fresh off of scoring a combined 10 runs in the last two games.
De Pere took advantage of a couple rare defensive miscues turned in by the Cardinals in the first inning, including INF Axel Donaldson (2024; Madison JC) coming around to score after OF Easton Arendt (2024; Winona State University) put a sharp ground ball in play. The Redbirds ended the inning with a 1-0 lead, one they never relinquished for the rest of the matchup.
De Pere takes advantage of two errors in the first frame, as OF Easton Arendt (2024; @WinonaStateBase commit) capitalizes and gives the Redbirds an early advantage.
— Prep Baseball Wisconsin (@PrepBaseballWI) June 13, 2024
After one inning of play: @BaseballDPHS 1️⃣ | Sun Prairie East 0️⃣ pic.twitter.com/QqdyYV0FZB
In the next inning, De Pere erupted for three runs—starting with another error turned in by their opponent. INF Devin Weber (2024) barreled a single to the outfield, as the ball got away from the centerfielder to plate the Redbirds’ second run of the game. Donaldson came back up to hit and continued to produce at a high rate, sending a single over the infield, good for an RBI.
Then, OF Mason Sequin (2025) provided the third and final run of the frame—putting De Pere on top with a 4-0 lead.
Raygo continued to cruise in this one—limiting hard contact while mixing quality secondary pitches in his time on the mound. DH Gavin Meece (2025) was the lone Cardinal to drive in a run against him, as the junior barreled a single to the opposite field to plate INF Van Vogler (2026) in the fourth—cutting De Pere’s lead to 4-1.
The offenses remained relatively quiet for the rest of the ballgame after Sun Prairie East scored their first run, aside from the presence of Donaldson. The senior reached base right away in the bottom of the sixth, followed by a stolen base to get him to second. A sacrifice bunt advanced him to third, while a wild pitch allowed the Madison JC commit to score.
De Pere entered the seventh inning with a 5-1 lead, and maintained that margin to earn themselves a Division 1 Championship. The Redbirds had high expectations for the 2024 season and lived up to the hype throughout, as their senior-led program emerged as the best in the state of Wisconsin.
Edgewood tallies 15 hits, 12 runs in Division 2 Championship victory
By: Maddox Durst
Edgewood and Mosinee matched up in the third game of the day, as the offense for both units was on full display in the Division 2 Championship.
The Indians stayed hot with the bats after defeating La Crosse Logan 8-1 the day before, as OF Taylor Lemanski (2024; Wisconsin-La Crosse commit) got things started with a base hit to drive in INF/RHP Keagen Jirschele (2024; South Dakota State).
C Gavin Obremski (2024; Rock Valley JC) continued to enjoy a strong senior season, as the switch-hitting catcher launched a home run to right field to put Mosinee up 3-0 after the first inning of play.
The Crusaders’ offense put together numerous quality at-bats to knock out Mosinee’s starting pitcher after 3 ⅓ innings of work—gaining momentum after falling behind in the first inning. INF Davis Halbeib (2025) provided the early run production—plating two of his teammates on a single in the third frame to cut into the lead.
After a clean fourth inning turned in by RHP Steffen Mello (2024; Wisconsin-Oshkosh), the Edgewood bats continued to thrive at the plate. SS Preston Yaucher (2025; Penn State), one of their top offensive weapons in the 2024 season, stepped up and barreled a single to the pull-side, which ultimately tied the game at 3-3.
Then, Mello provided a big RBI single to give the Crusaders the lead. From there, they never looked back.
Edgewood went on to score seven runs in the fifth inning, attacking the relief arms from Mosinee with a controlled, yet aggressive approach. INF Henry Gill (2024) got the inning started with an RBI single in a pinch-hit role.
SS Preston Yaucher (2025; @PennStateBASE commit) clutches up for the Crusaders, as the junior sends a single to the outfield to tie this game.💥
— Prep Baseball Wisconsin (@PrepBaseballWI) June 13, 2024
Edgewood continues to threaten in the fourth, as the score stands at 3️⃣-3️⃣. pic.twitter.com/5587TXXKRB
C Bennett Cagle (2025) and 1B Seth Myers (2025) were a pair of juniors who were staples toward the top half of the lineup for the Crusaders, and they delivered in the fifth inning, too. Each provided a base hit, combining to drive in three runs to add to Edgewood’s lead. After five innings of play, the Crusaders found themselves up 11-3 against the No. 1 seed in the Division 2 field.
Mello finished his outing at 6.2 innings, utilizing his strong defense and ability to miss barrels consistently to earn the victory. RHP Jack Bishop (2026) came on to secure the last out, as a fly out to right field ended the game with a 12-6 final score.
Edgewood traveled back to Madison as Division 2 Champions—remaining consistent and under-the-radar for the most part in 2024. Their offense got hot at the right time, and role players stepped up, especially on the offensive end after a narrow 4-3 win over Kettle Moraine Lutheran in the Semifinals.
La Crosse Aquinas wins Division 3 Championship behind clutch hits, solid pitching
By: Maddox Durst
Kenosha St. Joseph and La Crosse Aquinas, arguably the top-2 Division 3 programs in the state, battled it out for gold in Appleton on Thursday in the second game of the day.
Both teams presented a high-octane offense with some of the top prospects and performers in their respective classes, all getting underway right away in the first frame.
OF Eric Kenesie (2024; Buffalo University (basketball) commit) launched a triple to the gap for the Lancers to get things started. He was plated by an RBI groundout turned in by C/INF Peter Visconti II (2025), who emerged as Kenosha St. Joseph’s main run producer throughout this run at the State Tournament.
Both RHP’s Tommy Santarelli (2024) and Tanner Peterson (2024; Winona State University) settled in nicely throughout the middle portion of the game. Peterson rushed his FB up to 86 mph, continuing a strong senior season as a two-way star for the Blugolds.
After a few quiet innings on the offensive end, Aquinas was able to break through in the fourth frame to erase an early deficit and take a lead. It started with C Jacob Thornton (2025) clutching up with the bases loaded, as he shot a single to the opposite field to tie the game at 1-1 apiece.
After a fielder’s choice from INF Jonny Deets (2027), 1B Kyle White (2025) provided the big hit in the inning. The first baseman launched a two-RBI double to deep left field to extend the Blugolds’ lead, as Deets hustled from first to score on the play.
After Kenosha St. Joseph responded with two runs of their own in the top of the fifth, SS Eddie Peters (2024; @XavierBASE commit) answers the call with this solo shot to deep left-center field. 💣
— Prep Baseball Wisconsin (@PrepBaseballWI) June 13, 2024
In the sixth: Aquinas 5️⃣ | Kenosha St. Joseph 3️⃣ pic.twitter.com/FGD8TDIHxe
The Lancers did not go down quietly though, as a few defensive miscues came back to haunt Aquinas in the fifth inning. Both OF’s Dominic Rinaldi (2026) and Tim Falk (2025) scored on a wild pitch to cut into the Blugolds’ advantage.
The score sat at 4-3 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning.
It was then SS Eddie Peters (2024; Xavier) turn for Aquinas, as their star shortstop blasted a home run to the pull-side, which proved to be the game-winning run in this one. In the next inning, a leadoff triple turned in by Deets allowed the freshman to score and put the Blugolds up by three entering the final frame.
Kenosha St. Joseph made some noise in the last inning, as they were able to get the tying run up to bat, all while knocking Peterson out of the game. In the final at bat though, Peters came on to close the game with a strikeout—tallying another save in his 2024 season to earn Aquinas a Division 3 State Championship in a 6-4 victory.
The Blugolds dropped the title matchup in the 2023 season to a strong St. Croix Falls unit, yet were able to recover and reload for their 2024 run. Aquinas was the lone team in Division 3 to be ranked in the Power 25 this year, as they looked the part all week in Appleton to secure gold.
Eleva-Strum notches first-ever State Championship in run-rule victory
By: Maddox Durst
Northwood/Solon Springs and Eleva-Strum took the diamond first in Appleton on Thursday morning, each looking to secure gold after a strong regular season and elite postseason run. Led by a couple of talented players, the Green Eagles looked to remain undefeated in WIAA play and take home a Division 4 Title.
The Cardinals brought different plans to the table, and did so in a quick fashion.
Despite being limited on the offensive end throughout most of their playoff run, Eleva-Strum exploded at the plate for 11 runs in two innings of work on Thursday. C Jake Bjerke (2024; Winona State University commit) got things started with a double to deep left field—putting the Cardinals up 1-0 right away in the first.
Then, OF Alex Anderson (2024) and DH Brady Zimpel (2025) each provided RBI base hits to expand Eleva-Strum’s advantage to 7-0 after one innings of play.
The offense continued to find its rhythm—launching multiple barrels against some of the top pitching performers in the Division 4 field. INF Carter Gunderson (2024; North Iowa Area CC) was the spark all week for the Cardinals, as he first got the victory and the game-winning hit in Eleva-Strum’s first matchup against Pacelli.
On Thursday, Gunderson finished with another hit after reaching base in the first inning on a hit by pitch. The senior singled and drove in a run for the Cardinals, who tallied four more in the second frame to get out to an 11-1 lead.
From there, it was all RHP Tyler Webb (2024; Wisconsin-Eau Claire). The right-hander entered Appleton as Eleva-Strum’s strongest pitcher, and delivered in a bounce back performance after struggling on Tuesday.
Webb threw all five innings for the Cardinals, limiting Northwood/Solon Springs to just one run on three hits. He paired his performance with six strikeouts on the bump, as INF Noah Martinson (2026) secured the final out of the game to hand Eleva-Strum the Division 4 Title.
Eleva-Strum doesn’t skip a beat in the second inning, as they tally four runs to expand their advantage. The inning was highlighted by a single turned in by INF Carter Gunderson (2024; @NIACCBaseball commit). ⬇️
— Prep Baseball Wisconsin (@PrepBaseballWI) June 13, 2024
In the third: Eleva-Strum 1️⃣1️⃣ | NSS 1️⃣ pic.twitter.com/uNpZG8gB2U
They began the season as one of the top Division 4 programs in the state, and upheld that expectation throughout their entire 2024 campaign. Head coach CJ Christianson and the Cardinals gave themselves one of the toughest regular season schedules in the Division 4 field—playing some of the best competition and prospects across all divisions.
It wound up paying off for Eleva-Strum, as they walked out of Fox Cities Stadium with their first-ever State Championship in baseball—finishing the year at a 23-8 clip.