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Ravens pace area on small school list
Hershberger coaches All-Union squad, Mid-Prairie’s Telfer is captain
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
It was a wild year in small school baseball, as the area’s teams showed incredible parity throughout the summer of 2025.
When the dust settled, however, one team stood tall above all us. The Union area had one state-qualifying team, in Hillcrest Academy.
The Ravens lead this year’s All-Union small school baseball team, getting a coach and four players on the team.
Listed below is the full small school All-Union baseball team for the summer of 2025.
COACH: Danny Hershberger, Hillcrest Academy
Coach Hershberger’s Ravens had to battle tooth and nail to even get to the Class 1A state tournament, but his squad did what it needed to every step of the way.
Hillcrest had to knock out three Union area teams in nail-biters, besting Highland in the Substate opener and New London in the quarterfinals before taking down Pekin in the finals two rounds later. In between those games, the Ravens pulled a major upset, beating top-seeded Sigourney, 5-4 in the semis.
The win over Sigourney, however, wasn’t the biggest stunner the Ravens would pull. Hillcrest Academy shocked top-seeded Remsen St. Mary’s in the state quarterfinals, besting the Hawks 3-1 to win its first state tournament contest under the Hillcrest Academy name.
The Ravens held a lead in the state semifinals before eventually falling to Martensdale St. Mary’s, which ended a memorable summer. Overall, the Ravens went 18-8, including a 10-2 record in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division.
CAPTAIN: Tatem Telfer, senior, Mid-Prairie
Mid-Prairie’s senior star stood out in a tough River Valley conference all season long, leading the Golden Hawks at the plate and on the pitcher’s mound, en route to an All-State nomination.
Telfer finished the year with a .329 batting average, eight doubles, one triple and one home run, while leading the Golden Hawks with 21 RBIs.
Telfer went 5-1 on the mound for the Golden Hawks. He finished the year with a 2.15 ERA and 58 strikeouts.
PITCHER: Henry Adam, sophomore, Pekin
Pekin’s sophomore ace is already building a fantastic high school baseball resume just a few years into his varsity career.
Adam was one of the top pitchers in Iowa in 2025, going 5-2 with a 0.91 ERA and 99 strikeouts.
At the plate, Adam finished second on the team with a .328 batting average, while collecting five doubles, one home run and 12 RBIs, while also leading the team with 25 stolen bases.
PITCHER: Seth Ours, senior, Hillcrest Academy
Hillcrest’s senior pitcher and shortstop got better and better as the year went on, and he earns a spot on the All-Union squad as one of our pitchers.
Ours went 7-1 on the mound this year, finishing with a 1.76 ERA and a team-leading 55 strikeouts. He was on the mound when the Ravens upset Remsen St. Mary’s in the state quarterfinals.
At the plate, the Raven senior hit .303 with a double and 15 RBIs.
CATCHER: Liam Schrock, senior, Hillcrest Academy
A great team needs a strong presence behind the plate, and Shrock was exactly that all summer for the Ravens.
Not only did Schrock catch for some of the best pitching performances of the year, but he had a big year at the plate, hitting .278 with four doubles, three triples, three home runs and 17 RBIs.
INFIELD: Rowan Miller, junior, Hillcrest Academy
The Hillcrest Academy offense was extremely balanced this season, which may make it even more impressive for whoever stands out among the group.
That’s exactly what Miller did this season, hitting .325 with six doubles, two triples and 25 RBIs. He finished tops on the team in all but one of those categories, finishing second in triples.
INFIELD: Drake Durflinger, senior, Cardinal
The Cardinal baseball team made big waves in a tough South Central Conference this season, and senior slugger Durflinger had a big hand in it for the Comets.
Durflinger led the Comets with a .355 batting average. He also paced the team with eight doubles, three home runs and 23 RBIs.
INFIELD: Alijah Brock, sophomore, Pekin
Another stellar sophomore for Pekin, Brock stood tall with the top batting average on the team, hitting .424 this summer.
Brock ended the summer with five doubles, one triple and 14 RBIs this season, and saw his OPS finish just a tick above 1.000, at 1.003.
INFIELD: Gavin Menke-Bailey, senior, New London
New London had some standout offensive performances this year, and one of those was from the experienced Menke-Bailey.
The Tiger senior hit .403 this season, collected one double and one triple, and led the team with 24 RBIs.
OUTFIELD: Memphis Watson, senior New London
Watson provided a huge spark both in the outfield and on the pitcher’s mound this year, but he gets a spot as an outfielder, putting together a stellar offensive year for the Tigers.
Watson led New London with a .500 batting average, six doubles and four triples. He knocked in 20 runs and scored a team-leading 35 runs of his own.
OUTFIELD: Mason Helmuth, senior, Hillcrest Academy
Hillcrest Academy had a heck of an outfield this season, but Helmuth managed to edge out teammates, among others, for an outfield spot on the All-Union squad.
Helmuth hit .293 at the plate this season, finishing the year with five doubles and one home run. He knocked in 20 runs for the Ravens, one of just two Hillcrest Academy batters to reach that mark.
OUTFIELD: Riley Kaalberg, senior, Columbus/WMU
Winfield-Mount Union/Columbus showed off a lto of offensive talent from a balanced group of upperclassmen this summer, and Kaalberg had the best year of the squad.
Kaalberg hit .383 on the year, which finished second on the squad. He led the Wolves with six doubles, three home runs and 16 RBIs, while also hitting one triple.
UTILITY: Blake Baker, freshman, Keota
Keota’s star freshman was incredible this year, sticking out for the team wherever he was on the field.
Baker was nearly impossible to get out in just his freshman year, hitting .462, while drawing eight walks, both of which led the team. He also paced the squad with seven doubles, two triples and 20 RBIs.
Baker had more wins on the mound than any other Eagle. He finished 3-5 with a 4.93 ERA and a team-leading 38 strikeouts.
UTILITY: Izaak Loeffler, senior, Van Buren County
Van Buren County’s senior star made sure to make his final year count, leading Van Buren County in a multitude of categories this summer.
Loeffler hit .452 this year, leading the Warriors by over .100 batting average points. Loeffler led the Warriors with seven doubles, one triple and 16 RBIs. He also picked up one win on the mound and finished the year with a 306 ERA and 16 strikeouts.
