On Tuesday the Northwood/Solon Springs baseball team picked up two wins to claim the Division 4 Sectional 1 title and earn their program’s first-ever state tournament berth.

First they took down Washburn 3-0 in the sectional semifinals held in Bruce, Wisconsin. Then they advanced to take on Rib Lake in the finals where they earned a 10-2 victory to become sectional champions for the first time in both schools’ histories.

Alex Slivensky tallied six RBI, and Abe Ahlberg recorded a complete game with two runs unearned, all despite a fifth inning rain delay.

“The rain delay actually helped me, I feel,” Abe Ahlberg, a senior pitcher, said. “I sat in the dugout staring into the rain and just calmed my body down because I knew something good was going to happen. I can’t even put it into words. This is what I’ve been hoping for four years, this is my number one sport.”

“Abe’s got the big fastball. He was really able to play it at the beginning of the game. They weren’t ready for the velocity and he was able to gas it past them.” head coach Nathan Ahlberg explained. “We’ve been here at this sectional three times and we just haven’t been able to get the job done, and we had things set up the way we wanted it.”

Northwood/Solon Springs now advances to the state tournament with a 18-1 record, undefeated against Wisconsin teams. Their sole loss came at the hands of Proctor.

“I think it’s awesome. I mean it’s the first time our school has made it, and Northwood as well, I’m super excited. I’m glad we’re going,” senior Alex Slivensky said.

The Wisconsin state baseball tournament begins next week at Neuroscience Group Field at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute. The Division 4 semifinals are Tuesday, June 11 beginning at 9 a.m. The championship game is Thursday, June 13 at 9 a.m. For the full schedule, Click here.