Mishawaka baseball staying loose during Semi-State run

Mishawaka, Ind. - It's no secret that there's some excitement surrounding Mishawaka baseball. And for good reason.

“It’s just an amazing feat to be honest with you," said head coach John Huemmer. "It’s a dream come reality for these guys.”

The Cavemen are Regional champions for the first time in more than two decades, advancing to Saturday's Semi-State round against Hamilton Southeastern in a matchup full of understandable pressures.

“We’ll make our adjustments, but we’re going to build on our strengths and go from there," Huemmer said of the game plan, "because we do have the confidence that we can go out and win.”

“I mean it’ll be good for the program," said junior Derrick Dawson. "It's good for everyone to see what we’re capable of, and I think that’s pretty cool.”

But if any team is equipped to handle the high stakes, it's one that balances work with a bit of fun. Whether with home run celebrations or some ... choice facial hair, Mishawaka has no desire to stop it now.

“That’s the key thing about our team, having fun," Dawson said. "We love playing baseball.”

“We know each other well," added senior Grant Jablonski. "We know we don’t play our best when we’re uptight and worried or nervous. So we always try to stay having fun and being relaxed.”

But at the same time, the moment is not lost on the Cavemen.

They know that as close as they are to a trip to Victory Field in Indianapolis, getting there means putting everything into this weekend.

“This is just a game." said Huemmer. "However we do have a task at hand and we realize we’ll have to put in the work, especially if we want to go further in these next two games.”

The 4A Semi-State game between Mishawaka and Hamilton Southeastern will take place at Plymouth High School on Saturday afternoon. It will follow the first game of the day which begins at 1 p.m. eastern.