2025 Kane County Chronicle Baseball All-Area Team

Here is the 2025 Kane County Chronicle All-Area Baseball Team.

First team

Ben Auer, St. Charles North, junior, outfielder: Auer led the North Stars with a .365 batting average that included a team-best 35 hits and 11 doubles. He also scored 29 runs and drove in 23 to help the North Stars to the DuKane Conference title.

Joey Arend, St. Charles East, senior, pitcher/outfielder: Arend, a Xavier commit, hit .298 (.448 on-base percentage) with 32 runs, 22 steals and 12 doubles for the Saints. He also excelled on the mound, earning six wins and striking out 83 over 53 innings, including a single-season best 51 strikeouts in DuKane Conference play.

Mason Breusch, Geneva, senior, pitcher/outfielder: Breusch led the Vikings’ offense with a .412 batting average and had 47 hits, including nine doubles, a triple and four home runs. The sophomore also recorded 54 strikeouts on the mound in 48⅓ innings.

Brodie Curry, Aurora Central Catholic, junior, outfielder: Curry paced the Chargers’ offense, hitting .369 with 24 runs, nine doubles, four triples, three home runs and 27 RBIs.

Joey Gainer, St. Francis, senior, catcher: The Missouri Southern commit hit .387 on the season with five home runs and 41 RBIs to pace the Spartans’ offense to 18 consecutive wins and a sectional final appearance.

Nolan Galla, St. Francis, senior, pitcher/infielder: The 2025 Kane County Chronicle Baseball Player of the Year, Galla batted .405 and recorded a .489 on-base percentage with two home runs and 36 RBIs. He also went to the mound consistently starting in mid-April, going 6-2 with a 2.38 ERA while striking out 63 over 47 innings to win the Chicago Catholic League White Division Pitcher of the Year award.

Preston Popovich, Kaneland, senior, pitcher/infielder: A Class 3A all-state honorable mentionee, Popovich led the Knights on offense, batting .402 with 45 hits, 35 runs, 14 steals, four doubles and 30 RBIs. The Benedictine commit also posted a 1.59 ERA and 33 strikeouts across 39⅔ innings on the mound.

Chase Powrozek, Burlington Central, senior, pitcher/outfielder: A power player for the Rockets, Powrozek put up a 1.98 ERA and struck out 98 across 66⅓ innings. He had seven wins on the mound. The Wisconsin-Parkside commit hit .254 with nine doubles, three home runs and 19 RBIs on offense.

Keaton Reinke, St. Charles North, junior, pitcher/outfielder: Reinke hit .313 and had 31 hits, including 10 doubles and two triples. He scored 36 runs and stole a program-record 35 bases. On the mound, the Northwestern football commit went 5-2 with a 2.73 ERA and had 73 strikeouts in 51⅔ innings.

Matt Ritchie, St. Charles North, sophomore, pitcher/infielder: Ritchie went 6-5 on the mound with a 2.00 ERA and 76 strikeouts over 52⅓ innings. He batted .280 with 26 hits and drove in 21 runs on offense to lead the North Stars to their second straight DuKane Conference title.

Peter Sollaway, St. Francis, junior, pitcher: Sollaway had a 7-2 record on the mound for the Spartans. He posted a 1.32 ERA and struck out 54 batters across 48 innings to help St. Francis reach a sectional final.

Connar Temple, Batavia, senior, pitcher: Temple went 4-3 on the mound with a 1.21 ERA, including a DuKane Conference record 0.41 ERA in league play. He had 72 strikeouts across 52 innings for the Bulldogs. The Northern Illinois commit was named DuKane Conference Pitcher of the Year.

Honorable mention

Kanon Baxley, freshman, Kaneland; Liam Darre, junior, Batavia; James Feigleson, junior, St. Charles East; Raul Gomez Jr., senior, Aurora Central Catholic; Ty Heimbuch, senior, St. Charles North; Zack Maduzia, senior, St. Francis; James McGrath, sophomore, St. Francis; Mason Netcel, junior, St. Charles North; Brandon Oke, sophomore, Batavia; Caden Sorenson, senior, Geneva; Nelson Wendell, sophomore, Geneva; Aidan Whildin, senior, Kaneland; Charlie Zebig, junior, Marmion; Andrew Zolna, senior, St. Charles East