The IHSA 1A and 2A postseason starts this week, and the brackets for each individual sectional were released yesterday, May 7th. For a full look at the full 1A/2A playoff brackets, click HERE.
Last week, our staff went through the 1A sectionals that fall inside of our coverage map and broke down some teams to know. You can find that story by clicking HERE.
We’re turning our attention to the 2A sectionals today, as we’ve noted several teams to know with the postseason set to start up.
As a reminder, teams taken into consideration are those that fall into our ‘Coverage Map’, which includes all of Southern Illinois, the Metro East area, Springfield, and up as high as Mt. Zion. This does not mean that our staff won’t provide coverage to all areas of the state, as well as Missouri, but for the purposes of this article, and our rankings, we will stick to all teams in 1A and 2A that fall underneath the Mt. Zion line.
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PLEASANT PLAINS SECTIONAL
Pleasant Plains (28-6): The Cardinals spent the entirety of the spring season in our ‘Small School’ rankings, and rightfully so. They’re one of the top teams in the entire 2A classification and, at the time of this publication, have won nine of their past 10 games. Plains is the top seed on their side of the bracket with the talent and experience to make a deep playoff push. Grady Grisham (2026), Trager Shultz (2025; Lincoln Land CC), and Charlie Severino (2025) have all swung it well in the middle of this Plains’ lineup. Sean Lowder (2025) and Cooper Schallenberg (2025) have both thrown well in 50+ inning workloads; Lowder has a 0.69 ERA on the season and has just walked two, while Schallenberg has a 1.51 ERA with 12 walks. Landon Maisenbacher (2028) and Andrew Potthoff (2028) are two talented freshman that continue to make an everyday impact as well.
Litchfield (20-11): The Purple Panthers made it to a Super-Sectional last season and will look to replicate some of that magic this time around. As the two seed in their sub-sectional, the Panthers will travel to Auburn and, should they win, will face the winner of the Riverton regional next Wednesday. Max Leitschuh (2026) has had a huge spring for Litchfield, batting .505 with 16 extra-base hits, while Ethan Saathoff (2026) has homered five times for the Purple Panthers. Leitschuh has been rather important on the mound as well, punching out 66 in 41 ⅔ innings of work.
North Mac (15-7): A host, the Panthers are the top seed on their side of this bracket. On the season, North Mac has picked up some key wins over Carrollton (3-1), Southwestern (5-2), Staunton (7-3), and Litchfield (5-3).
Sacred-Heart Griffin (19-8-1): Another team that spent the entire season inside our ‘Small School’ rankings, the Cyclones are the two seed on their side of the bracket and will travel to Quincy Notre Dame for their regional play. They have an ace in Andy Antonacci (2025; Heartland CC) and numerous other talented contributors that make them one of the top teams in the area, like Drew Ward (2026), Carson Butler (2026), Ty Springer (2026), Will Pennell (2026), Austin Rutter (2027), and Mikey Groesh (2027), to name a few.
Shelbyville (18-7): The Rams have established themselves as a perennial winner at this point and this program has seen plenty of success over the past few seasons, including making it to a Super Sectional in 2023. They won their conference and picked up 18 wins this year, good enough to earn the three seed on their side of the bracket.
Quincy Notre Dame (18-10): QND is another program that’s no stranger to success over the past few years, making a run to the 2A state playoffs as recently as 2023. The Raiders have a star in Abram Wiewel (2025; John Wood CC), a physical senior who’s homered 10 times this spring and has 81 punchouts over 41 innings on the hill. They’re the three seed and will host their Regional, drawing Porta in round one.
DUQUOIN SECTIONAL
Nashville (28-1): This Nashville program has cemented itself as one of the most consistent in the state, as you can essentially pencil them in for nearly 30 wins on a year-to-year basis. They lost one game the entire regular season and enter these playoffs as the top team on their side of the bracket. Lucas Dunn (2026) is a bonafide ace, with names like Isaac Blazier (2025), Brance Lussenheide (2025), and Samuel Kollbaum (2025) getting it done on the offensive end. Nashville will travel to Carterville for their regional.
DuQuoin (18-14): We tabbed this DuQuoin club as a team to watch throughout the spring, though they’ve taken their lumps throughout the spring after a highly impressive 2024 campaign that saw most of that group return. Still, the Indians played a tough schedule, and they won’t be an easy out for anyone, especially when Cy Craft (2027) and Dedrick Melvin (2025; Rend Lake JC) are on the mound. DuQuoin is the fourth seed in their sub-sectional and matches up with host Carterville in round one.
Carterville (16-12): The Lions were another team that spent more than a few weeks inside our ‘Small School’ rankings. They’re a young group that took their lumps throughout the season, largely due to a tough schedule, and are the fifth seed in this regional with a matchup against DuQuoin set for next Thursday. Carterville has a power arm in Parker Poole (2025; John A. Logan JC) that it can trot out, as well as one of the more talented freshman arms in the state with Haiden Lange (2028), who punched out 38 over 28 innings of work. Offensively, Alex Lyell (2026), Aidan Swallers (2026), Drake Capie (2026), and Logan Ingle (2025; East Central CC) all had strong seasons at the plate,
Johnston City (20-7): The Indians are a team that were on our ‘Next Up’ for the rankings a handful of times this season. They won 20 games and are the two seed on their side of this bracket, traveling to Fairfield for their regional. Logan Moore (2026) is a talented arm to watch for this club as they look to make a playoff push.
Harrisburg (21-10): You can’t ever count out the Bulldogs and legendary head coach Jay Thompson, who’s amongst the winningest ever in the IHSA. This Bulldogs’ club blends some senior experience with talented youngsters at key positions, and while they’ve had a few ups and downs, they’ve also beaten some of the top 1A and 2A teams in Southern Illinois. The third seed, Harrisburg will travel to Fairfield for their regional.
Massac County (15-6): The Patriots are the top seed on their side of the bracket and will host regional play. They’ve picked up some impressive wins throughout the spring, taking down Zeigler-Royalton, Harrisburg, Carterville, and Vienna. Two sophomores, Ryan Musselman (2027) and Max Elliott (2027) have played huge roles for Massac County this season.
Zeigler-Royalton/Christopher (21-9): Another team that spent some time inside our ‘Small School’ rankings this season, the Tornadoes will head to Sparta for regional play as the second seed in this bracket. ZRC has an ace in Connor DeWeerdt (2025; Rend Lake JC), a tall, athletic left-handed arm that’s punched out 79 over 51 ⅓ innings on the hill with a 1.09 ERA. Kylar Reese-Phillips (2025) leads the team with a .400 batting average and Chase Freeman (2025) has homered six times.
Red Bud (18-7): The Musketeers are enjoying a successful season, as they currently sit in first place in their conference and are the third seed on their side of this bracket. Lucas Schwartzkopf (2025) has homered five times and driven in a team-high 24 RBI, batting .410 on the year. Derrick Whelan (2025) has punched out 56 batters in 43 ⅔ innings on the mound, pitching to a 2.08 ERA. Red Bud will travel to Sparta for their regional, where they’ll draw Pinckneyville in round one.
TEUTOPOLIS SECTIONAL
Greenville (25-4): The Comets have rebounded this year in a massive way, improving their win total by more than 10 games from last season and earning the top seed in their sub-sectional after a first place conference finish. At one point, Greenville won 12 games in a row, and they turned around and had another seven game win streak shortly after that one ended. The Comets will head to Breese Central for their regional.
Teutopolis (24-5): A perennial contender between the 1A and 2A classifications, the Wooden Shoes spent the entire season inside our ‘Small School’ rankings. We’ve viewed them as one of the top 2A teams in the entire state and for them to be a second seed is a tough draw for their opposition. The Wooden Shoes have depth on the mound, with names like Austin Borries (2026; Lindenwood), Gavin Addis (2026), Davin Worman (2026), Mick Niebrugge (2025; Milliken), and others. Borries, Worman, Niebrugge, Dawson Hoene (2025), and Jason Kreke (2026) are the heart of this offense capable of putting up runs in bunches, but also executing in the short game if they need to. T-Town is firmly a favorite for the 2A state championship.
Newton (15-14): The Eagles will host their regional, drawing the winner of Robinson and Oblong on Wednesday night. They’re a young group that doesn’t have many seniors, and is home to Quincy Fulton (2028), one of the top freshmen prospects in the midwest. He’s homered four times and is batting .365 on the year, while Drake Wolf (2026) has driven in a team-high 24 runs. Carson Barthelme (2026) has been excellent in 50 ⅔ innings on the mound, walking just 11 with a 1.38 ERA.
Breese Central (18-10): Winners of six of their last seven, the Cougars have taken their lumps throughout the season, but have also shown flashes of excellence as the year has gone on. There’s a reason we ranked them in the preseason, and had them inside our top-10 for a majority of the season. Dan Kohrmann (2025) leads the team with 37 RBI, slashing .391/.462/.511 on the season. Benny Lehman (2025) picked right up where he left off last season, batting .356 with 10 extra-base hits and a 1.024 OPS, swiping 26 bags as well, with a 1.72 ERA in 36 ⅔ innings on the mound. Alex Athmer (2027), Bryce Wieter (2026), and Easton Becker (2025) are three arms that have all thrown the ball well as the season’s rolled on. The Cougars will host their regional, matching up with Carlyle in round one on Thursday at 3:00 PM.
St. Anthony (19-7): The reigning 2A state champions are near the cream of the crop again, earning the top seed in their sub-sectional. They brought a large majority of their trophy-winning club back from last season and have a multitude of impressive wins this spring: St. Joseph-Ogden (4-3), Mahomet-Seymour (5-0), Teutopolis (11-5), Belleville East (7-5), and a ‘City Series’ win over Effingham. Brock Fearday (2025; SWIC), Brady Hatton (2025; Kaskaskia JC), Will Fearday (2025), Aidan Lauritzen (2026), and Henry Brent (2026) have all had strong seasons for one of the state’s top 2A programs. The Bulldogs will travel to Paris for their regional.
Roxana (19-9-1): Another team that spent multiple weeks inside our ‘Small School’ top-10 rankings, the Shells won their regional last year and will look to repeat again. Their junior class has propelled this group, with names like Dalton Carriker (2026), Mason Crump (2026), and Max Autery (2026) all having strong seasons, as is senior Kael Hester (2025). Carriker leads the way with a .354 batting average and he has a 1.01 ERA in 27 ⅔ innings on the mound as well. Crump has been the Shells’ ace, pitching to a 0.74 ERA across a 47-inning sample, punching out 65 while walking just 14. Slowed by an off-season injury, Autery has started to find his footing, slashing .329/.420/.513 with 10 extra-base hits and 14 RBI while serving as their regular behind the dish. Hester leads the team with 26 RBI and has 10 extra-base hits, batting .323 with a .883 OPS. Two seniors, Landon Sitze (2025; Danville CC) and Trevor Gihring (2025) are two senior arms that have each thrown the ball well in extended innings. Another name to highlight is Bradley Herrin (2027), an upside sophomore that’s turned in a 1.79 ERA in his 27 ⅓ innings of work. The Shells will host their regional, drawing the winner of Althoff Catholic and Staunton on Wednesday afternoon.
Columbia (14-13): Despite not having the most impressive record, the Eagles won’t be an easy out for anyone in these playoffs and are a battle tested group that’s played a tough schedule throughout the spring. The middle of their lineup is full of upperclassmen, starting with Brody Landgraf (2026; Creighton), who’s one of the area’s most impactful left-handed bats, slashing .329/.407/.513 throughout the spring with 10 extra-base hits. Cash Bailey (2025; Mineral Area JC) swatted five home runs and Micah James (2025) slashed .413/.522/.613 with 10 extra-base hits while also serving as their everyday shortstop. Mason Voegele (2025) is a left-handed hitter that sets the table at the top of this lineup that led the team with 15 walks. On the mound, Sam Donald (2025; Bellarmine basketball) pitched to a 2.79 ERA in 32 ⅔ innings of work, while freshman Connor Basinski (2028) was crucial in his first season of varsity action, pitching to a 2.19 ERA in his 32 innings. The Eagles will travel to Roxana on Thursday to face the winner of Marquette Catholic and East Alton-Wood River.
