It doesn’t matter what you call it or what the sport is. It could be tiddlywinks, and if the Wooden Shoes and Bulldogs were involved, it would be the most important tiddlywinks game ever played with bragging rights on the line.

That rivalry – this time on a baseball diamond – will be renewed Saturday morning in T-Town. Two super talented teams. Two great programs. Two outstanding coaches. And a pair of fan bases that are sure to show up in droves.

Ever since the IHSA released the pairings for the postseason, this is the contest everyone locally was hoping for.  No. 1 St. Anthony vs. No. 2 Teutopolis.

Yes, there will be bragging rights. But there’s a lot more at stake than just that. The survivor will be the sectional champion, advance to the super sectional and be just one win away from a trip to the state tournament.

The Bulldogs are looking for a repeat trip to state and the opportunity to defend their Class 2A state title.

The Shoes are looking to get back to state for the first time since 2019 and possibly add another first place trophy to an already-packed school trophy case. THS has won four Class 2A baseball titles – more than any other school in the state.

Saturday’s game is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. It’s sure to be a packed house. Some are predicting the largest crowd ever to attend a baseball game at Wooden Shoes Field.

The Shoes have already won 27 games this season; the Bulldogs 22. Both are considered to be among the best teams in the state – and rightfully so.

The two coaches – Justin Fleener for Teutopolis; Tony Kreke for St. Anthony – are also as good as they come. They are excellent role models and leaders. They teach and coach the game the right way. And even more importantly, they’re good men.

The probable starting pitchers – Brock Fearday for the Bulldogs; Austin Borries for the Shoes – are also two of the best in the state. Both have fastballs that have been clocked in the low 90s. They are stingy when it comes to giving up hits and runs and both have solid defenses behind them.

I believe it will be a low-scoring game and runs will be tough to come by. Much like last year’s sectional championship in Greenville when these two teams battled for seven innings. T-Town scored a run in the bottom of the sixth, but the Bulldogs rallied for two seventh-inning tallies to come away with a 2-1 decision in one of the finest high school baseball games you will ever see.

If that game had been shown on ESPN, it would have been dubbed an “Instant Classic.”

But you never know. Maybe the hitters will dominate, there will be runners all over the base paths and the scoreboard will be full of crooked numbers.

That’s what makes baseball so unpredictable and fun to watch. That’s why they play the game.

So, the stage is set.

Hope to see you there.

It should be a good one.

And quite possibly, another special memory in this great rivalry.