Cathedral Baseball Team Aims For Glory In State Tournament

The Cathedral baseball team is rolling as they get set to play Thursday in the Class 2A State Tournament at Dick Putz Field in St. Cloud.  The Crusaders are 22-2, winners of 7 straight and the #1 seed in the Class 2A State Tournament.  They play 8th seeded Minnehaha Academy at 3:30pm Thursday.

Photo courtesy of Julie Murphy and Cathedral Athletics

Co-Head Coaches

Cathedral co-head coaches Bob Karn and Brooks Marquardt joined me on WJON along with captains Jack Hamek, Henry Schloe, Jacob Oliver and Nolan Bigaouette.  Karn and Marquardt say they enjoy working with each other and at 84 years old, Karn still loves the game and loves teaching the game.  Marquardt handles a lot of the physical parts of coaching by hitting ground and fly balls and throwing batting practice while Bob prepares the lineup and sets the practice schedule.  Karn and Marquardt work together on game day decisions.  Karn says he and Brooks get along very well.

Senior Dominated

Hamek is one of 10 seniors on the Cathedral roster.  He says many of his teammates have been playing together since little league.  Hamek believes this team has great chemistry and are friends on and off the field.  Schloe says memorable moments this season include a 10-0 win over Pierz in the section playoffs after losing to them last season in the section final.

Photo courtesy of Julie Murphy and Cathedral Athletics

Team Chemistry

Oliver says getting a chance to play in the State Tournament means a lot to him.  He says it was great to see the joy his teammates experienced when they captured the section title.  Oliver played in the boys soccer state tournament for the Crusaders in the fall.  Bigaouette says this team has put in the work like extra batting practice and dinner with teammates after practice to help form chemistry.  He believes this team sticks to the plan regardless of how things are going and they always believe they can win.

Photo courtesy of Julie Murphy and Cathedral Athletics

Playing at Home

Getting the #1 seed guarantees nothing but Oliver says it gives them confidence that they can win.  Schloe and Karn like being able to play in St. Cloud at a familiar ballpark at Dick Putz Field.  Schloe says the groundballs will be the same but the crowd should be much larger.  Hamek is grateful to be able to play in St. Cloud this week and to have another week playing baseball with his teammates.   Karn likes the format this year which doesn't require teams playing 2 games in 1 day.

Cathedral Titles

Cathedral baseball has won 9 state championships in school history, all under head coach Bob Karn.  Cathedral won titles in 1977, 1980, 1988, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2014, and 2015.

Listen to Interview

I you'd like to listen to my conversation with Cathedral baseball coaches, Bob Karn and Brooks Marquardt and players Jack Hamek, Henry Schloe, Jacob Oliver and Nolan Bigaouette, click below.