Marshall's impressive run through the 2024 Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) state baseball tournament has come to an end. Despite losing their last seven games of the regular season, the Cardinals got hot when it came time for the postseason.
Given the No. 6 seed in Sectional 3 of Division 3, the Cardinals narrowly survived an upset scare from No. 11 seed Parkview before shocking No. 3 seed Deerfield with a 5-2 win. The following day, Marshall handed No. 7 seed Belleville an 8-5 loss to claim a WIAA regional championship, the program's second in three seasons.
This bought the Cardinals a ticket to the Sectional 3 semifinals, hosted at Prairie du Chien High School on Tuesday, June 4. There, they met a familiar foe in No. 5 seed and Capitol - South conference rival New Glarus. Results from the regular season proved inconclusive as New Glarus had rocked Marshall 14-1 in the first meeting before Marshall earned revenge with an 11-6 win in the rematch.
In Tuesday's rubber match, New Glarus would not be denied. The Glarner Knights rode an impressive pitching display from junior Patrick Alt to a shutout 4-0 victory.
While Alt delivered a complete game shutout, Marshall still had its chances to score. The first came in the top of the first inning as junior Teseo Ruelas led off with a single. He was pushed to second by a groundout and stole third before he was caught too far off the bag and was tagged out.
The Cardinals had another good shot in the top of the fourth inning. A big double from junior Mitchell Pletcher should have put a pair of runners in scoring position with two outs, but the Glarner Knights made a great play to snag the runner advancing to third base to end the inning. Back-to-back singles from junior Carson Connelly and sophomore Brady Kleinheinz appeared to give a scoring opportunity in the top of the sixth inning, too, before a groundout canceled those plans.
Alt wasn't the only pitcher to throw a complete game on Tuesday, either. Connelly went six innings strong on the mound for Marshall, striking out five batters without allowing a walk. Of New Glarus' four runs, only one counted against his earned run average.
The first came in the bottom of the first inning. New Glarus played some small ball, leading off with a single before bunting the runner over to second base. A well-hit single to center field bought time for the runner to score, a 1-0 lead that would never be relinquished.
The Glarner Knights tacked on another in the bottom of the third inning by way of a fielder's choice. The inning started off in a tough way as back-to-back errors put two runners in scoring position without an out. Connelly prevented further damage by recording two strikeouts in the inning.
A similar case transpired in the bottom of the fifth inning. Another error put runners in position to score before New Glarus connected on an RBI single to left field. Another fielder's choice allowed the fourth run to score, bringing the score to its final count of 4-0.
New Glarus would go on to lose the sectional final later that day. Top-seeded Aquinas won a 9-3 ballgame to punch a ticket to the Division 3 state tournament.
With the loss, Marshall finishes the 2024 season with a 10-14 record. This included a 5-5 mark in Capitol - South conference play to finish fourth of the six teams. It also brings an end to the high school playing career of Marshall's senior class of 2024. The group includes Jackson Neuberger, Matthew Motl, and Aram Rocha.
A bright side for the Cardinals is the sheer amount of returning talent. A loaded junior class of year-long starters in Teseo Ruelas, Carson Connelly, Mitchell Pletcher, and Maddux Anacker are set to lead the program as seniors. Added with the experience gained by sophomores Brady Kleinheinz and Garret Shepler as well as freshman Logan Ney, Marshall is set up to potentially repeat this success again next spring.
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