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The 2009 WIAA State Spring Baseball Championships get under way this morning with Kimberly and Wilmot having a first pitch time of 8 am.  Tuesday and Wednesday's non-title games can be seen live on WIAA.tv.



Kimberly is one of the most experienced teams at the state tournament, having won a championship two years ago and been a runner-up last year.  Of course having multiple Division 1 talents doesn't hurt either.  Wilmot, meanwhile, hasn't been to state since 1991, but the Panthers are prepping for their early game by holding practice at 8 am the last several days.



Eau Claire North's Matt Prosek is a pretty calm, even-keeled guy.  Not even a mid-season knee injury that sidelined him for two weeks could rattle him.  For a further video breakdown of the Huskies, check here.  Bay Port has relied on a very talented and deep pitching staff to make their fifth state tournament appearance this decade, although they're still searching for their first ever state title.



The Big Eight Conference has had an impressive showing so far this year, with three representatives in Grand Chute.  Janesville Craig head coach Victor Herbst took over for legendary coach Bob Suter back in 2005, and has the Cougars back in familiar territory.  Sun Prairie has used outstanding team chemistry to make it back to state for the fourth time in five years.  Middleton senior Garrett Novinski isn't too rattled by the experience, having already gotten the biggest win of his life when he shut out lymphoma as a seventh grader.



Fox Valley Lutheran's 2007 state tournament team was all about pitching, featuring two eventual Division 1 hurlers.  This year's team has more of an offensive slant, batting .416 as a team heading into sectional play.



La Crosse Aquinas has made their third straight state tournament thanks to a spark-plug at the top of their lineup and a no-nonsense "Three Commandment" pitching approach instilled by coach Scott Bagniefski.  Marathon is the hottest team in the state, having won 29 straight games since an opening game loss to Nekoosa.  If they can stay hot for two more games, they'll have another streak:  two straight state titles.



The Kenosha News takes a walk down memory lane with a look at the 1970 WIAA and WISAA state tournaments that featured Kenosha St. Joe's and Wilmot winning state titles.  Both teams will look to repeat that history this year.



McDonell Central has definitely earned their way to the state tournament through hard work and extra effort put in during the off-season, including open gyms that began shortly after Christmas.