SIOUX FALLS, S.D.--The Augustana baseball team added eight student-athletes who signed their National Letters of Intent to continue their athletic and academic careers at Augustana on Wednesday.
Kobe Eikmeier | SS | Omaha, Neb. | Elkorn South High School
Huber on Eikmeier: "It became clear the more I watched Kobe that he was going to be our primary target at the SS spot for this year's class. In terms of guys we watched play this year he stood out defensively and we knew he was a guy who can stay at that spot and be a really good defensive presence. His offensive skills really improved over the past year and he was really aggressive and successful stealing bases. We see his frame developing and filling out and adding some offensive skills to go along with his already strong play at SS."
High School: Eikmeier is a two-year starter and letterwinner for Elkorn South High School. As a junior, he hit .373 (93/297) with 46 RBI, 73 runs scored, and 55 stolen bases while helping lead his team to a district championship and third place finish in the Class A State Tournament.
Personal: Kobe is the son of Clint and Ashley Eikmeier. While at Augustana, he plans on majoring in business and finance.
Reid Hartmann | C | Red Wing, Minn. | Red Wing High School
Huber on Hartmann: "Reid was the first guy to commit in this class and that sums up what we expect from Reid in the future within our program, a leader. He has all those skills and intangibles already, and it is very clear watching him play how big of a priority he puts on the team and leading from behind the plate. His dad is a coach who I have known for a lot of years and it's clear Reid has grown up around the game. He has a great frame and we can see him growing into that frame to be a really good college catcher. His catch and throw skills are already very solid and that has to be the first thing we always look for when recruiting that position."
High School: Hartmann is a four-year starter and letterwinner for Red Wing High School. A two-time captain, Harman earned all-conference and all-section honors as a junior, and was all-conference honorable mention as a sophomore.
Personal: Reid is the son of Paul and Stacy Hartmann. He is undecided on a major.
Carter Heinsch | OF | Moorhead, Minn. | Homeschool
Huber on Heinsch: "Carter is a really intriguing athlete. It probably won't be fair to him to make this comparison but there are certainly a lot of similarities to another former Viking named Carter (Howell) from the same hometown. Howell signed with the Giants following our 2023 season. His high school coach used that comparison and the first time I saw Heinsch play I could definitely see it. He came to our prospect camp this summer and ran well and I liked some things I saw from his swing watching him up close. There are certainly some things to work on but I just really like the upside and potential and he runs around and tracks the ball well in the outfield."
High School: Heinsch is a three-year starter and letterwinner at Moorhead High School. In his final regular season game as a junior, Heinsch went 4 for 5 with a home run, two runs scored and three RBI in an 11-2 victory.
Personal: Carter is the son of Glenn and Mindy Heinsch. While at Augustana, he is undecided on a major.
Bjorn Lind | INF/RHP | Duluth, Minn. | Duluth East High School
Huber on Lind: "We have had some recruiting contact with Bjorn for quite a while and always knew he was going to be someone on our radar. His cousin (Nate Hewes) lives in town and was an all-american for us, so he had a natural interest and connection to our program. He was a pretty small frame and small guy a year ago and I wasn't sure how his skills and frame would progress (and if he would be a guy at our level). I pushed him to keep working and improving and this summer he showed us the improvements in pretty much all areas. He has a really good skill set in the infield and good arm strength. His frame needs to fill out and we never shy away from guys like that. On the mound he is a strike thrower and has some upside. He handles the bat well and overall is just a very solid baseball player that we feel just needs to continue adding size and strength to his growing frame."
High School: Lind is a three-year starter and letterwinner for Duluth East High School. As a junior, Lind hit .319 and threw 26 innings en route to all-section honors. As a sophomore, he hit .346 and had a 1.90 ERA, earning all-section tournament team.
Personal: Bjorn is the son of Matt and Ann Lind. While at Augustana, he is undecided on a major.
Caden Oberbroekling | LHP | Geddes, S.D. | Platte High School
Huber on Oberbroekling: "Caden is going to be just scratching the surface of his ability when he gets to campus next fall. We are excited to add a LHP with his skillset and the upside that he has. Playing multiple sports he hasn't had the opportunity to put a lot of time into pitching and we feel he will take off once he gets to college to fill out his body and focus on developing pitches."
High School: Oberbroekling is a two-year letterwinner and starter for Platte High School. As a junior, he racked up 54 strikeouts in 28 1/3 innings on the mound, touting a 3.21 ERA, earning all-state honors and helping his team qualify for state. That followed a sophomore performance that saw him strike out 35 and hold a 2.27 ERA in 21 ⅓ innings for a state qualifying Platte team.
Personal: Caden is the son of Brian and Jennifer Oberbroekling. While at Augustana, he plans on majoring in business.
Josiah Petersen | RHP/UTIL | Foley, Minn. | Foley High School
Huber on Petersen: "Josiah is a really talented and raw baseball player. He is the typical multi-sport athlete that I love to recruit who is only scratching the surface on the baseball field. He has a great frame and is already pretty physical, but runs well and is really athletic. On the mound he has a ton of potential but we also like what he could turn into in terms of an offensive force. He plays catcher and 3B when not pitching now, but we could see him playing anywhere on the field for us. When I saw him pitch in the state tournament he got stronger and threw harder as the game went on, which certainly isn't typical. He already shows mid 80s velocity and an above average breaking ball."
High School: Petersen is a four-year letterwinner, three-year starter, and two-year captain for Foley High School. As a junior, Petersen hit .526 with 16 doubles, and nine home runs at the plate while going 4-0 with a 2.22 ERA on the mound. Petersen earned all-state, all-conference, and conference MVP while leading the Falcons to the state tournament. That followed a sophomore season that saw him earn all-conference honors after batting .336 and adding a 2.50 ERA.
Personal: Josiah is the son of Jordan and Emily Petersen. While at Augustana, he is undecided on a major.
Cal Schmelzle | RHP/INF | Lakeville, Minn. | Lakeville North
Huber on Schmelzle: "Cal is an awesome fit for us in so many ways. He is a pre-med guy with great grades, a physical guy who loves to work hard, and his competitive side is really easy to see on the field. He wants the ball and wants to be the guy. He also is a leader for one of the top FB teams in the state's biggest class, playing linebacker. That says a lot about his mentality. On the mound Cal's best pitch is probably his changeup and we always like guys who have a feel for a changeup in high school already. He adds another left handed bat to our infield as well."
High School: Schmelzle is a three-year starter and letterwinner at Lakeville North High School. As a junior, he earned all-conference honors, and earned all-conference honorable mention honors as a sophomore.
Personal: Cal is the son of Scott and Toni Schmelzle. While at Augustana, he plans on majoring in biochemistry, pre-med.
Nate Soelter | UTIL/RHP | Fairmont, Minn. | Fairmont High School
Huber on Soelter: "I'm really excited to get Nate to campus and help him fill out and see his skills take off. He is already a really talented baseball player with arm strength and well above average foot speed. He is similar to some other guys we have recruited that we just told him we will figure out later what position he will play since he has the ability to play infield or OF. Because of how he runs I'm most excited about him as a position guy for us, but he also is really intriguing on the mound. Nate is a cage rat and very dedicated to baseball and we typically see guys who have his skill set and that want to be great turn into really good players for us."
High School: Soelter is a four-year starter and letterwinner for Fairmont High School. A two-time captain, Soelter hit .391 and held a 1.141 OPS while going 7-1 with a 1.92 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 62 innings on the hill as a junior. That season earned him all-conference, all-section, and all-state tournament team honors while leading his team to a third place finish at state. He also hit .322 and held a 2.02 ERA en route to all-conference and all-section honors while winning a state championship as a junior.
Personal: Nate is the son of Tim and Sandy Soelter. While at Augustana, he plans on majoring in biology.
