Titan baseball to open season this Sunday

The Tea Area High School baseball team enters the 2026 season looking to continue building momentum as the Titans work toward making it to the State Tournament under head coach Rob Schramm.

Now entering his third season leading the varsity program, Schramm said the team has focused on strengthening its foundation and taking steps forward during the offseason.

“We are on the right track of setting our foundation for growing our program,” Schramm said. “During the offseason workouts, we brought in a pitching and hitting coach that will elevate our play during the season.”

The Titans narrowly missed qualifying for last year’s state tournament, but Schramm said valuable varsity experience gained by younger players should pay dividends this spring.

“Last season we missed qualifying for the State Tournament, but we were very excited about the opportunities our underclassmen experienced,” he said.

Tea Area graduated several key contributors, including Cole McKinney, who will continue his baseball career at Iowa Lakes Community College, along with Ben Vasecka, Jake Lingren, Jon Schlunsen and Sam Werdel.

Returning players expected to play major roles this season include Avery Hangman, Bryson Prussman, Ethan Knettel, Landyn Johnson, Nathan Hall, Tyson Gilbert and Zach Pies.

Schramm said the Titans will again rely heavily on younger talent, with just one senior on the varsity roster.

“Again this season, we will count on a heavily talented underclassman team,” Schramm said. “There is one senior, Landen Madsen, on the team. We look forward to constant improvement throughout the season, with a return to the State Tournament.”

One of Tea Area’s biggest strengths entering the season is pitching depth. Schramm believes that depth will be critical during a demanding 28-game schedule.

“We feel comfortable in sending out eight pitchers to help get through the 28-game season,” he said. “Seven of our 14-player roster have seen varsity pitching in the previous season.”

While pitching experience is a positive, Schramm said team speed and strength remain areas the Titans must overcome, but also noted fundamentals and preparedness should make up for that.

Tea Area will face stiff competition throughout the season, with Schramm identifying Sioux Falls Jefferson, Brandon Valley and Sioux Falls Lincoln as top contenders, while also expecting tough match-ups against Harrisburg, Sioux Falls O’Gorman and Sioux Falls Roosevelt. 

“The boys put some good work in during the offseason with intentions of constant improvement,” Schramm said. “If we get their best performances, we should be there at the end.”

Assistant coaches for the Titans this season are Dagen Schramm, Kade Russell, Rick Willemssen and Mark Jelen.

The 2026 varsity roster includes Avery Hangman, Blake Gabbert, Brayden Gniffke, Bryson Prussman, Easton Foudray, Ethan Knettel, Kaden Christian, Landen Madsen, Landyn Johnson, Miles Jelen, Nate Hall, Owen Schramm, Reece Christian, Tyson Gilbert, Zach Pies and Zach Rieland.

The Titans open their season this Saturday, Mar. 29 at home against Pierre. Game time is set for noon. They will be home again on Friday, Apr. 3 when they host Spearfish at 11 a.m. A complete schedule can be found below. Dates, times and locations subject to change. Follow @TeaBaseballAssociation on Facebook for updates.