Kewaune’s baseball team is one win away from being the WIAA Division 3 state champion.
In Tuesday’s state semifinals at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute, the No. 3-seeded Storm defeated No. 2-seeded Fennimore, 5-3.
The game remained scoreless until the fourth inning when Kewaunee’s Brady Pribek tripled to drive in two runs. Fennimore scored once in the bottom of the frame on a sacrifice fly by Gianni Filardo.
The Storm added three runs in the top of the fifth after Connor Kilgore hit a fly ball to the outfield that got past the right fielder.
Fenninore got two of those runs back in the bottom of the fifth when Tyson Starkey tripled and scored on a wild pitch, and Corey Dresen singled to drive in the other run.
Kewaunee starting pitcher Brett Paulsen pitched five innings and recorded the victory, allowing three runs on seven hits with a walk while striking out eight. Waylon Delain closed out the final two innings without giving up a run or a hit while striking out two.
Starkey pitched the first six innings for Fennimore and took the loss, giving up all five runs on three hits with three walks while striking out five.
The Storm (18-5), which has already won this season’s Packerland Conference title along with WIAA Division 3 regional and sectional championships, will be playing for the state title Thursday at noon against No. 1-seeded Kenosha St. Joseph (22-7), which won its semifinal Tuesday over No. 4-seeded Barron, 14-4.