With his team clinging to a one-run lead in the bottom of the seventh inning of its postseason matchup with Eden Prairie, Waconia's Hayden Meyer had to make a decision.

The Eagles had two outs and runners in scoring position when they hit a ground ball right at Meyer. The Wildcats pitcher had to act fast with the tying run bolting for home plate, the winning run heading to third base and the batter dashing for first. 

“I was thinking he still had time at [first base],” Waconia coach Mark Grundhofer said.

He wasn’t the only one. Nearly everyone in the ballpark thought Meyer would go to first, but the senior whipped the ball to his catcher, who tagged out the runner at home plate to give seventh-seeded Waconia a thrilling 6-5 upset victory over third-seeded Eden Prairie in the semifinals of the Class 3A, Section 2 winner’s bracket Monday afternoon at Round Lake Stadium in Eden Prairie.

Meyer’s split-second decision is the kind that wins or loses games. This one resulted in a win and surprised some of his teammates.

“I thought he was going to pick it up and throw it to first,” senior Jacob Stevenson said.

“I thought maybe [Meyer] would have had him at first, honestly,” senior Roch Whittaker said. 

“Just a great play,” Whittaker added. “So exciting.”

After the final out, Meyer sprinted towards his dugout in celebration with his glove in the air and jumped into the arms of his teammates, who celebrated their second straight upset victory in the section tournament. The Wildcats hit a solo home run to defeat second-seeded Chanhassen 1-0 on Friday.

They would need much more than that to beat the Eagles’ high-powered offensive.

After four batters in the first inning, Waconia led 4-0. A single and pair of walks gave cleanup hitter Stevenson a chance to show why he bats fourth. The senior didn’t hesitate, blasting an early pitch over the left field fence for a grand slam.

Grundhofer said getting the lead was important, but he also knew his team needed more than four runs to edge an Eden Prairie team that averaged 11.4 runs per game in their 20 regular season games. 

“We talked about it as a coaching staff,” Grundhofer said. “With [the Eagles], you better get a lead because this club will come back. You know they’re going to hit the ball.”

He was right.

Eden Prairie’s four-run sixth inning put plenty of pressure on the Wildcats, but they were able to hold on by just an inch.

That ability to thrive in high-pressure situations doesn’t come naturally, though. Grundhofer credited not only his players’ baseball instincts, but also their athletic instincts for another one-run win.

Both Stevenson and Whittaker were seniors on a Waconia basketball team that reached the Class 3A state tournament in March, an experience that gave them valuable mental strength and experience handling adversity.

“They’re just quality three-sport athletes,” Grundhofer said of Stevenson and Whittaker. “That experience in other sports helps them here to stay calm and relaxed.”

Stevenson agreed with his coach, saying it’s attitude and focus that make the biggest difference on the diamond. 

He admitted he wasn’t the best player on the basketball team, spending a lot of time on the bench. But he learned to help the team remain positive and focused by encouraging his teammates when he couldn’t be out on the floor. 

“I wasn’t super great at basketball,” Stevenson said. “So on the bench, I learned how to contribute by cheering on my teammates.”

Stevenson and Whittaker’s final season as Wildcats has been a wild ride. Making the state tournament in basketball was one goal; making the state baseball tournament is another.

After two straight upsets, the Wildcats find themselves in the fourth round of the Section 2 tournament, just two wins away from another state tournament.

The journey isn’t over yet.

“It’s kind of what every kid dreams of doing,” Whittaker said. “It’s your senior year, your last shot and you have to make the most of it. That’s what we’re doing.”

Jake Halvarson (14) of Eden Prairie High School slides safely into 3rd base, nearly getting tagged out by of Shannon Storley (12) Waconia. Photo by Chris Juhn

Jake Halvarson (14) of Eden Prairie High School slides safely into 3rd base, nearly getting tagged out by of Shannon Storley (12) Waconia. Photo by Chris Juhn

First Report

After surviving a late four-run rally from Eden Prairie, the seventh-seeded Waconia defeated the third-seeded Eagles 6-5 in the semifinals of the Class 3A, Section 2 winner's bracket on Monday at Round Lake Stadium in Eden Prairie. With the victory, the Wildcats (18-5) secured a spot in the fourth round of the double-elimination tournament.

The sun came out right after Waconia’s bats during the Memorial Day matchup. After a single and pair of walks for the Wildcats in the top of the first inning, cleanup hitter Jacob Stevenson belted an early pitch to left center field that bounced off the scoreboard and cleared the bases to give Waconia an immediate 4-0 lead.

The senior went 1-for-3 on the day, with the grand slam being his only hit.

The Eagles (14-8) responded in the bottom half of the inning with an RBI double to right center field from Tyler Safgren.

Another two runs in the third inning gave the Wildcats a 6-1 lead, which held until the bottom of the sixth inning, when Eden Prairie's bats came alive.

With two outs, Josh Miller stepped up to the plate with a man on base. The left-handed batter found an inside pitch he liked, pulling it to right center field and over the fence. Two RBI doubles later, the Eagles found themselves within a single run going into the final inning.

A leadoff walk from Josh Liberko gave Eden Prairie a chance to play some small ball in the bottom of the seventh. Ryan Christensen bunted Liberko to second and Colton Simmer’s double to left field got two runners in scoring position with just one out.

But two clutch defensive plays from Waconia sealed the win. With two outs, Wildcats pitcher Hayden Meyer fielded a ground ball and threw it home where Liberko – the tying run – was tagged for the final out.  

The grand slam home run ball hit by Jacob Stevenson (13) of Waconia hits the scoreboard in the first inning. Photo by Chris Juhn

The grand slam home run ball hit by Jacob Stevenson (13) of Waconia hits the scoreboard in the first inning. Photo by Chris Juhn

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