Program: Milwaukee Area Technical College
Head Coach: Caleb Bounds: Fourth year 
NJCAA Region/Division: Region IV, DII
Last Year's Record: 35-23
Email: [email protected] 
Twitter: CalebBounds36
Schedule Link
Roster Link

Coming off a 35-23 season, which ended in the Region 4 tournament, Coach Bounds and his staff will look to build on this momentum into the 2026 season. Easier said than done, as this Stormers team heads into the Spring having lost four major arms and a total of 274 innings. A staff that will lean on a pair of returners and a promising freshman class, which, in total, has the potential to make some noise. While the pitching is gonna leave many question marks, the offense will look to carry the brunt of the team. A lineup that will be filled with returning sophomores, many of whom saw valuable at-bats, but also who spent the year learning and developing into starters. The main question leading into this season is, can this lineup take some of the pressure off a young staff looking to prove themselves?

---

PITCHERS

As already touched on, this staff is where the main question lies with this MATC squad. This staff lacks experience, losing 274 innings, with few freshmen seeing valuable time on the mound. While this staff looks to reset, it will depend on the two most valuable returns to lead the way. Right-hander Jakeb Lequia and Ethan Engelbrecht have the most experience on this staff, tossing a combined 49.2 innings last year. Lequia led this duo with 37 innings, pitching to a 5.59 ERA, striking out 30, while only walking 15. Engelbrecht isn’t far behind, tossing 22.2 innings to a 2.78 ERA, striking out 29. These two will look to anchor the rotation and provide stability for this young staff. Two more returners looking to have a major role are right-handers Colin Weist and Connor Ziman. Wesit was extremely impressive in his 14.1 innings, not allowing a single run, while striking out eight. While Ziman put together a well-rounded freshman campaign, pitching to a 4.96 ERA in 16.1 innings. These two will look to build off their experience from last year and instill some confidence in the rotation. Right-hander Alex Dvorak and incoming transfer Payten Jibben also looks to make an impact with this pitching staff. Dvorak has been up to 90 mph this fall, coming off a year where he averaged two strikeouts per inning. As a two-way player coming from UIC. A player to follow to see where his impact lands the most this season. Below is what our staff had to say about these returns when we saw them this past September.

• SO. RHP Jakeb Lequia (Chippewa Falls, WI) is a hard throwing right-hander that stands 5-foot-11, 185-pounds with strength throughput, especially the lower half. The fastball sat in the upper 80s, topped at 89 mph with an avg. of 15 in. IVB. The curveball was around the zone at 73-74 mph, mixed in a slider at 73-75 mph with -9 in. of HM. The changeup was one of the most impressive pitches, thrown in the mid 70s with an avg. of 20+ in. of HM. The right-hander had command and velocity from a loose ¾ slot.

• SO. RHP Ethan Engelbrecht (Oak Creek, WI) is a durable 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-hander that was around the zone throughout the bullpen. Engelbrecht got up to 88 mph with the fastball, sat in the mid 80s with a 100% zone percentage from a ¾ slot. The slider has a tight shape at 79-80 mph. The right-hander mixed in a splitter in the upper 70s with a spin rate avg. of 912 and 8 in. of IVB. The curveball was thrown at 74 mph with a sharper vertical break, and also mixed in a cutter at 81-82 mph with a slight wrinkle.

Even though this staff will be relying heavily on those four sophomore arms heading into the season, they are going to need freshmen to step up in a big way. This class they brought in seems to be ready for the opportunity, as a handful of arms stood out this fall and will look to make an impact on this staff. Right-hander Max Nottingham and Manuel Sostre look to lead this incoming class. Sostre is a St Thomas More product, tossing 36.2 innings to a 2.67 ERA, striking out 52 in an impressive senior year campaign. While his counterpart in Nottingham, a Westosha Central product, looks to continue his development into an impact arm. Three other freshmen looking to make their mark are Jerry Vasek, Nathan Birkhimer, and Isaiah Head. All showing a mid-80s fastball with developing secondaries to follow. They will look to fight alongside the rest for innings as we flip the page into the spring season. Here’s what our staff had to say on all four of these freshmen.

• FR. RHP Max Nottingham (Westosha Central, WI) is an incoming arm for the Stormers with a quick and easy arm. The fastball sat in the mid 80s and topped out at 88.1 mph for strikes. Nottingham showed feel for his three off-speeds, the slider was in the mid 70s (2130 avg. rpm), the change was thrown in the high 70s-low 80s with an avg. of 20.5 in. of total movement. Nottingham wrapped it up with a splitter in the mid 70s with lower spin rates. The right-hander will be an impact arm this season and should continue to fill out his frame, currently listed at 5-foot-10, 140-pounds.

• FR. RHP Manuel Sostre (St. Thomas More, WI) stands 6-foot-3, 150-pounds with room to fill out. The right-hander showed off some high spin off-speed pitches, and a fastball that can be thrown for strikes. The fastball sat in the mid 80s and topped at 88 mph. The curveball was in the lower to mid 70s with an avg. of 2456 rpm, the slider sat in the mid 70s with an avg. of 2475 rpm, and the changeup was thrown in the upper 70s with an avg. of 19 in. of total movement.

• FR. RHP Jerry Vasek (Westmont, IL) stands at an imposing 6-foot-5, 240-pound frame. Simple and easy mover through the delivery with feel to repeat. The arm plays clean with arm speed out of the ¾ slot. Fastball plays with life out of the hand at 84-87 mph with life and carry, showed a tight slider in the upper-70s off the fastball as well as a running changeup in the low-80s, rounding off his arsenal Vasek showed a sinker in the 83-84 mph bucket.

• FR. RHP Nathan Birkhimer (Milton, WI) stands at a lean 6-foot-3, 185-pound frame with room to add and is a freshman to watch for the Stormers. Showing a three pitch mix throughout his pen, the fastball topped out a 85.7 mph with life out of the hand while locating to different spots of the zone, showed feel for a mid-70s curveball and changeup from various release points, while locating both in the zone.

• FR. RHP Isaiah Head (Smith, TX) is a strong 6-foot-3, 215-pound right-hander that looks to make an impact on the mound for the Stromers. Head flashed promise on the mound with a three pitch mix. Head ran the fastball in the mid 80s, topping at 87 mph with 11 in. of avg. IVB. The right-hander mixed in a sinker at 77-80 mph with ASR, and flashed a slider in the mid 70s with 12. In of IVB avg.

---

OFFENSE

Armed with a strong core of returners and an exciting freshman class, the Stormers plan to lean on that foundation heading into the spring season. Top performers from the prior year, OF Cole Wissen and C/1B Brady Johnson, will look to take the lead in this veteran lineup. Wissen is coming off a year that saw him slash .341/.440/.521, driving in 46 with three home runs. Also taking home a gold glove in center field, Wissen looks to be the spark plug of this lineup. His counterpart, Johnson, put together an impressive season as well. The right-handed bat slashed .295/.437/.328 driving in 24. The productivity of this lineup doesn't stop with these two, as C/INF Lucas Hernandez saw valuable time last year, making the most of it. Seeing below 100 at-bats with Hernandez batting .333, driving in 25. R-SO Jaiden Jung is another interesting piece to this Stormers lineup after having a successful freshman season two springs ago. Looking to take the next step this season and be a catalyst for this offense, after seeing very limited time last year. 

Looking to solidify the infield, MIF Easton Morehouse and INF Bryant Armijo-Martin each saw valuable playing time last year. While the results were lacking, from the looks of our staff this fall, they have only continued to develop and show promise for a promising second year. Now this sophomore-heavy offense will have a handful of first-time starting sophomores. An exciting group that showed their progress well throughout the fall. Hayden Fellows and Peyton Flees have all continued to develop and will look to take the next steps this spring. Take a look at what our staff had to say about these returning sophomores.

• SO. OF Cole Wissen (Vandegrift, TX) one of the top returning players from last years squad, Region IV Gold Glove recipient in center field with easy range and actions. Started the day running a 6.55 in the 60-yard dash with a 1.63 10-yard split testing out as a high-end athlete. At the plate, the right-handed hitter has easy feel for the barrel, taking a tight and consistent path to the baseball with feel to use the entire field. Reaching a max exit velocity of 100 mph throughout his round.

• SO. C Brady Johnson (St. Thomas More, WI) stands at 6-foot-1, 200-pounds with strength throughout the frame. At the plate the right-handed hitters sprays the ball around the middle of the field reaching a max exit velo of 93.9 mph throughout his round. Defensively behind the plate Johnson plays with confident and comfortable actions behind the plate, with a quick and clean transfer into release with an accurate arm and pop-times of 2.03-2.15.

• SO. INF/C Lucas Hernandez (Las Cruces, NM) stands at an athletic 6-foot, 185-pound frame with clear room to add to the frame. At the plate, the right handed hitter swings an easy and on plane bat with feel for the barrel and to drive the ball to the opposite field. Reached a max exit velocity of 96.5 mph throughout his round with a max distance of 352 feet. Defensively behind the plate, Hernandez plays with comfortable and steady actions with a clean trigger and release with arm strength up to 80 mph from the crouch with accurate and consistent throws with pop times between 2.00-2.08.

• SO. INF Jaiden Jung (Sun Prairie West, WI) Stands at a strong 6-foot, 195-pound frame with room to add. At the plate, the right-handed hitter showed consistent feel for the barrel while driving the ball with authority to the pull side. Reaching a max exit velo of 104.5 mph with a 406 foot max distance while swinging a fast and twitchy bat averaging 74.9 mph throughout the round.

• SO. C Hayden Fellows (Downers Grove South, IL) strong and physical standing at 6-foot, 195-pounds. At the plate, the right-handed hitter swings a strong and powerful right-handed bat with visible bat speed averaging 75.3 mph with length through the zone. Consistently drove the ball through the middle of the field throughout the round, reaching a max exit velo of 103.7 throughout his round with a peak distance of 396.7 feet. Defensively behind the plate, simple actions with a clean transfer and arm strength up to 78 mph with pop-times ranging from 1.97-2.05.

• SO. INF Easton Morehouse (Rockford Christian, IL) stands at 5-foot-9, 185-pounds with strength throughout the frame. At the plate the right-handed hitter swings a direct bat with feel to spray line drives through the middle of the field. Reaching a max exit velo of 98.1 mph throughout his round of BP with average bat speed of 71.6 mph. Defensively at shortstop plays with steady and comfortable actions, fielding with rhythm and range to either side. The arm plays with strength up to 88 mph across the diamond with some ability to manipulate slot and work on the move.
  
  
• SO. INF Bryant Armijo-Martin (Pueblo Centennial, CO) powerful right-handed hitter standing at 6-foot-2, 225-pound with strength throughout the frame. At the plate, Armijo-Marten swings a smooth bat with easy bat speed averaging 76.6 mph throughout his round while consistently driving the baseball to all fields during BP, reaching a max exit velocity of 102.0 mph throughout the round. Capable defender at first, playing with rhythm and soft hands and feel for the bag.
  
  
• SO. OF Peyton Flees (Pacelli Catholic, WI) frame stands out, standing at a strong 6-foot-3, 205-pound build with more room to add, started the day running a 6.98 60-yard dash. At the plate, Flees swings with intent to drive the ball in the air, especially to the pull side, the baseball carries off the bat reaching a max distance of 382 mph with a max exit velo of 97.7 mph. Defensively in the outfield, the arm played with life and carry up to 94 mph with steady and quality actions that can play in either corner.

While these returning sophomores look to take the majority of the attention, the Stormers still brought in a handful of impact bats in the form of two transfers and a promising freshman class. Payten Jibben, a UIC transfer, and Joshua Joseph, a McCook transfer, will be looking to make their presence known in the lineup. Along with these two sophomores come two freshman looking to have an impact of their own. OF Tyler Lee and OF Noah Canella all set themselves apart from the rest this fall. Each standing out with the bat, it will be an interesting follow to see where they can find their opportunities within this experienced lineup. Here's what our staff had to say about these newcomers.

• SO. OF Payten Jibben (Oak Creek, WI) physical frame that stands out on the field standing at 6-foot-4, 215-pounds with seemingly more room to add as he continues to mature. At the plate, the right-handed hitter swings a strong right-handed bat with even more strength in there with easy bat speed averaging 74.2 mph throughout and feel to barrel the ball to all fields. Reached a max exit velo of 100.2 mph throughout his outing with a max distance of 385 feet.

• SO. INF Joshua Joseph (Belvidere North, IL) is another frame that stands out among standing at 6-foot-3, 200-pounds with strength throughout and more room to continue to fill out. At the plate, the right-handed hitter took a loud and on the barrel round throughout BP reaching a max exit velo of 103.2 mph throughout his round while showing feel to drive the ball to the opposite field. Easy and low effort operation at the plate with an average bat speed of 71.5 mph. Defensively at first the infielder shows steady hands and feel for the bag with arm strength up to 80 mph.

• FR. OF Tyler Lee (Vandegrift, TX) stands at an athletic 5-foot-11, 180-pound frame with even more room to continue to add to the frame. At the plate, the right-handed hitter swing a direct bat, taking a tight turn through the baseball with feel to drive the ball in the air and to the opposite field. Reaching a max exit velo of 96.2 mph with more in the tank as he matures into his frame, with a max distance of 351 feet during his round. Defensively in the outfield, Lee takes confident and efficient routes to the baseball with soft hands to pair and arm strength up to 83 mph.

• FR. OF Noah Canella (Wilmot Union, WI) stands at a strong 6-foot, 193-pound frame with strength throughout. At the plate the right-handed hitter swings easy right -handed bat with feel for the barrel reaching a max exit velo of 95.9 mph.

---

MATC SCOUT DAY

MATC Scout Day Quick Hits

MATC Scout Day: Statistical and Data Analysis

---

Related Content