Sports

Box Score

By Broderick Frye
Asst. Sports Information Director

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team made a huge statement to take the 1-0 series lead in the NCAA Division III Final against Messiah University. The Warhawk offense blasted 20 hits en route to an 18-3 win. Ben Lee (Amherst, Wis./Amherst) did his work on the mound, picking up the win in 7.0 innings of work.

The Warhawks took the field first as the designated home team. A 1-2-3 inning was highlighted by a run-down catch in right field from Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville).

Messiah did the same feat, closing down the Warhawk offense in the first inning with their own three-up-three-down inning. But the Warhawks were still the first to strike, with Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) sending in the first runner with a single. 

The Warhawks started to break the game open with four runs in the fourth. Back-to-back singles moved the runners forward, with Hopper scoring off a fielding error. Dominic McVay capped off the inning with a three-run shot to put the Warhawks up 5-0.

Messiah ended the shutout with an RBI single in the top of the 5th. The Warhawks quickly grabbed the run back with Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) hitting a solo shot to lead off the offensive half. Hopper gapped a hit that the left fielder wasn’t able to catch up to, scoring another run to give UWW a 7-1 lead.

Both teams were held scoreless in the 6th, but Messiah added their second run on a solo homer to lead off the 7th inning.

The Warhawks apparently made the most of the 7th-inning stretch, seemingly putting the game away for good with a 9-run frame.

Back-to-back singles for Eli Frank (Bayport, Wis./Bay Port) & Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) started the ending. Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) scored Frank on an RBI double for the first run of the inning. 

Darryl Jackson (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King) drew a five-pitch walk, forcing a mound visit and the first pitching change for the Falcons. McVay had a productive out with a sacrifice fly against the new arm. 

Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) drew a four pitch walk to load the bases, followed by a 2-RBI single from Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) to add another couple runs on the board. A double for Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) scored the 5th run of the inning and drew the next arm out of the bullpen.

Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) fought at the plate for another walk to get the bases loaded once again. Eli Frank (Bayport, Wis./Bay Port) made the most of it, hitting a Grand Slam to clean the bases off and cap off the crooked inning. 

With a 16-2 lead, the Warhawks added another two in the bottom of the 8th for a little extra insurance. Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) scored an RBI single followed by an RBI-single from Cootway. Befitting of his number, Cootway hit in the 18th Warhawk run of the game. 

Down to their final three outs, Messiah added a base runner after a walk. The runner scored after a double from Messiah’s Martinez. The Warhawk defense grabbed the final out in the same play, catching Martinez in a pickle as he tried to push three. 

With the 18-3 win, the Warhawks take a 1-0 series lead heading into the second day of the Finals. Game Two will start at 11 am (ET) tomorrow morning. 

Editor’s note: Since the Finals is “best of three,” the Warhawks will be the champs if they win game two, which begins at 10 a.m. CDT If, however, the Falcons pull off a win, the decisive third game is scheduled to begin just 45 minutes after the conclusion of game two. The livestream(s) for the game(s) may be found here.

This article which was published on the Banner on June 2 provides background on both teams.

Congratulations to the Whitewater High School Boys’ Golf Team for finishing 2nd at the WIAA Regional Meet hosted by Delavan-Darien at Delbrook Country Club! Their strong showing punches their ticket to the Sectional Meet!

Top Performers:

• Reece Condon – 2nd place, shot a 78
• Devin McKevitt – 5th place, shot an 80
• Archie Briggs – shot an 86
• Anakin Knudson – shot a 96
• Aiden Meyer – shot a 109

The boys will compete in Tuesday’s Sectional Meet at Dodge Point Country Club in Mineral Point, WI.

Danny Hopper After 3-Run Homer in 3^rd inning Photo credit Molly DeNucci

By Broderick Frye
Asst. Sports Information Director

Box score

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team defeated Denison 11-4 to advance to the Pod Final at the NCAA Division III World Series. With their 46th win of the season, the Warhawks set a new record for wins in a season.

The Warhawks got on the board quickly, capitalizing on some misplays by the Denison defense. Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) brought in the first runner to give the Warhawks a quick 1-0 lead in the first.

Denison kept the Warhawks off the base in the next inning, but UWW didn’t stay quiet for long with a four-run third inning. 

Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) hit his 20th home run of the season to start the inning. The senior broke the single season Warhawk record, held since 2008 by Kevin Zalnis. Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) added the next three runs with his own jack, putting the Warhawks up 5-0 over Denison.

The Big Red connected on their own solo homer, scoring their first run of the game. The Warhawks reclaimed the run, with Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) hitting a sacrifice fly. Cootway added another run with an RBI single. 

The Warhawks pitching kept working through the Denison hitters, but another solo home run added to the board for the Big Red in the bottom of the 5th. Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) cancelled it out the next inning with a RBI double forcing a change on the mound. 

In the Top of 7, Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) led the inning off with a double to spark another rally for the Warhawks. Four consecutive hits added a run and loaded the bases. Holland hit his second sacrifice fly of the day, with Scolan adding another RBI single to break the double-digit mark on the scoreboard.

Denison added two more runs in the final three innings, but the Warhawks pitching and defense closed the door on the Big Red leading to the 11-4 victory.

The Warhawks are next out to the field in the Pod Final against the winner of Sunday’s night cap of Rowan/Denison. First pitch is set for 1:15 PM (ET)/12:15 PM (CT) on Monday, June 2nd. Now scheduled for 12:30. Link for livestream Sportshttps://www.ncaa.com/game/6449675

The Whippets competed in the Track and Field Sectional Friday evening, May 30, and will be sending two athletes to the State Meet!

The boys’ 4x800m relay started things off on the track and ran to a 7th place finish overall from the first heat, easily winning their heat, after they were seeded 12th going into the meet. The all-senior relay of Onyx Thompson, Miles Nickelsburg, Luc Pomazak and Xavier Zei stopped the clock in 8:40.80 and earned 2 points for the team.

Traysen Thomason then ran a solid 100m prelim in 10.97 to earn his spot into the final. After a short break, he came back and placed third in the final in 10.80, his second-best time of his career, to earn a return trip to state in this event.

While the track was heating up, so were the field events as sophomore pole vaulter Langdon Coburn was soaring to new heights. He entered the meet with a personal best of 11′ 6″ from regionals and continued to go over that bar again and set a new personal best of clearing 12′! His new personal best helped him finish in fifth place, one spot short of qualifying for state. Although close to adding another meet to his schedule, he has a lot to be proud of as he has made tremendous gains in such a short time and picked up on the event quickly. He is eager to work hard in the off season to continue learning as much as he can to go even higher next year.

Ty Bucholtz competed in his second 110 high hurdle event of the season as he returned from an injury that held him out of competition for nearly the entire season. His first hurdle race was at regionals when he qualified for the sectional meet. He placed fourth in his preliminary heat and was 8th seed in the final. Unfortunately, in the final Ty false started and was unable to run his 110H final. Also a sophomore, we are eager to see what a full healthy season will look like as he continues to grow as an athlete on the team next season.

Jack Hefty was up next in the 1600 as he looked to qualify in his signature event, and his fourth trip to the state track and field meet. The winds picked up as the flag stood straight out but that wouldn’t stop Jack from controlling the race after the first 250m. He cruised to a victory by running nearly even splits for all 4 laps and won the sectional title in 4:27.24.

The boys 4×200 quartet of Kennan Sheffield, Ty Hagedorn, Christian Minett and Vinnie Juette competed in heat one and had smooth exchanges and powered their way around the track to run their best time of the season by far. They finished 8th overall and scored one point for the team in the meet. Their time of 1:33.94 was significantly faster than this group had run before, which was 1:36.14.

Makayla Bazeley was now underway in her pole vault competition. She entered the competition with a personal best of 9′ 6″ from regionals. She had some good attempts but was unable to match her best from regionals and went out at 9′. Makayla is an athlete that joined late in her HS career but picked up a very technical event quickly and made a strong attempt to vault her way to state in limited time. She leaves her mark in the program as she is in the top 10 in this event in WHS history.

Miles Nickelsburg competed in heat one of the 800 and took control of his final race in a Whippet uniform in dominant fashion. He led from the gun and ran a new lifetime best in the event in his solo effort as the rest of the field couldn’t keep up. He stopped the clock in 2:06.99 and placed 7th overall in the event.

Traysen Thomason once again eased himself into the blocks for one final time in heat 2 in the 200m final (there are no prelims for this event at sectionals). Running a great curve and giving the crowd something to cheer about, he finished second with a new lifetime best of 22.15 and a second event to add to his state meet itinerary. His new personal best also moved him to #4 all time in Whippet history in this event.

Freshman Virginia Nelson got her first taste of sectional track competition in the 3200m event. By far the strongest field she had competed in all year, she rode the back of the train for as long as she could before some separation occurred. She gained valuable experience running in this field and gave it her all and placed 14th with a time of 13:50.11.

The 3200m proved to be an exciting race as three senior Whippets competed in this event. Jack Hefty rode the shoulder of New Berlin West’s Isaac Kryzaniak for much of the race while Xavier Zei made a strong push in the later stages of the race. Xavier injected some pace into the field and he got within 5 meters of Jack and Isaac as the field began to stretch out. Meanwhile, Luc Pomazak continued to grind out a strong effort as he passed through the mile faster than he had ever before. With less than two laps to go, Hefty took the pole position and never relinquished it as he earned his second sectional title on the night and punched his ticket to state in this event as well. His time was 9:41.24. Xavier ran a gutsy race and finished ninth overall in 10:13.75, his second-best time of his career. Luc also mirrored Xavier and gutted out a tough second mile and finished 14th, just missing his lifetime personal best and stopped the clock in 10:30.82

Traysen and Jack will now prepare to compete at the WIAA State Track and Field meet which is held at UW-La Crosse on Friday June 6th and Saturday June 7th.

Boys’ Results: https://www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/Results/Track/2025/bigfootsectionalb.pdf

Girls’ Results: https://www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/Results/Track/2025/bigfootsectionalg.pdf

State Meet Information:
https://www.wiaawi.org/Tournaments/State-Tourney-Central

Article and Photo Submitted by Chad Carstens
Whitewater High School Assistant Track and Field Coach
ccarstens@wwusd.org

Updated on 6/1/25 with link for the livestream of the game on Sunday, 6/1 @ 12:15 CDT. = GAME POSTPONED UNTIL 12:30

Cootway 3-for-3 with Solo Homer in 6^th

Box Score

Post Game Presser

Tournament Page

By Broderick Frye
Asst. Sports Information Director

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater defeated Trinity University (TX) 7-3 in the opening game of the NCAA Division III World Series. The game began on Friday, May 30th & went through five and a half innings before being suspended due to weather. When play resumed on Saturday, the Warhawks held onto their lead and opened the tournament with the victory.  

The Warhawks got off to a hot start, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first. The Warhawks drew two walks, loading up the bases for Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine). Hopper lit the scoreboard up first in the Division III World Series with a 2-RBI single. Darryl Jackson (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King) and Dominik McVay (Mineral Point, Wis./Mineral Point) each had an RBI single to cap off the four run inning.

UW-Whitewater kept Trinity from moving on the bases, with only one hit per inning through three. The top of the third ended with a 463 double play stranding another runner on.

Trinity was able to get the Warhawks with two outs. But Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) got on with a double to center. Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) joined him on base with a four-pitch walk. Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) cleaned them off with a triple to put the Warhawks up 6-0. 

In the Top of 5, the Tigers rallied two singles with two outs, but a groundout ended the inning to leave two more stranded. 

After the flip, the rain started to come down substantially, causing for the tarp to come out and a delay to follow. The decision was made to suspend the game at the bottom of the fifth. 

After play resumed on Saturday, UWW wasted no time getting back on the base path. Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) started the day, reaching on the single. An inning later, Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) hit a homer over to right field, putting the Warhawks up 7-0 after six innings.

Trinity answered back in the 7th, grabbing 2 runs to end the shutout. The Warhawks got out of the jam to keep the lead at five heading into the stretch.

The Warhawks kept making good contact, but defense plays by Trinity didn’t allow anything to go through. Trinity put a would-be two-run double into play, but the relay to home was in time for the out. The Warhawks maintained a 7-3 lead heading into the final three outs.

Two fly-outs & a strikeout later, the Warhawks clinched the victory in the weather delayed game. 

Cade Hansen (New Braunfels, Texas/Smithson Valley) was the pitcher of record, pitching the first 5.0 innings on Friday night. Hansen notched five strikeouts and five hits with no earned runs.

The Warhawks will return to action on Sunday, June 1st at 12:15 PM CDT against Denison. The link for the livestream may be found here.

Revised schedule due to Friday’s weather is shown below. #1 seed John Hopkins was eliminated by #5 Kean.

• Saturday, May 31
  • Game 5: No. 5 Kean 5, No. 1 Johns Hopkins 3 
  • Game 6: No. 4 Endicott vs. No. 8 Messiah, 6:15 p.m. 
• Sunday, June 1
  • Game 7: No. 7 Rowan vs. No. 6 Trinity (TX), 10 a.m. (Elimination game)
  • Game 8: No. 2 Denison vs. No. 3 Wisconsin-Whitewater, 1:15 p.m. [EDT]
  • Game 9: No. 5 Kean vs. Loser of Game 6, 4:45 p.m.
  • Game 10: Loser of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 7, 8 p.m.
• Monday, June 2
  • Game 11: Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 9, 10 a.m.
    • Game 13: If necessary, 4:45 p.m.
  • Game 12: Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 10, 1:15 p.m.
    • Game 14: If necessary, 8 p.m.
• Championship Series
  • Game 1: 12 p.m. Wednesday, June 4
  • Game 2: 11 a.m. Thursday, June 5
  • Game 3: If necessary, 45 minutes after Game 2

By Broderick Frye
Asst. Sports Information Director

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater got through five and a half innings in their opening game against Trinity (TX) in the opening round of the NCAA Division III World Series. The game will resume on Saturday at 11 AM CDT in the bottom of the fifth. Editor’s note: The link for the livestream may be found here. Gametime may be shown as noon elsewhere, but that is Eastern time. Friday’s game started almost two hours late due to previous lengthy games and rain delays.

The Warhawks got off to a hot start, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first. The Warhawks drew two walks, loading up the bases for Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine). Hopper lit the scoreboard up first in the Division III World Series with a 2-RBI single. Darryl Jackson (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King) and Dominik McVay (Mineral Point, Wis./Mineral Point) each had an RBI single to cap off the four run inning.

UW-Whitewater kept Trinity from moving on the bases, with only one hit per inning through three. The top of the third ended with a 463 double play stranding another runner on.

Trinity was able to get the Warhawks with two outs. But Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) got on with a double to center. Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) joined him on base with a four-pitch walk. Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) cleaned them off with a triple to put the Warhawks up 6-0. 

In the Top of 5, the Tigers rallied two singles with two outs, but a groundout ended the ending to leave two more stranded. 

After the flip, the rain started to come down substantially, causing for the tarp to come out and a delay to follow. The decision was made to suspend the game at the bottom of the fifth. The opening round game will resume at 11 AM CDT tomorrow, May 31st. 

RESULTS FRIDAY

Game 1—(4) Endicott (Mass.) College 6, (5) Keane (N.J.) University 4

Game 2—(8) Messiah (Pa.) University 16, (1) Johns Hopkins (Md.) University 7 — A major upset — the only unranked team beat the #1 team.

Game 3—(2) Denison (Ohio) University 12, (7) Rowan (N.J.) University, 10

Game 4—(3) UW-Whitewater vs. (6) Trinity (Texas) University, halted after 4½ innings with UW-Whitewater ahead 6-0.

GAMES TODAY

Game 5—Keane University (40-10) vs. Johns Hopkins University (44-4), 9 a.m., loser eliminated

(Resumption of UW-Whitewater-Trinity University game, 11 a.m.

Game 6—Endicott College (44-4) vs. Messiah University (37-14), 12:15 p.m.

Editor’s note: The Banner appreciates having permission to use the image on the homepage by Cyaneus from Pixabay.

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team had four total athletes honored on the All-American lists for the 2025 season.

American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) announced their All-Americans Thursday evening during the DIII World Series Opening Ceremony. 

The D3Baseball.com All-Americans were announced in a release on Wednesday afternoon.

Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South), Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran), and Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) were honored on the D3Baseball All-American list in the release early in the week.

Scolan, now a two-time All-American, was selected to the First Team All-America D3Baseball list. 

Cootway and Holland were selected to the Third and Fourth Team, respectively, on D3Baseball. 

On Thursday night, Scolan, Cootway, Holland, and Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) were honored on field as ABCA All-Americans.

Scolan added another First Team award to his accolades. Cootway and Holland were both named to the Second Team, with Thies earning Third Team honors.

2025 is only the fourth time that the Warhawks have had four All-Americans in a single year following 2005, 2018, & 2024. 

The Warhawks begin their World Series tonight against Trinity (TX) on Friday night at 8:00 PM (ET). To keep up with the Warhawk Baseball team during the world series, follow the team on Instagram/Twitter @uwwbaseball & on Facebook

Editor’s note: This announcement was posted to the UW-W Athletics website.

Congratulations to the Whippet Softball Team who claimed the Regional Title on Thursday, May 28, defeating the #3 seed Catholic Memorial 11-7. The Whippets are seeded #2 in their Division 2 sectional. They will play next at #1 Pewaukee on Tuesday, June 3.

The complete playoff bracket is available at https://halftime.wiaawi.org/CustomApps/Tournaments/Brackets/HTML/2025_Softball_Girls_Div2_Sec3_4.html