Shullsburg/Benton baseball players Nathan Mowry and Jacob Berendes have been selected to play for the 18-man South All-Star team in the 36th annual Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association All-Star Classic.
The games will be played at E.J. Schneider Field in Oshkosh on Friday and Saturday, June 28-29. The South will play the North on Friday at 4 p.m., and then on Saturday will face the East at 10 a.m. and the West at 2:30 p.m.
Pecatonica’s Colton Schraepfer and Prairie du Chien’s Gavin Gillitzer will join them on the team, while Cuba City baseball coach Steve Graber has been selected as a member of the South All-Star team coaching staff.
It is a great honor to be selected as one of the top 72 players in the State of Wisconsin to represent yourself and your school at this outstanding event. The WBCA All-Star Classic is recognized as one of the finest events of its kind in the United States, and will be attended by several college coaches and professional baseball scouts.
Berendes, who was the 2018 Six Rivers West Player of the Year, was also selected to the 2019 WBCA All-State honorable mention team as well as the WBCA Southwest Districts All-District first-team following his fine senior season.
Berendes was named to the All-Six Rivers West first-team for the third time at shortstop and he also earned honorable mention honors at pitcher this season. At the plate, he led the Miner-Zephyrs with a .476 batting average and a .635 slugging percentage after recording a team-best 30 hits with a team-high eight doubles and a triple along with 27 RBI and 33 runs scored. His .529 batting average in league play was second-best among the top West hitters.
On the mound, Berendes posted a 7-0 overall record with two saves in 14 appearances. He registered a 0.51 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP. In 41 and a third innings pitched, he fanned 74 batters and issued 15 walks. He was second in the league with a 5-0 record and a .082 ERA.
Mowry, who was named the 2019 Six Rivers West Most Valuable Player and placed on the WBCA All-District second-team this season, was selected to the All-SRW first-team for the third time as a pitcher and he also made the honorable mention squad as a third baseman. Mowry batted .339 on the season with six doubles and a home run to go along with 27 runs batted in and 14 runs scored.
On the mound, Mowry posted an 8-2 overall record with a save in 13 appearances with a 0.92 ERA and 79 Ks and 14 walks in 61 innings of work. In Six Rivers play, the Benton senior went 7-0 with a save and a league-low 0.16 ERA. Mowry also finished the season with a 1.000 fielding percentage.
Mineral Point sophomore Liam Stumpf was named to the WBCA All-State second-team and his teammates, junior catcher Justin Baehler and junior outfielder Grady Gorgen, was selected to the honorable mention All-State team after guiding the Pointers to a 27-1 record and a runner-up state finish in Division 4.
Highland senior Drew Hennessey made the All-State third team and Schraepfer was an honorable mention All-State selection for Pecatonica.
Shullsburg/Benton senior Nolan Strang was also honored by the WBCA by being named to the 2019 Academic All-State team along with Mineral Point’s Isaac Lindsey and Argyle’s Mitch Flannery.
In order to make the Academic All-State team a player must: be a junior or senior, have a cumulative GPA of 4.0, receive All-Conference recognition and have a head coach who is a member of the WBCA.
Shullsburg/Benton senior outfielder Brooks Tiedeman joined Mowry on the second-team All-District team along with Belmont senior infielder Colin Austin.
Belmont’s senior pitcher Ethan James and sophomore catcher Riley Christensen were selected to honorable mention All-District team after joining Austin in leading the Braves to the WIAA State Tournament for the first time in school history.
