It’s high school baseball sectional week in Indiana.
A seven-week sprint of games from late March to mid-May has all led to this. The postseason officially gets going Wednesday, with a handful of teams playing one more regular season game before that to get some last-minute prep in for sectionals.
The final full week of the regular season in the South Bend area saw some chaos, as Penn’s loss to New Prairie led to a three-way tie between Penn, Mishawaka Marian and South Bend Adams for the Northern Indiana Conference title. It was the first time since 1988 that Adams earned at least a share of the NIC crown.
That leads us to this, the final area power rankings of the season. For the last ranking, the totality of each team’s season was evaluated instead of just focusing solely on the last week of games.
1. Mishawaka Marian Knights (18-9, 8-2 NIC)
Previous ranking: 4. Best wins this season: Saint Joseph (split results), Adams (split results), New Prairie, Illiana Christian, Mishawaka. Up next: Class 3A, Sectional 19 at Marian quarterfinal Wednesday vs. Clay
The Knights take the top spot despite having more losses than Adams and Penn. Marian likely would have beaten Penn had it not been for a missed call late in the game, and it dominated Adams in the NIC game before losing to the Eagles in a 5-4 contest in a tournament a few days later. The Knights played an incredible schedule, including going to Tennessee for a tournament in March. Senior Bryce LaSane has anchored the lineup with a .394 batting average and 37 RBI.
2. South Bend Adams Eagles (19-6, 8-2 NIC)
Previous ranking: 2. Best wins this season: Marian (split), Penn, New Prairie, Homestead (X2). Up next: Class 4A, Sectional 3 at Plymouth semifinal Saturday vs. LaPorte/Plymouth winner
The Eagles are ahead of Penn, mostly due to their decisive 11-4 win over the Kingsmen on April 22. Aidan Pearson had one rough start against Marian, but otherwise has been one of the best pitchers in the area, posting a 5-1 record and 1.72 ERA in nine starts.
3. Penn Kingsmen (19-8, 8-2 NIC)
Previous ranking: 1. Best wins this season: Marian, Saint Joseph, Crown Point, Fort Wayne Carroll (X2). Up next: Tuesday vs. Mishawaka, then Class 4A, Sectional 4 at Penn semifinal Saturday vs. Concord
Maybe the Kingsmen are rope-a-doping everyone again, not looking crisp at times during the regular season before turning it on in the playoffs. They’ve seemed to have done that back-to-back years, winning Class 4A state titles with that strategy. The right arms of Dawson French and Tommy Harringer will dictate a lot of what Penn does in the next few weeks.
4. New Prairie Cougars (21-5, 7-3 NIC)
Previous ranking: 5. Best wins this season: Bloomington South, Edgewood, Saint Joseph, Penn. Up next: Monday at Valparaiso, then Class 3A, Sectional 18 at Newton Park Thursday vs. Glenn/Culver Academy winner
The Cougars are probably the area’s biggest surprise this year. They were expected to be good, but I’m not sure how many people saw 21 wins before the postseason. A big reason for that is their pitching, as New Prairie has four players with at least three wins and ERAs under 2.30 (Tyson Greenwood, Joe Kinney, Matthew Sorce and Jacob Tuszynski).
5. South Bend Saint Joseph Huskies (20-6, 6-4 NIC)
Previous ranking: 3. Best wins this season: Warsaw, Guerin Catholic, Adams, Illiana Christian, Marian (split). Up next: Class 3A, Sectional 19 at Marian semifinal Saturday vs. Jimtown
Saint Joe’s baseball team is giving off the same vibes of the basketball team from this season. When they’re playing at their best, they’re really hard to beat. Basketball channeled that at the right time to make a trip to the Class 3A state finals. Will baseball follow suit?
6. Concord Minutemen (17-9, 9-5 NLC)
Previous ranking: 6. Best wins this season: Fairfield, Jimtown, Elkhart. Up next: Class 4A, Sectional 4 at Penn semifinal Saturday vs. Penn
Like New Prairie, the Minutemen rank high amongst the area’s surprising teams this spring. While Braeden Messenger has received most of the attention for that (.315 batting average, plus 5-1 with 1.51 ERA as a pitcher), sophomore Joey Hauger has been an impact pitcher for Concord as well. The southpaw is 5-0 with a 0.78 ERA in 27 innings pitched.
7. Fairfield Falcons (18-8, 9-1 NECC)
Previous ranking: 7. Best wins this season: Adams, Jimtown, Frankfort. Up next: Class 3A, Sectional 22 at Fairfield quarterfinal Wednesday vs. Lakeland
The NECC champs are looking for their second sectional title in three seasons. Michael Slabaugh has been impressive for the Falcons, batting an eye-popping .535 with seven doubles, eight triples, three home runs and 29 RBI.
8. Jimtown Jimmies (17-10, 6-4 NIC)
Previous ranking: 8. Best wins this season: Saint Joseph, Marian, Elkhart. Up next: Class 3A, Sectional 19 at Marian semifinal Saturday vs. Saint Joseph
The Jimmies have cooled off since their nine-game winning streak in the middle of the season, but are still capable of making some noise in the postseason. They’ll have to get through a gauntlet of a sectional with Saint Joseph and Marian both in the field.
9. LaPorte Slicers (16-10, 7-7 DAC)
Previous ranking: NR. Best wins this season: Crown Point, New Prairie, Adams. Up next: Class 4A, Sectional 3 at Plymouth quarterfinal Wednesday vs. Plymouth
It’s hard to count out a program the stature of LaPorte. It plays in a tough conference, with the likes of Lake Central, Valparaiso and Chesterton all capable of making tournament runs in 4A. The Slicers will likely ride the pitching efforts of juniors Logan Hay (5-1, 1.11 ERA) and Ethan Schoof (5-1, 2.62 ERA) if they want to repeat as sectional champs.
10. Elkhart Lions (14-10, 5-5 NIC)
Previous ranking: 9. Best wins this season: Fairfield, Warsaw, New Prairie. Up next: Class 4A, Sectional 4 at Penn quarterfinal Thursday vs. Goshen
The Lions are a fairly young team, as their top five players in terms of plate appearances are all either juniors or sophomores. Max Shreiner paces the lineup with a .346 average, while Brodey Weaver has 12 doubles.
Honorable mentions: Mishawaka (13-13, 8-6 NLC), NorthWood (14-14, 7-7 NLC), LaVille (14-8, 10-4 HNAC).
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