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: Vel Phillips Memorial Spartans
Preseason Rank: No. 12
Head Coach: Nick Krohn
WIAA Division: 1
Conference: Big 8
2025 Record (Finish): 19-9
Key Players Lost: Oliver Soldat (UW-Whitewater), JJ Ackerman, Logan Lenz, Kellen Mulcahy

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ROSTER PREVIEW

No. of Returning Players: 6
No. of Returning Pitchers: 5
Team Strengths: Experience, speed, starting pitching.

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DATA CENTER

INDIVIDUAL DATA STAND-OUTS:

• Caleb Liggon (6-foot-4, 189 pounds)
  
  • max EV: 98.0 mph (87th state percentile)
  • avg EV: 89.7 mph (87th state percentile)
  • bat speed: 71.0 mph (82nd state percentile)
  • rot. accel.: 17.0g (83rd state percentile)
  • 60-yd. dash: 6.62s (T-No. 14 overall in Wisconsin)
  • 10-yd. split: 1.59s (No. 2 in state's 2026 class)
  • vert. jump: 28.2 in (No. 18 overall in Wisconsin)
• Ezra Liggon (6-foot-4, 195 pounds)
  
  • max EV: 105.0 mph (T-No. 11 overall in Wisconsin)
  • avg EV: 96.8 mph (T-No. 13 overall in Wisconsin)
  • bat speed: 70.9 mph (81st state percentile)
  • rot. accel.: 17.0g (83rd state percentile, 74th pctile. in state's 2026 class)
  • 60-yd. dash: 6.64s (T-No. 17 overall in Wisconsin)
  • 10-yd. split: 1.62s (95th state percentile)
  • vert. jump: 30.0 in (No. 8 overall in Wisconsin)

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X-FACTOR

SS Caleb Liggon (2026; Bradley) sliding into the full-time shortstop role as a senior after splitting time at the spot the previous two springs with the departed Oliver Soldat. The uber-athletic right-handed hitter has a real chance to elevate the production out of that spot for the Spartans with high expectations, and more than enough talent and production to meet or even exceed those expectations while playing one of the most important positions on the diamond.

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NEWCOMER TO WATCH

Two freshman UTL players to watch as they come through the Spartans program if not this year but in the coming years are Oliver Daggett and Ray Figueroa, Daggett looks to be a valuable defensive piece that can play a number of positions on the diamond. The same can be said for Figueroa who has a set of advanced tools for a freshman that you can see potentially translating in game.

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TEAM OUTLOOK

Vel Phillips Memorial finished 19-9 a year ago, claimed third place in the always-competitive Big 8 Conference and pushed all the way to the sectional final before falling to Big 8 champion Sun Prairie East. That kind of run demands respect, and it also demands answers heading into 2026, because the names responsible for a sizable chunk of that production have graduated. Oliver Soldat, who hit .373 with four home runs and 26 RBI across 107 plate appearances while walking 27 times, was the engine of the offense. JJ Ackerman, Logan Lenz and Kellen Mulcahy contributed meaningful innings on the mound, combining for more than 68 frames pitched. Replacing that depth on both sides of the ball is the central challenge facing head coach Nick Krohn this spring, but the pieces remaining suggest the Spartans are more than capable of meeting it.

"Expectations were high last year and for the most part we lived up to them," Krohn said. "We are looking to take another step forward in the always competitive Big 8 Conference and in the WIAA playoffs behind a group of really talented seniors."

The story of Vel Phillips Memorial's 2026 season begins with SS/OF Caleb Liggon (2026; Bradley) and OF/LHP Ezra Liggon (2026; Bradley), twin seniors who are among the most complete athletes in the state of Wisconsin. Both are committed to Bradley University and both are entering their final prep season with significantly elevated expectations. As juniors, Caleb hit .333 with three home runs and 22 RBI while swiping 10 bags without getting caught, and Ezra batted .352 with 22 RBI and 14 stolen bases, spending most of his time in center field while ranking among the most reliable contact hitters in the program. They were good in 2025 but are widely viewed as players poised for true breakout senior campaigns, capable of stepping into the production vacuum left by Soldat and elevating the Spartan lineup into one of the more dangerous top-to-bottom units in Division 1. Their speed, combined with the ability to drive the ball with authority, gives this offense a different dimension when both are locked in.

The pitching staff is built around RHP/OF Brayden Banyai (2026), a two-way force who projects as the ace after going 4-2 with a 1.77 ERA across 39.2 innings a year ago, striking out 40 batters while posting a 1.059 WHIP. Banyai is also one of the program's best bats, giving Krohn significant lineup flexibility on days he is not on the mound. Right behind him is LHP/1B Myles Hosking (2026), who went 4-1 with a 2.12 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 33 innings of work as a junior and steps into the No. 2 role this spring. RHP/OF Blake Adams (2026) and 3B Drew Haferman (2026) among his projected starters in rotation, with Adams having posted a 0.42 ERA and two saves out of the bullpen in 2025. A healthy and improved Hosking, in particular, will go a long way toward determining how deep the Spartans can venture into the postseason. The bullpen features two-ways like MIF Ethan Eckel (2026), INF Simon Sellwood (2026) and others, that give Krohn multiple arms to deploy in multi-inning situations.

Beyond the Liggons and the rotation depth, the projected starting nine features the aforementioned Eckell (.421) and BanyaI (.289) as some of the top returning bats in the lineup. C Cam Sauer (2026), who hit .250 with 10 RBI in limited action as a junior and figures to be a steadying presence behind the plate. Krohn notes six returning position players and five returning pitchers, meaning the roster carries genuine experience at every level. The coach identifies relief pitching and selflessness as areas the program will need to develop, and both are realistic concerns for any team reloading after a sectional final appearance. However, the returning talent base, led by a senior class with two Bradley-bound athletes at the top, positions Vel Phillips Memorial as a legitimate Big 8 contender and a program capable of improving on last year's deep playoff run.

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BOTTOM LINE

If the Liggon twins deliver the breakout senior seasons that talent suggests they are capable of and Banyai anchors the rotation as expected, Vel Phillips Memorial has the ceiling of a Big 8 title contender and a legitimate sectional threat. The floor is still a winning season in one of Wisconsin's toughest conferences.

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Find more information on the 2026 Vel Phillips Memorial program below:

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

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POWER 25 COUNTDOWN