This year’s All-Nebraska honorary captains were instrumental in bringing their schools something they had never attained — a state championship.

Shortstop Max Anderson helped Millard West land its elusive first Class A title after finishing runner-up seven times. The Texas A&M recruit batted .358 and led the state with 10 home runs.

Center fielder Cooper Prososki also played a key role as Bennington secured its first Class B crown. The three-sport standout batted .373 with 37 RBIs.

The duo tops a 14-member first team that includes one returnee from last season — Grand Island’s Cole Evans. Class A runner-up Millard South placed the most players on the first team with three.

Joining Anderson on the first team is his Millard West teammate, pitcher Caleb Riedel.

The three Patriots on the squad are catcher Drew Wessel, infielder Noah Greise and outfielder Tyson Gerdes.

Omaha Burke landed two first- teamers in pitcher Alex Wize and outfielder Noah Olson. The two other pitchers on the first team are Division I recruits Sayer Diederich of Elkhorn South and Sam Wibbels of Hastings.

Other first-team selections are Cam Frederick of Lincoln Southwest, Conner Barnett of Papillion-La Vista and Austin Callahan of Fremont Bergan.

Nominations by coaches and observations by World-Herald sportswriters determine the honor teams.

Anderson, a second-team selection last year as a sophomore, was instrumental in the Wildcats’ march to a title. He stepped up his game even more at the state tournament, bringing a quiet confidence to the team.

Millard West won its first 19 games, including a season-opening victory over three-time defending champion Omaha Creighton Prep — a game that saw a rarity from Anderson.

“I think Max had three throwing errors that game,” Wildcat coach Steve Frey said. “That was really unlike him but it was business as usual for him as the season went along.”

Anderson’s consistent bat and glove helped lift Millard West into state, though the Wildcats didn’t exactly enter the tournament on a high note.

They went 4-5 down the stretch, including a home loss to Kearney in the district final.

“Losing those games, especially the district final, showed us how much harder we needed to work,” Anderson said. “It really helped us to refocus.”

Millard West went 5-0 in the tournament, including an 11-inning win over Millard South in the final. Anderson did not have an error in the tourney and homered twice to lead the way.

“It was always my dream to win a title,” he said. “We had great senior leadership and great team chemistry, and that’s how we were able to get it done.”

Like the Wildcats, Prososki’s Badgers also needed to refocus to eventually attain their goal.

Bennington lost a late-season game 12-6 to Wahoo, which didn’t sit well with a squad that had high hopes.

“We had some guys losing their tempers and it just wasn’t a great scene,” Prososki said. “I think our whole season could have gone the other way but we got things straightened out.”

As a team captain, Prososki was instrumental in making sure that happened.

“Cooper is a three-year starter and you could just tell how badly he wanted to win the title,” Bennington coach Scott Heese said. “Plus, he brings tremendous experience from his other sports.”

Prososki, who also played football and basketball, definitely helped get the message across to his teammates. The Badgers won their last nine games, including a five-win run through the Class B state tournament.

He had six RBIs in one state tourney game and also contributed on the mound, finishing the season with 43 strikeouts.

“Cooper will be remembered for his poise under pressure,” Heese said. “Nothing seems to rattle him, and that rubs off on the younger guys.”

Evans, who batted .432 last season to make the first team, had an even bigger year for Grand Island. The Creighton recruit batted .556 and finished with 30 RBIs and 30 runs.

Unfortunately, he didn’t get a chance to play in the state tournament.

Evans broke a finger in a district-final win over Creighton Prep and had to watch from the bench as the Islanders, without their star, went 0-2 in the tourney.

Riedel went 3-1 for the Wildcats, striking out 53 in 44 innings. He had a 1.27 ERA and finished the season with a strong effort in the Class A final, holding Millard South scoreless for eight innings.

Wessel, a Nebraska recruit, batted .298 for the Class A runners-up. He led the Patriots in RBIs (28) and is recognized by opposing coaches as one of the top defensive catchers in the state.

Greise, Millard South’s second baseman, batted .407. The Wichita State recruit had 35 hits, including 13 doubles, and 26 RBIs.

Gerdes, the Patriots’ speedy center fielder, finished with a .379 average. He had 39 hits, 20 RBIs and a state-leading 25 stolen bases.

Wize went 3-1 for Burke with a 1.47 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 38 innings. He also batted .385.

Olson batted .455 for Burke and was among the state leaders with five triples. He was a second-team selection last year after batting .403.

Diederich, a Nebraska recruit, went 6-1 with a 1.31 ERA and 54 strikeouts for Elkhorn South. He also batted .408 as the leadoff hitter for the Storm.

Wibbels, who will play collegiately at Kentucky, led the state with 120 strikeouts. He finished the season 8-1 with a 1.36 ERA in 51 1⁄3 innings for Class B Hastings.

Frederick, a Creighton recruit, batted .370 for the Silver Hawks. He had a 14-game hitting streak during the season and led Southwest in hits (30) and triples (four).

Barnett led Papio with a .456 average. The UNO recruit was second in Class A with 17 hits and also stole 16 bases.

Callahan batted .443 for the Knights, who went 2-2 at the Class A state tournament. He scored 24 runs and drove in 22 as the Fremont Bergan/Fremont High co-op finished 16-6.

Second team

Pos., Player, School, Class, Rec./Avg.

P – Logan Van Treeck, Lincoln Southeast/Sr./3-1

P – Colton Smith, Bennington/Jr./5-2

P – Jayden Payne, Millard South/Jr./6-1

P – Jonah Reiser, Waverly/Sr./6-1

C – Brayden Miller, Kearney/Sr./.345

INF – Michael Boeve, Hastings/Jr./.377

INF – Drew Reetz, Elkhorn South/Sr./.324

INF – Aiden Bishop, Lincoln North Star/Sr./.419

INF – Ryan David, Millard West/Sr./.349

OF – Quinn Mason, Gretna/Sr./.333

OF – Nico Sall, Omaha Creighton Prep/Jr./.300

OF – Caden Opfer, Gretna/Sr./.427

DH – Joe Osborn, Norris/Sr./.522

UT – Marcus Rivera, Omaha Central/Sr./.333