51ºÚÁÏ

TROY, Ill. — Triad senior Hayden Bugger broke out in a huge grin when asked about batting practice. 

Bugger always entered the cage after teammate Hayden Bernreuter this season, and it's not exactly a fun act to follow.

"He's always putting on a show," Bugger said. "We were at practice one day and he hit 10 straight out of the park, and I was like, 'I can't do that.' " 

The fireworks Bernreuter displayed weren't limited to just practice.

The rest of the state got tickets to the Bernreuter show on a daily basis as he helped guide Triad to the program's best finish, a third-place trophy in the Class 3A state tournament, and a program record for wins (35) in a season.

"Our lineup was built to kind of complement 'Bernie' and a few other guys, and we were fortunate," Triad coach Jesse Bugger said. "We had a lot of guys who could swing the bat and have different strong suits. But yeah, he's a different animal when it comes to batting practice. He was special."

The 2025 All-Metro baseball player of the year, Bernreuter was dynamite with a bat in his hand, leading the area with 53 RBI from the two-hole spot in that potent Triad offense. He also posted a .453 batting average and an .820 slugging percentage with 18 doubles, nine triples and five home runs.

And if his bat wasn't enough, he was the de facto ace of a loaded pitching staff that featured the likes of Oklahoma State commit Drew Winslow, nine-game winner Nolan Keller and Sawyer Brunson. 

Bernreuter posted a 3-1 record on the mound with a 1.12 ERA in 37 2/3 innings pitched. He was tied for the team lead with 72 strikeouts and had a minuscule .96 WHIP, only allowing hitters a staggering .081 batting average against him. 

"I'm both," Bernreuter said when asked if he was a pitcher or hitter.

His defensive flair was almost a bonus, as he was a terror in right field too, gunning out numerous runners who were attempting to take an extra base.

The staggering numbers didn't surprise his coach.

"I mean, not to sound dumb about it, but I think at times last year, he showed that ability," Bugger said. "He matured and took a constant approach at the plate. It never really stopped."

While his bat was always a known quantity, he ascended on the mound this year.

Bernreuter credited Knights pitching coach Sam Weber for his improvement.

"Coach Weber is great," Bernreuter said. "He told me to just back off the effort and still be firm."

Originally Bernreuter was going to be the closer coming out of the bullpen, but Bugger quickly changed his mind when he saw how dominant the lefty was as a starter.

"It became pretty apparent after his first few outings closing games that we had something that we needed to use more often than just an inning," Bugger said.

And as the season progressed, it looked like there would be a collision course in the sectional title game between Bernreuter and Mascoutah's Austin Musso, the All-Metro pitcher of the year. 

It arrived June 7 at Triad.

Bernreuter hit the first pitch he saw over the right-field fence.

"I knew he was going to throw it hard, so I was looking for a fastball," Bernreuter said. 

And despite Musso throwing a gem of a performance, eight innings of one-run ball and 11 strikeouts, Bernreuter and the Knights pulled out a 2-1 win in nine innings. They won two days later in the super-sectional round to earn the program's first state semifinal appearance since 2018.

One highlight of the season had nothing to do with wins and trophies.

The Knights were stuck in a traffic jam trying to cross into Kentucky for an in-season tournament in Paducah. 

While sitting in what in a sense was a parking lot on Interstate 24, the Knights climbed out of the bus and tossed the ball around.

"We're stuck in standstill traffic for about three hours, just on the side of the highway playing catch," Bernreuter said. "There was a little construction barrier. So we went on the other side of that."

Bernreuter's next step is to play baseball at John A. Logan College in Carterville.

"They have great coaches and great facilities," Bernreuter said. "I feel like they'll be able to push me to a level I want to be at."

Even preparing to leave for college, Bernreuter has been front and center, helping the next class at Triad prepare for the 2026 season during summer workouts.

That's something Hayden Bugger also will miss when he does finally jet off to college.

Along with Bernreuter's fireworks during batting practice.