The Wisconsin high school baseball season kicks off on March 31, opening day for regular season action under WIAA regulations. Over the next two weeks, leading up to opening day, we'll be publishing our team previews ahead of the 2026 spring season, touching on programs spanning all state classifications, counting down through the official Prep Baseball Wisconsin Preseason Power 25 Rankings.
Perennially, we've submitted a preseason questionnaire to high school head coaches across the entire state. Their responses have been flooding in and we're using the detailed insight they've provided in our team-by-team preseason analysis.

Our 2026 preseason coverage continues today.

High School: Kimberly Papermakers
Preseason Rank: No. 11
Head Coach: Ryan McGinnis
WIAA Division: 1
Conference: Fox Valley Association
2025 Record (Finish): 18-7 (regional champions)
Key Players Lost: Sawyer Deering (Tennessee), Braedon Ellefson, Ben Kieffer (UW-Eau Claire), Ben Johnston (UW-Eau Claire), Jack Anzelmo (Concordia, WI), Connor Olson (Saint Mary's, MN)

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ROSTER PREVIEW

No. of Returning Players: 2
No. of Returning Pitchers: 2
Team Strengths: Pitching depth, versatility.

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DATA CENTER

TEAM RANKS:

This data is sourced from the 2026 Wisconsin winter showcase circuit and select 2025 events, compiled by Prep Baseball. We took the top-three metrics recorded by players from each high school in the following categories. Here is how Kimberly's top-three performers averaged across each category:

Category	Top-3 Avg.	State Rank	Out of
Max Exit Velocity	97.7 mph	T-No. 25	of 102
Max FB Velocity	85.7 mph	T-No. 22	of 71
Top 60-Yard	6.85 s	No. 9	of 102

INDIVIDUAL DATA STAND-OUTS:

• Maddux Hermus (5-foot-11, 189 pounds)
  
  • max fastball: 88 mph (89th state percentile)
  • FB spin: 2,447 rpm (No. 4 overall in Wisconsin)
  • CB spin: 2,618 rpm (No. 12 overall in Wisconsin)
  • SL spin: 2,652 rpm (No. 9 overall in Wisconsin)
• Braeden Hermes (6-foot, 175 pounds)
  
  • max fastball: 84 mph
  • max EV: 100.0 mph (93rd state percentile)
  • 60-yd. dash: 6.80s (95th state percentile)
• Bryce Mischler (6-foot-5, 174 pounds)
  
  • max fastball: 85 mph
  • vert. jump: 25.1 in (87th state percentile)
• Shaefer Peterson (5-foot-9, 152 pounds)
  
  • max fastball: 82 mph
  • FB spin: 2,199 rpm (85th state percentile)
  • CB spin: 2,358 rpm (87th state percentile)
  • rot. accel.: 19.0g (90th state percentile)
  • 60-yd. dash: 6.86s (91st state percentile)
  • vert. jump: 26.3 in (93rd state percentile)
• Lucas Csida (6-foot-1, 181 pounds)
  
  • rot. accel.: 20.0g (93rd state percentile)
  • 60-yd. dash: 6.90s (89th state percentile)
  • vert. jump: 30.3 in (T-No. 6 overall in Wisconsin)
• Will Girard (5-foot-8, 157 pounds)
  
  • max EV: 97.0 mph (84th state percentile)
  • bat speed: 71.5 mph (84th state percentile)
  • rot. accel.: 17.0g (83rd state percentile)
  • 60-yd. dash: 7.03s (81st state percentile)
• Will Vander Loop (5-foot-11, 164 pounds)
• • 10-yd. split: 1.67s (81st state percentile)
  • max fastball: 77 mph
  • SL spin: 2,322 rpm (80th state percentile)

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X-FACTOR

RHP Maddux Hermus made a name for himself last season as a sophomore, putting together one of the best seasons of any underclassman in the state. Hermus found himself as the lone underclassman on the Fox Valley All-Conference First Team after finishing the season with a 6-2 record, striking out 51 batters in 45.0 innings and registering a 1.53 ERA.  We saw him perform well at the Madison Preseason ID, including reaching up to 88.4 with the fastball and an improved feel for spin with his secondary offerings that has us excited to see how it will translate in game. With only about two returning arms from last year’s team, Hermus will be looked upon to continue leading this Kimberly rotation. 

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TEAM OUTLOOK

The Papermakers enter 2026 with yet another Fox Valley Association title in their sights and for good reason. Kimberly has earned the FVA title in each of the last six seasons, and 10 times in the last 12 years. The success of the program is due in large part to head coach Ryan McGinnis, whose success was recognized by being named to the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame earlier this offseason. The goal of making it to state remains the main objective, and the Papermakers are in a good spot to make that happen.

Unfortunately for Kimberly, there are some holes being left behind by the 2025 graduates, but  we believe the pitching staff provides a good foundation for the team. The staff features plenty of depth on both sides of the mound that could prove to be a strong point of the team this season. 

Committed southpaws LHP Shaefer Peterson (2026; Wisconsin-Stevens Point) and LHP Bryce Mischler (2026; Heartland CC) will help anchor the rotation, with RHP Drew Furman (2026) Peterson saw some action with 21 innings of work, striking out 22 hitters in that frame.   Alongside the aforementioned RHP Maddux Hermus (2027) is LHP Braeden Hermes, who stood out to us as at the Green Bay Preseason ID. Hermes offers a unique look from the left side and a good feel for his offerings that could cause some uncomfortable at bats for opposing hitters. Expect RHP Jack DeLeeuw (2026), RHP Porter Hooyman (2026) RHP Will Vander Loop (2027), LHP Pierson Hacker (2027) to see some time on the mound this season as well. 

With so many impactful bats having left the program, inexperience could be a factor heading into the spring, but there are some returning bats that provide a nice foundation for the Papermakers. C Ryan Halfmann (2026; Madison JC) returns as the one proven bat in the projected starting nine, having hit .373 with a .468 on-base percentage and 24 runs scored while playing as the full-time starting catcher in 2025. When not on the mound, look for INF Maddux Hermus and OF Shaefer Peterson to see time at the plate. Hermus hit .288 with a home run and 19 RBIs, with Peterson also putting up a .288 average of his own. 

We are excited to see how 1B Braeden Hermes (2027) will fare at the plate in what would be his first time in the regular lineup. He had a max EV of 98.3 with a 44.4% hard hit rate down at Green Bay, providing raw power that could translate well in game. To fill in the holes left behind by the graduates, we expect to see INF  Will Girard (2027), UTIL Lucas Csida (2027), and INF Will Vander Loop (2027) and INF Jack DeLeeuw (2026) to compete for expanded roles.

"We have a great group of guys and competition will be rampant all year," McGinnis said. "We have some quality top-end pitching to go along with pitching depth. We are inexperienced offensively and defensively, but that is exciting and will provide some great opportunities for guys to earn playing time." 

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BOTTOM LINE

The pitching depth is legitimate enough to keep Kimberly in contention for another Fox Valley Title. The lineup has some question marks but a good foundation that keeps us confident that a deep postseason run would be very much on the table for a Hall of Fame coach with unfinished business in 2026.

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Find more information on the 2026 Kimberly program below:

+ Follow them on social media: @thekimberlybase
+ Visit the Prep Baseball Wisconsin Preseason Power 25 homepage

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POWER 25 COUNTDOWN