Wheeler’s Braydon Prskalo wanted this sectional title more than any other.
So the Bearcats’ win against South Central in the Class 2A North Judson Sectional championship game on Monday was particularly special for the senior first baseman.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Prskalo said. “I knew we had the potential. But our team would slip up, get out of focus. But we decided to lock in for the championship when it meant the most to us. That meant something to me that they cared as much as they did during the playoffs.”
Prskalo also won a sectional title with Wheeler’s bowling team last year.
“It was fun,” Prskalo said. “It was a good feeling. But it just didn’t feel like the right sport to win a sectional championship in for me.”
The Bearcats had most recently won a sectional title in baseball in 2021, which was bittersweet for Prskalo. He was academically ineligible that season and was relegated to the role of spectator.
“That motivated me to get my grades up and be out there with the dudes,” Prskalo said. “My team, they needed a first baseman, especially after their senior first baseman my freshman year graduated. They needed me to turn it around.
“Flunking out, that was stupid of me. But I got into my academics more. I turned it around.”
Sean Cunningham, who is in his second season as Wheeler’s coach after spending the previous two years as an assistant, has seen Prskalo’s growth. Prskalo is one of three captains, along with Jackson Smith and Lucas McNamara, and one of the top players for the Bearcats (13-12).
“He works hard for the team,” Cunningham said of Prskalo. “When it comes to getting the team riled up and getting them going, he’s that guy. He’s definitely the loudest guy in the dugout. You hear him. You know it’s him.
“He’s changed a lot. He’s a different person.”
Prskalo has been an important person to junior Nick Bravo, who is hitting a team-high .435 in his first season after transferring from Valparaiso.
“He was actually the first one who reached out to me when he heard I was transferring over here,” Bravo said of Prskalo. “We connected well from the beginning. In the beginning, I actually told him, ‘I want to win a sectional championship,’ and we actually did. It’s exciting.
“He’s in the four-hole for a reason, for sure. Good contact, big barrel, big guy, really.”
The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Prskalo is batting .377 with a team-high 30 RBIs this season. He’s also 3-1 with a 2.21 ERA.
“He comes up with big hits,” Cunningham said. “Piles of RBIs. He’s just a good hitter.”
Prskalo hit .388 with a team-high two homers and 23 RBIs, tied for the team lead, last season. As a sophomore, he debuted by posting a .382 average with a homer and 16 RBIs.
“People expected a lot out of me, and I did what a sophomore could do,” Prskalo said. “Junior year was a step up year for me. And this year, coach saw that I could be a leader, and I’m trying to prove my point as to why I’m a captain.
“My work ethic has been better. I feel like I’ve put in a lot more work and dedication into baseball this year than I have my entire high school life. All the work is paying off — fielding, hitting, everything.”
Prskalo hopes it continues in regionals on Saturday, when Wheeler will play Greater South Shore Conference foe Illiana Christian (18-9). The Vikings, who have won back-to-back state championships, downed the Bearcats 24-2 on April 8.
But Prskalo, who committed to Calumet College last month, believes Wheeler has made significant strides over the last couple of months. In the sectional, the Bearcats beat North Judson 17-0 and South Central 14-12.
“It was the beginning of the season when we weren’t very warm,” he said. “If we can hit the way we’ve been hitting the last half of our season and the playoffs, with our energy, we can shock the world.
“I’ve been fairly consistent with my bat and my glove this year. I’d consider myself one of the role models for this team with keeping everyone up and in good spirits and able to make people happy. Doing that makes the team a little bit better.”