The success of the Waterloo baseball program early in this 2024 season has been no secret. The Pirates got off to a red-hot 7-0 start, but this stretch needed a real “prove it” victory. The opportunity for this came with a matchup against Cambridge on Thursday, April 18 at Waterloo Fireman’s Park.
The Blue Jays finished in a three-way tie for the Capitol — South conference title last season. This, along with plenty of returning talent, earned them the No. 4 spot in Division 3 of the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association (WBCA) preseason poll.
Cambridge entered Thursday’s showdown with a 3-2 record. The Blue Jays left with an extra mark in the loss column. Waterloo won, 5-3.
It took some clutch play from the Pirates to pull off the victory as the Blue Jays scored the first three runs of the game. Cambridge nabbed two in the top of the second inning and one more in the top of the third off Waterloo starting pitcher Keegan Lauersdorf. He walked the bases loaded to set up the second inning scoring and walked on the batter that eventually scored in the third.
After two scoreless innings, Waterloo’s offense came to life in the bottom of the third. Junior Bryce Aubart led off with a single, followed by drawn walks from seniors Jon Sampo and Cam Tschanz. With the bases loaded an no outs, senior Cal Hush crushed a double to center field, bringing both Aubart and Sampo home to narrow Cambridge’s lead to 3-2.
Heading into the top of the fourt inning, Aubart took over on the pitching mound. He was nearly untouchable. He closed out the final four innings of the game by allowing only two hits and one walk. He struck out two Blue Jays as they never scored again.
Still, Cambridge’s lead persisted. The Blue Jays held the Pirates’ offense at bay with only two runs through the fifth inning. Finally, Waterloo’s bats revived inb the bottom of the sixth.
Lauersforf led off by reaching on an error and was bunted over to second base by sophomore Ryder Jaehnke. It was a wise call as senior Logan Dolfin smoked a single into right field to score him and tie the game. The Pirates weren’t done, either.
The Pirates put two more runners on base as freshman Shea Sellnow was hit by a pitch and Aubart reached on another Cambridge error. This proved to be a fatal mistake. Sampo stepped up and crushed a grounder to left field, scoring Dolfin to give Waterloo its first lead of the game, 4-3. That lead grew in the next at-bat as Tschanz grounded through the middle of the infield, bringing in Aubart to make it 5-3.
Aubart returned to the mound in the top of the seventh inning and iced the game. While Cambridge did lead off with a single, Aubart forced a pair of pop outs and a groundout to confirm Waterloo’s impressive conference victory.
The celebration for this milestone victory was short-lived. On Saturday, April 20, Waterloo hosted a quad tournament, inviting non-conference opponents Deerfield, Watertown Luther Prep, and Palmyra-Eagle. Here, the Pirates suffered their first loss of the season. Deerfield, a team that has also beaten Cambridge this season, handed Waterloo a 7-4 defeat.
Waterloo just couldn’t recover from Deerfield’s five-run second inning. The Pirates scored one run in the first, second, fifth, and seventh innings, but could never fully erase the deficit.
Junior Caleb Bullock pitched the final four innings of the game and turned in a strong performance. He allowed only one earned run off of three hits. He allowed three walks and did not strike out any batters. At the plate, both Hush and freshman Mason Reedy connected on doubles. Sampo, Dolfin, and senior Trevor Firari drove in RBIs and Lauersdorf finished 2-3.
Undeterred, Waterloo bounced back with authority in their game later in the game against Luther Prep. The Pirates run-ruled the Phoenix in six innings, 14-4.
It was an incredible game for Tschanz and Hush, who bashed two doubles each. Tschanz went 3-4 with five RBIs and two runs scored while Hush went 2-3 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Reedy also contributed two RBIs and Lauersdorf and Jaehnke added one each. Jaehnke, Aubart, Sampo, and freshman Gavin Schroud all came in to score twice.
The weekend’s action leaves Waterloo with a 9-1 overall record this season. The Pirates also maintain a perfect 2-0 record in Capitol — South conference play, joining New Glarus as the conference’s only remaining undefeated programs.
Up next for the Pirates, they’ll play their season series with rival Marshall. Waterloo will travel to the Cardinals on Tuesday, April 23 and host them on Thursday, April 25. To close the week, Waterloo will travel to Cambridge to finish the series with the Blue Jays on Saturday, April 27.
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Capitol — South conference baseball standings
-as of Monday, April 22
(overall records in parenthesis)
1. New Glarus, 3-0 (6-0)
2. Waterloo, 2-0 (9-1)
3. Cambridge, 2-1 (3-4)
4. Marshall, 1-2 (3-4)
5. Belleville, 1-3 (4-6)
6. Wisconsin Heights, 0-3 (1-7)
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