Uelmen grew up in Cecil, WI and was a three-sport letter winner at Bonduel High School. He excelled in both baseball and basketball as he was named team MVP in both sports his junior and senior seasons. In baseball, he was a three-time All-Conference selection and an American Legion All-Star. In basketball, he was the school’s career point scorer, rebounding leader and was also selected as a Wisconsin Basketball All-Star in his senior season.
With a successful high school career behind him, Bill enrolled at MATC in the fall of 1994. Little did anyone know, at that time, that this small town, Cecil, WI athlete would forever change MATC Baseball with a single swing of his bat. In the spring of 1995 in Batavia, New York, he did just that. The first year catcher came up big in the biggest of moments. In the National Championship game, with one out and his team tied 7-7 in the bottom of the ninth, Uelmen hit a game-winning two-run homerun to give MATC the 1995 NJCAA Division III National Championship. Uelmen received national tournament MVP honors not only for that swing but also for his tournament record of four home runs and one third of his team’s 36 tournament RBIs. His team honored him with two awards: most Improved Player award and a very fitting, Mr. Clutch award. Bill finished his freshman season with a team leading eight home runs. He hit .356 and recorded 36 RBIs, but more importantly, his contributions at the national tournament propelled his team to the summit of junior college baseball as the program won its first ever NJCAA National Championship.
After a movie scripted ending to his freshman season, the talented catcher played outfield in his second year. Bill wasted no time helping his team climb back into the NJCAA Division III World Series. Uelmen led his team in hitting with a staggering .474 batting average and a gaudy .759 slugging percentage. He posted a team high 45 RBIs and had nine homeruns. For his play, he earned WTCC All-Conference, WJCAA All-State, NJCAA All-Region and second team NJCAA All-American honors. In addition, his team awarded him with the #1 Offensive Player Award. When he finished at MATC, he was #1 all-time in career batting average, career walks and career on base percentage. With his outstanding play and the play of the teammates around him, MATC Baseball made it back to the World Series in 1996. Without any of the 1995 dramatics, MATC Baseball once again claimed the National Title and earned the program their second consecutive National Division III Title.
“Bill was an intense baseball player with a great work ethic and passion for the game of baseball,” said former MATC Head Baseball Coach, Leo Kalinowski. “He is a great teammate and a great person. Not many people can say that with one swing of the bat that they forever changed a baseball program… Bill can say that because he did.”
After MATC, Uelmen attended Iowa State University. He lettered both seasons, playing third base for the Cyclones. In 1997, he received honorable mention All-Big 12 honors and followed that up with second team All-Big 12 honors in his senior season. When he finished at Iowa State he was second all-time in career RBIs and third all-time in homeruns, having only played two seasons. Uelmen graduated in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology.
Bill currently lives in Cecil, WI, with his wife Rhonda and their children, Cooper and Griffin. He has worked as Deputy Sheriff for the Shawano County Sheriffs Department for the past nine years. Bill continually volunteers in his community and has been honored for his work at the Sheriffs Department on a number of occasions.
