Auburndale’s Colton Wright named Player of the Year, Stratford has four first-team picks on 2019 All-Marawood South Baseball Team

By Paul Lecker
For OnFocus

Auburndale’s Colton Wright was named Player of the Year and champion Stratford had four first-team selections to the 2019 All-Marawood Conference South Division Baseball Team, as voted on by the six conference coaches following the season.

Wright was a unanimous first-team selection and claimed Player of the Year honors as he hit .509 overall (28-for-55) with five doubles, two triples, a home run, 19 RBIs and 14 runs scored for the Apaches, who finished 7-10 overall and 4-6 in the Marawood South.

Stratford senior pitcher/shortstop Lance Heidmann, senior outfielder Eli Drexler, and junior pitcher/infielder Chandler Schmidt earned unanimous first team honors. Junior first baseman Dawson Moen was also selected to the 10-man first team for the Tigers, who won the Marawood South title and went on to take the Division 3 championship at the WIAA State Baseball Tournament.

Heidmann went 7-1 on the mound, allowing just nine runs – six earned – in 50 1/3 innings for a 0.83 ERA with 29 strikeouts. He also hit .283 (13-for-46) with 17 runs scored and 11 RBIs.

Schmidt was 6-0 with three saves pitching for Stratford with a 1.66 ERA. He had 41 strikeouts and just nine walks in 33 2/3 innings. He also hit a team-best .386 (27-for-70) with 22 RBIs and 19 runs scored.

Drexler batted .355 (22-for-62) with 14 RBIs, 14 stolen bases and 18 runs. Moen hit .369 (24-for-65) with 21 runs, and led the team with seven doubles and 23 RBIs.

Edgar’s Austin Dahlke and Jordan Bunkelman, and Marathon’s Carter Hanke, Myles Williamson and Mitchell Kurtz round out the first-team selections.

Auburndale’s Cooper Weinfurter and Trayton Weister, and Stratford’s Kade Ehrike, Ty Pankratz and Colton Schillinger were named to the second team.

Weinfurter was 2-2 as a pitcher with a 3.08 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 25 innings, and hit .298 (17-for-57) with nine RBIs and 14 runs. Weister batted .283 (13-for-46) with eight RBIs.

Ehrike hit .348 with 17 runs, Schillinger batted .333 with a team-high 22 runs, and Pankratz batted .353.

Auburndale’s Fletcher Raab and Hunter Wright, and Stratford’s Mav Licciardi and Riley Bauman earned honorable mention status.

Edgar’s Alex Mashak was named Coach of the Year.

2019 All-Marawood Conference South Division Baseball Team
*Unanimous selection
First team: *Colton Wright, sr., Auburndale; *Austin Dahlke, so., Edgar; *Jordan Bunkelman, fr., Edgar; *Carter Hanke, sr., Marathon; *Myles Williamson, sr., Marathon; *Mitchell Kurtz, sr., Marathon; *Lance Heidmann, sr., Stratford; *Eli Drexler, sr., Stratford; *Chandler Schmidt, jr., Stratford; Dawson Moen, jr., Stratford.
Second team: Trayton Weister, sr., Auburndale; Cooper Weinfurter, jr., Auburndale; Konnor Wolf, so., Edgar; Drew Guden, so., Edgar; Kyle Brewster, so., Edgar; Hunter Seubert, sr., Marathon; Brock Warren, so., Marathon; Ben Leischer, sr., Wausau Newman Catholic; Kade Ehrike, sr., Stratford; Ty Pankratz, so., Stratford; Colton Schillinger, so., Stratford.
Honorable mention: Nick Smits, sr., Wisconsin Rapids Assumption; Cameron Kopacz, sr., Wisconsin Rapids Assumption; Fletcher Raab, jr., Auburndale; Hunter Wright, so., Auburndale; Brock Handrick, sr., Edgar; Tyler Westfall, jr., Edgar; Kole Kaldunski, jr., Marathon; Mike Hahn, so., Marathon; Cade Kimball, sr., Wausau Newman Catholic; Kasey Kalafice, sr., Wausau Newman Catholic; Mav Licciardi, sr., Stratford; Riley Bauman, so., Stratford.
Player of the Year: Colton Wright, Auburndale.
Coach of the Year: Alex Mashak, Edgar.

Paul Lecker is publisher of MarshfieldAreaSports.com, a contributor to OnFocus Sports.