WIAA State Baseball Tournament Preview......Division 3

Tuesday, June 11th, 2024 -- 6:27 AM

The 76th Annual Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Baseball State Tournament continues today thru Thursday at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute.  Here's a preview of the Division 3 field......

LAST YEAR:  In the Division 3 title game, St. Croix Falls defeated Aquinas 3-1.

Tuesday, June 11

Division 3 Semifinals - approx. 2:30 p.m.

Game 1 - #2 Kenosha St. Joseph Cath.  (23-5) vs. #3 Bonduel  (23-3)

Game 2 - #1 Aquinas (23-4) vs. #4 Cumberland (21-8)* 

Thursday, June 13

Division 3 Final - 12:05 p.m.

Game 3 - Winner of Game #1 vs. Winner of Game #2

* Game begins approximately 35 min. following first game of session.

STATE TOURNAMENT ON THE AIR:  The championship finals of all five divisions will be aired live on the WIAA State Television Stations WKOW 27.2, WAOW 9.2, WQOW 18.2 and WXOW 19.2, WVTV 24.1 in Milwaukee and WLUK (FOX)/WCWF(CW) in Green Bay/Appleton. The finals will also be streamed live on the Network stations’ websites. 

THE DIVISION 3 FIELD:  Last season’s runner-up Aquinas is the #1 seed in the bracket. The Blugolds are making their eighth appearance overall. They have a pair of State titles and have advanced to the championship game six times. They earned their titles in 2007 and 2017, and finished runner-up in 2008, 2010, 2015 and again last season.  This year, they tied Holmen for first place in the Mississippi Valley Conference. The Blugolds navigated through the Prairie du Chien Sectional, which culminated with a 9-3 victory over New Glarus in the final. Prior to joining the WIAA, the Blugolds won four straight baseball titles in the former WISAA (1984-87).  Kenosha St. Joseph Catholic is the #2 seed. The Lancers have qualified for the third time in the past four seasons and for the eighth time overall. They made four appearances during a span of five years from 2005-09, which resulted in a Division 2 championship in 2005 and a Division 3 title in 2006. They added additional Division 3 crowns in 2009 and 2021 to give them five State titles. The Lancers also won several championships as a former member of WISAA, winning titles in 1965, 1970, 1977 and 1988. This season, they finished second in the standings of the Metro Classic Conference. They advanced to the State semifinals through the Horicon Sectional following a 7-5 win over St. Mary’s Springs in the final. Bonduel has been issued the #3 seed in its first-ever trip to the State Tournament. The Bears are the champions of the East Division of the Central Wisconsin Conference. The celebration of their first trip to State began following a 6-0 blanking of St. Mary Catholic in the final of the Gillett Sectional. Fourth-seeded Cumberland returns to the State Tournament for the sixth time overall and for the first time since 2017. The most notable of the Beavers’ previous exploits in the State Tournament was a runner-up finish in Division 2 in 1998. The Beavers’ other four appearances came in 1984, 1989 1990 and 2017. Each resulted in losses in the semifinals. They represent the Cumberland Sectional following a 9-1 victory over Mondovi in the sectional final. The Beavers placed third in the Heart O’North Conference this season.

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