At the end of the year, our staff reflects back on some of the best moments that came from the past 365 days. As the final month comes to a close, we wanted to highlight the 10 most interesting headlines from around the state, finishing with our number one storyline that will be released on New Year’s Day.

The 2022 WIAA season was dominated by the Whitefish Bay Blue Dukes, a team that held the #1 spot in our rankings throughout the entirety of the season. RHP/INF Mitchell Voit (Whitefish Bay, 2022; Michigan) asserted himself as a leader and the best player on the Blue Dukes’ squad, which earned him the PBR Wisconsin POTY Award. 

Voit, now showcasing his talent at Michigan, was the star of the WIAA in 2022 on both sides of the field. He began his season with a 5-inning no-hitter, striking out 12 batters, and adding on to one of his five complete games over the course of the season. His 0.54 ERA and 11-0 record illustrated his pure dominance on the bump, as he struck out 87 batters in 53 ⅔ innings of work.

The righty had Whitefish Bay’s last win of the year, as they took down a Homestead team that had beat them earlier in the season. In his effort during the sectional matchup, Voit shutout the Highlanders, allowing three hits and striking out 10 batters. The Blue Dukes won 3-0, as Voit got the victory to advance to the sectional championship. 

RHP Mitch Voit (@WFB_Baseball, 2022) was dominant in this key Sectional semis matchup with Homestead. The Michigan recruit sat 88-91 mph throughout the entire ballgame; SL as crisp/sharp as ever. Final line: CG (7 IP), 0 R, 3 H, 2 BB, 10 K.

Whitefish Bay 3, Homestead 0 | F pic.twitter.com/clK3mvetHk

— PBR Wisconsin (@PBRWisconsin) June 7, 2022

Offensively, the numbers were video-game like. Voit hit .566 on the year, with 11 doubles, two triples, and five home runs. His loud power numbers led him to produce a 1.461 OPS for the Blue Dukes. He had 37 RBIs in 28 games, emphasizing his clutch gene that was on display all season long, including in one of the top games of the season against Arrowhead. 

3B/RHP Mitchell Voit (2022; @umichbaseball) turns on this one and barrels it down the LF line for an RBI double. @WFB_Baseball scratches another run across in the ⬇️3️⃣ on a defensive miscue and now leads 2-1. pic.twitter.com/xG4sHz295O

— PBR Wisconsin (@PBRWisconsin) May 14, 2022

After his high school season, it was time for Voit to take his talents to Michigan. The freshman seemed to make noise right away in fall ball, as he smashed a grand slam over the center field wall against Xavier. 

Michigan is on the board with a Grand Slam from @1Mvvoit!!

Xavier leads 8-4. #GoBlue〽️ pic.twitter.com/gcJTyEXKZK

— Michigan Baseball (@umichbaseball) October 1, 2022

Voit has continued to develop through the Michigan system, as he completed his first semester of being a student-athlete recently.

“The school part is really demanding, you're really busy the entire time. You go to the morning lift, class, baseball, and do homework in the night,” Voit said. “It was a really fun time and coming in with a ton of guys and you're all going through this new phase together, it was really fun.”

His work at the Hitters program was a big point of emphasis in his preparation for the workload.

“RJ [Fergus] is really good with the mental aspect of it, I never felt overmatched during the drills,” Voit said. “He gets you tough enough to handle that level of play.”

With the mental and physical aspect covered, Voit was able to get comfortable in his new home and continue to advance his skills as a college two-way athlete. 

“Coming in, all of the upperclassmen were really good mentors and the new coaching staff, I love learning about them, they're really great people and coaches,” Voit said of the Michigan program. “They’ve been doing a great job of managing my arm and they've been really good about managing my body during the fall.”

2022 shaped up to be a successful run for Voit, but he has specific goals heading into 2023 and beyond. 

“I want to start and I want to help the team win in every possible way that I can, and eventually make it to Omaha.”

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