THE TOURNAMENT: The 53rd Annual Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Summer Baseball State Tournament will take place Friday, July 21, at Kapco Park on the campus of Concordia University in Mequon, Wis. Action will begin at 11:35 a.m. with the first of two semifinals. The second game will follow approximately 40 minutes after the conclusion of the first game. The championship game will begin at 6:05 p.m. Ticket prices for the tourney are $8 per session and are available only at the park.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE AND PAIRINGS: The format features a single elimination tournament with four teams in a single division. The second semifinal game will follow the first game.
Friday, July 21
Semifinals - 11:35 a.m.
Game #1 - Kiel (19-8) vs. Marquette (26-7)
Game #2 - West Bend West (31-0) vs. Franklin (27-6)*
Championship Final - 6:05 p.m.
Game #3 - Winner of Game #1 vs. Winner of Game #2
* Following first game of session
TOURNEY ON SPECTRUM SPORTS CHANNEL: The semifinals and final of the WIAA State Summer Baseball Tournament will be aired live on Spectrum Sports Channel 32 in Milwaukee and Green Bay.
TOURNAMENT LIVE STREAM: The semifinals and finals of the WIAA State Summer Baseball Tournament will be streamed live on the WIAA.TV portal of the NFHS Network on a consumer subscription basis. To purchase a subscription to the live programming, log-on to www.nfhsnetwork.com and click on the “JOIN NOW” button on the home page.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY: The WIAA has been sponsoring the State Summer Baseball Championships since 1965. Brookfield Central and Oak Creek leads in the number of titles won with four. Brown Deer, Greendale, Homestead, West Bend East and West Bend West have won three State titles followed by Arrowhead, Franklin, Marquette, Menomonee Falls and Nicolet with two. New Holstein has made the most State appearances with 19. West Bend West is now second with 14, and Ashland is third on the list with 13. Platteville and Plymouth are next on the list with 12 State Tournament experiences. Franklin has 11 appearances, and Arcadia, Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau, Marquette and West Bend East have each made appearances in 10 State Tournaments. The State Summer Baseball Tournament has been won by 30 different schools.
LAST YEAR: Menomonee Falls won its second consecutive title with a 2-0 shutout over Marquette in the championship game. The Indians scored a pair of runs in the top of the third inning to account for all the scoring in the game. Ty Weber was the difference in the game. His one-out, bases loaded single drove in the only two runs in the game, and he went the distance on the mound with nine strikeouts to post the shutout. He did not allow a runner to advance beyond second base. Weber had two hits in the game, as did Cole Mir and Nick Gile to lead the Indians’ offense. Marquette was held to four hits, all singles.
TOURNAMENT FIELD: Last year’s runner-up Marquette returns to the State Tournament for the 10th time and for second straight season. The Hilltoppers won State titles in 2006 and 2008. In addition, they finished runner-up in 1999, 2009 and again last season. They finished second in the Greater Metro Conference standings this season. Their return to the State Tournament comes following an 8-0 blanking of Waukesha North in the Brookfield Central Sectional final. Prior to joining the WIAA, Marquette won WISAA championships in 1959, 1962, 1982, 1992, 1993, 1995 and 1997. West Bend West will be making its 14th appearance at the State Tournament and its first since the 2013 season when the Spartans finished runner-up. They have advanced to the title game seven times. They won State titles in 1972, 1984 and 2007, and finished runners-up in 1981, 2010, 2011 and 2013. They finished atop of the standings in the North Shore Conference this year. They advance to the State semifinals from the Whitefish Bay Sectional with a 7-3 win over two-time defending champion Menomonee Falls in the final. Franklin is making its 11th overall appearance and its second in the last three seasons. The Sabers have won two State titles. Those came back-to-back in 2010-11. In addition to the two State titles, they finished runner-up in 2000. They earned the opportunity to continue their pursuit of a State championship by defeating Muskego 9-3 in the New Berlin Eisenhower Sectional final. The Sabers finished third in the Greater Metro Conference this season. Kiel is making its second State Tournament appearance and its first in 48 years. The Raiders advanced to the championship game in 1969 and finished runner-up. Their return to State was earned following an 8-2 victory over New Holstein in the final of the sectional held at New Holstein. The Raiders placed third in the Eastern Wisconsin Conference standings this season.
NEED RESULTS?: The quickest way to get results will be to follow the live statistics and score of the game on the WIAA website. Access the information at: http://www.wiaawi.org/Sports/BaseballSummer.aspx. Final scores and boxscores will also be posted following the games.
FOLLOW THE TOURNEY ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Receive the updates of the State Summer Baseball Tournament on the WIAA State Tournament Twitter accounts. The Twitter account is @wiaawistate with the hashtag #wiaabase. Also like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram at wiaawi, and add us on Snapchat at wiaawis.