Team preview: RHS baseball

After tying for second in the Great Northern Conference and regional final appearance last spring, the Rhinelander High School baseball team looks to utilize returning talent to make a deep run into the playoffs this year.

Overall, last season the Hodags went 12-11 and finished two games behind conference champion, Mosinee, who had a GNC record of 9-3. The Hodags upset 2-seed Saint Croix Falls in the regional semifinal, but Mosinee ended the Hodags’ season when the 3-seed Indians beat the 7-seed Hodags in the regional final by a score of 9-4. 

Mosinee went on to beat GNC co-runner up, Medford, in the WIAA sectional semifinal and were a couple runs away from a state appearance, but lost to 1-seed Aquinas in the sectional final, 6-5.

Hodag skipper, and reigning GNC coach of the year, Joe Waksmonski, said playing its best baseball at the end of the season is a goal for his squad year in and year out. Hovering right around .500 last year, the Hodags did just that when they won two tournament games, one of them against a higher seeded Saint Croix Falls team.

“Regardless of what our record is regular season-wise, we always want to play our best baseball (at the end of the year),” he said. 

Last year’s finish, coupled with a roster full of returning underclassmen, have raised the expectations for the Hodags this year. Rhinelander comes into this season ranked 13th in Division 2  by the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association — ahead of defending GNC champ and perennial power Mosinee (16th).  

Waksmonski said, while the respect is nice to have, the Hodags have to still go out and prove it on the field.

“We won two playoff games last year with a very, very young team and … that earned us a preseason ranking with what we have right now. ... We just got to make sure that we handle our business every single day and play our best ball by the end of the year.” 

The young core from last year helped Rhinelander finish second in team scoring defense (3.5 runs/game), team batting average (0.266), and team pitching (2.24 ERA) among fellow GNC competition. 

“Our program has always been based on ... pitching and defense, and to be quite frank, it starts there,” Waksmonski said. “It has to start with defense because the weather often plays a role in offensive production. The baseball doesn’t carry as far in the cooler weather of April and May, so you have to be able to throw strikes and play defense when balls do get hit in play.”

    In this May 2, 2025 file photo,Rhinelander’s Conner Rappley pitches during the second inning of a GNC baseball game in Tomahawk. Rappley, a junior, was Rhinelander’s top pitcher last spring, going 4-2 with a 1.97 ERA and 61 strikeouts over 53 1/3 innings. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

The Hodags don’t have any seniors on the roster this year, but they are returning four GNC all conference team members in first-team catcher Jackson Waydick, second-team pitcher/infielder Conner Rappley, second team infielder Sawyer Bishop and honorable mention shortstop Abe Gretzinger. 

Waydick, Rappley, and Bishop — now juniors — were the only sophomores of any team to be awarded GNC first and second team all conference. 

More will be asked of those returning juniors, in particular Rappley, who developed into the Hodags’ No. 1 pitcher last spring. 

In GNC play as a sophomore, Rappley struck out 37 in 35 2/3 innings and had the fourth lowest conference ERA with 2.36. That included the perfect game he threw last May in Medford. 

In 2025, Rappley saw most of his action on the mound and at third base, but Waksmonski looks to expand his role even outside the infield. 

“He’s going to have to kind of expand his role and know multiple positions very well, know what others around them are supposed to do,” he said.

Waydick, the team’s starting catcher, scored 14 runs on 15 hits as a sophomore, with an average of .238, but a lot of his impact came defensively behind home plate. He caught six runners stealing in 33 attempts last spring.

“When [Waydick’s] behind the dish, he’s the best catcher in the conference,” Waksmonski said of another important role in the Hodags’ lineup. 

Waydick was also a key part of Rhinelander’s pitching rotation last year, going 3-4 with a 3.29 ERA. He logged 41 strikeouts and this 38 1/3 innings were the second most on the pitching staff.

Second only to graduated senior Dylan Vanderbunt, Bishop had 24 hits a season ago with a .320 average, and looks to continue his production this year. 

Other key returning players include sophomore outfielder/pitcher Vince White, junior outfielder Rowan Wiczek, junior infielder Charlie Johnson and junior Josh Willoughby, who donned the catching gear last year when Waydick was on the mound. 

“I think more importantly, [the upperclassmen] expect big things from themselves,” Waksmonski said. 

Even without any seniors, the experienced upperclassmen will help fill leadership roles on another young Rhinelander team. The Hodags flashed some of their ability in a scrimmage against Pacelli last Tuesday in the Hodag Dome, handling a Cardinal squad that reached the state championship game in Division 4 last season. 

“You see some of the leadership qualities that are coming out, especially tonight here in the scrimmage,” Waksmonski said. “Especially I saw it tonight here in the scrimmage, and that’s always good to see.”

The Hodags were scheduled to open the season Saturday in a triangular at Appleton West, but those games were nixed due to inclement weather. Today’s GNC opener at Tomahawk was also in doubt as of press time in the aftermath of two storms that dropped a wintry mix of freezing rain, sleet and snow to the Northwoods late last week. 

GNC games at home against Antigo on Friday and at Northland Pines Monday, April 13 are next on the schedule for the Hodags. 

Rhinelander is slated to see defending GNC champ Mosinee at home April 20 and have a rematch with the Indians on the road May 14. 

Blake Richard may be reached via email at [email protected].