Fox Valley Lutheran baseball shuts out Xavier, picks up 10th win of season

By Dustin Riese
For AppletonSportsPage.com

APPLETON – With less than a month from the start of the WIAA baseball playoffs, the Xavier Hawks and Fox Valley Lutheran Foxes are in the stretch run of their 2025 seasons.

Backed by a massive six-run third inning, it was the Foxes finding a way to get it done as they took down their crosstown rivals 10-0 on Wednesday at Fox Valley Lutheran High School.

Seven of those 10 runs were earned as a series of costly miscues that put the Hawks in a tough spot, and spots where the Foxes were able to capitalize on.

“The boys played relaxed today and really enjoyed the game,” Fox Valley Lutheran coach Jason Malkowski said. “It was really fun to watch them.”

Behind a strong start from Jacob Bickel, who went the distance, allowing four hits and striking out five, it was the Foxes’ offense that got off to a fast start and never looked back.

Lincoln Thede started things with a one-out walk in the bottom of the first before advancing to second on a Jack Schlueter single. Two batters later, Luke Heimerl came through with an RBI single to put the Foxes in front 1-0.

Looking to bounce back in the second, Gavin Wiese led things off for Xavier with a single before advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt. With Quinn Comerford taking the lone walk of the game to put runners on first and second, Xavier had a chance to pull even, but could not get the hit they needed off Bickel as the Hawks remained in front 1-0.

Despite Frankie Cavaiani making the pitches he needed to make to try and limit the damage, it was the Xavier defense that let him down as a one-out error in the second opened the door for the Foxes to add to their lead.

Not only did they do that, but with Zach Daily picking up a double to push the lead to 2-0, it was Mason Stark delivering a little league homer as his RBI triple stretched the Foxes’ lead. Stark wound up scoring on that same play as the throw from the outfield landed in the Foxes’ dugout, allowing Stark to trot home and make things 4-0.

It only got worse from there for the Hawks as Cavaiani continued to face traffic on the bases, and a trio of singles opened the third and loaded the bases for the Foxes with no outs. A fourth-straight single from Daily pushed the FVL lead to 5-0, while another series of miscues aided in two more runs coming in as the Hawks were facing a massive 7-0 hole.

Not quite finished in the third, FVL continued to add to its lead as a Jack Schlueter double brought home the game’s eighth run, followed up by another Bickel double. FVL managed to tack on one more run in their half of the third as another Hawks’ error resulted in another run and a 10-0 lead.

Bickel took care of the rest on the mound, retiring six of the final seven hitters he faced to finish off the victory.

“Senior Jacob Bickel pitched today and he is a competitor,” Malkowski said. “He mixes speeds well but is really strong mentally. He didn’t let a couple guys on base get to him; he just bares down and gets the next pitch. That’s how our whole staff has operated this year. They mix speeds, throw a lot of strikes and are strong-minded individuals and that makes all the difference.” 

With the win, FVL moves to 10-6 on the season and remains within striking distance of first-place Little Chute in the North Eastern Conference standings.

“I love coaching this team and all the effort the boys have been putting in so yes I’m very happy with how we’re playing,” Malkowski said. “Our mantra the whole year has been to get better every day, so we will continue to do so. Focusing on the smaller details can hopefully lead up to big wins later on in the year.”

Both teams will play at home on Thursday as Xavier (6-7) hosts West De Pere for a Bay Conference game at Don Hawkins Field, while the Foxes will take on Luxemburg-Casco at Fox Valley Lutheran High School.

Foxes 10, Hawks 0
Xavier   000   00   –   0   4   5
Fox Valley Lutheran   136   0x   –   10   11   0
WP: Jacob Bickel. LP: Frankie Cavaiani.
SO: Cavaiani (2 2/3 inn.) 0, Easton Stempa (1 1/3 inn.) 0; Bickel 5. BB: Cavaiani 2, Stempa 0; Bickel 1.
Top hitters: FVL, Mason Stark 3B, 2 RBI; Jack Schlueter 2×3, 2B, RBI; Wyatt Schlueter 2 runs; Zach Daily 3×3, 2B, 2 RBI; Bickel 2B, RBI.
Records: Xavier 6-7; Fox Valley Lutheran 10-6.