Sun Prairie sneaks past Arrowhead into state title game
Sun Prairie's Walker Jenkins (10) celebrates after scoring a run (Alex Cheban/Wisconsin Baseball Central).
GRAND CHUTE – Sun Prairie advanced to the Division 1 state championship game with a dramatic 6-5 win over Arrowhead in 10 innings in the semifinals on Tuesday night.
The back-and-forth contest saw both teams seize the momentum at various points in the game. Sun Prairie got the final push in the 10th inning, but the Warhawks gave them everything they could handle.
Alex Oakley opened the scoring for the Cardinals in the top of the first inning with an RBI single which scored Walker Jenkins.
Arrowhead tied the game in the fourth. Alex Tanke hit an RBI single back up the middle to knot the score at one run apiece.
Sun Prairie regained the lead immediately with a run in the fifth. Jack Zander plated Carson Holin with an RBI single to put the Cardinals ahead 2-1.
The Warhawks tied it again in the bottom of the fifth with the help of a double by Luke Dubnicka and an error. Jeff Holtz put Arrowhead in front 3-2 with an RBI fielders’ choice up the middle.
Following the trend of momentum swings, Sun Prairie scored a run in the top of the sixth to tie the game at three. Holin hit a sacrifice fly to bring in the tying run.
The Cardinals went on to take the lead in the top of the seventh on an RBI single by Luke DePrey.
Down to their final out in the bottom of the seventh, Arrowhead got the help of a Sun Prairie error to score the tying run with its back against the wall.
In the ninth inning, Sun Prairie threatened to break the game open with runners on second and third, but Arrowhead pitcher Jacob Johnson wiggled out of the jam to preserve the tie.
The Warhawks then loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, but freshman pitcher Joe Hauser came up with a big strikeout to end the danger.
After the Cardinals led off the 10th with a hit by pitch and a walk, Holin ripped a two RBI double to give Sun Prairie a 6-4 lead.
There was still drama to be found in the bottom of the inning, as Arrowhead refused to go down quietly. Zak Karrels led off the inning with a single, and a double by Dubnicka later in the inning allowed a run to score with the help of an error. However, Hauser summoned another huge strikeout to strand the tying run on second base.
Oakley led the Cardinals with a big-time 4-for-6 performance at the plate. Zander finished with three hits, and Holin and DePrey both had a pair of hits.
Dubnicka finished 3-for-5 for Arrowhead, while Tanner Williams had two hits.
Hauser got the win in relief for Sun Prairie, pitching 1.1 innings. Walker Jenkins struck out six batters in 4.2 innings of relief. Taylor Jansen got the start and pitched well over four innings, allowing five hits and striking out three.
Davis Zeutzius started for Arrowhead and lasted four innings, surrendering two runs on five hits and four walks. Johnson went five innings in relief and allowed just one earned run. Williams took the loss.
Sun Prairie will face Kimberly in the state championship game on Thursday evening. The two met in the 2014 title game, with Sun Prairie winning 5-2.
Arrowhead finished the season at 22-5 and as the co-champion of the Wisconsin Little Ten Conference.
