Prep Baseball Report

Illinois State Games: Quick Hits, Day 3


By Illinois Staff

Welcome to Quick Hits, a compilation of daily highlights captured at our inaugural PBR Illinois State Games tournament, hosted at the brand-new Rantoul Family Sports Complex in Rantoul, Ill. Following each gameday, we’ll publish the top performances that we witnessed the day prior, so continue on below to learn more about the best of yesterday’s games.

You can follow along with our coverage live by following us at @PBRIllinois on Twitter.

DAY 3

+ SS Wandel Campana (Havana, 2022) has been impressive for the Illinois Steel throughout the weekend. The 6-foot, 165-pound, wiry/athlete, hits from the left-side of the plate and has been a mainstay at the top of the lineup. He is a comfortable, confident look at the plate, lets the ball travel and uses the whole field. Campana’s confidence spills over to all parts of his game, defending with bounce, pace and sure-hands. Campana is comfortable on the move, plays with body control and his arm plays strong and accurate across the diamond. 

+ Illinois Patriots Blue 16U defeated Illinois Indians White, 11-1. The offense was led by Andy Munjoy (Maroa-Forsyth), who started the scoring with a grand slam in the first inning, and Cole Workman’s (Glenwood, 2023) two-run shot.  

+ RHP/INF Sam Skirvin (Quincy, 2022; Illinois Patriots Red) came out of the bullpen and impressed with a long, loose, lively arm action from a ¾ slot. Skirvin pitched with effort and intent but showed control of his 80-82 mph (2308 rpm) with feel for a 71 mph sweeping breaking ball.

+ Chicago Elite 2022 came out on top in a tight battle vs Rhino Baseball, 1-0. RHP Christian Battista (Oswego East, 2022) and LHP Justin Sewers (Sandburg, 2022) went back and forth for a solid pitchers’ duel, giving up only two hits a piece. Sewers (Chicago Elite) featured a fastball sitting 82-84, and topped out at 85 mph, utilizing it heavily on his way to striking out nine batters. Sewers’ fastball plays up due to an uptempo delivery with a high-front side, adding deception. Sewers ultimately went 4.2 innings of shutout baseball. Battista (Rhino) countered with a fastball that ranged 81-83 mph, and featured a 71-73 mph curveball with a max spin rate of 2354 rpm. 

+ Left-handed hitting outfielder Chase Adams (Normal University, 2022) came through with the big RBI single late in the game for Chicago Elite, eventually becoming the game winning hit. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound Adams has been a notable follow this weekend who has taken a number of quality at-bats and been on the barrel. 

+ Illinois Steel won their first game of the day scoring 22 runs. Steel had a huge offensive performance from their hitters, putting together 21 total hits. Austin Wiegand (Eureka, 2023) had the best offensive performance for Steel going 4-for-4 with one triple and three singles. Jonah Wyman (Dunlap, 2023) went 3-for-4 with two runs and one RBI. Connor Wrhle (Pekin Community, 2023) went 3-for-3 and also led the team with 4 RBIs. Six Steel players had multi-hit performances. The first four hitters of the lineup combined for 12 hits and nine RBIs.

+ Chicago Elite - Bilo won their first game by scoring 19 runs. The Elite hitters had 21 hits throughout the game. Both Colton Kachinsky (Lincoln-Way West, 2023) and Matt Walsh (St. Ignatius, 2023) went 3-for-3 with a total of six RBIs between the two. Elite had eight different players that had multi-hit performances. The eight multi-hit hitters also put together a combined 16 RBIs out of the 18 total throughout the game. 

+ Timmy Luckey (Fieldcrest, 2022) showed well for Game Seven throughout the day on Saturday. Luckey, a 5-foot-9, 180-pound, left-handed hitting third baseman took a number of quality swings, including a double to left-center field gap in the nightcap. Luckey plays a steady third base where he showed the ability to make the routine play as well as a tough slow roller/body control play for a 5-3 putout in their first game of the day. Luckey’s arm plays clean and accurately across the diamond. 

+ RHP Connor Frey (Normal University) came out of the bullpen and impressed in his one inning of work. Frey pounded the zone with a fastball at 83-84 mph and flashed an above-average, late-breaking, 10/4 slider at 69-72 mph. To top it off, Frey flashed a late sinking changeup at 79 mph with a feel for the bottom of the zone. 

+ Chicago Elite Kemp 2023 defeated the Illinois Braves 4-2. Chicago Elite Kemp 2023 were led by Evan Dwyer (Lake Central 2023) who went two for three with a triple. Chicago Elite’s Starting Pitcher Donovan Dykas (Lincoln Way Central, 2023)  threw four innings, gave up three hits and two earned runs, while striking out seven.

+ Chicago Warriors Green 16U defeated House of Sportz Hustlers 16u Green 5-0. The Chicago Warriors Green 16U were led by a strong outing from RHP Raymond Sansonetti (Jones College Prep, 2023). Sansonetti threw five innings, gave up one hit and struck out five. 

+ Batters Box Scout Team 17U - Millas defeated Game 7 Legacy 12-2. Batters Box Scout Team was led by RHP Landon Hahs (O’Fallon, 2022). Hahs didn’t allow an earned run in a complete-game, six-inning effort with seven strikeouts. 

+ Te’Rey Daniels (O’Fallon, 2022) homered the first pitch of the game and drove in three runs. Micah Georgian (Belleville East, 2022) also hit a two run homerun. Drew Bryant (Brimfield, 2022) doubled and drove in two runs for Game 7 Legacy. 

+ Prairie Gravel 2022 defeated Rake City 5-1. Prairie Gravel’s starting pitcher, RHP Aidan Murphy (Center Grove, IN, 2022) threw six innings of one-run ball to pick up the win. Murphy’s fastball sat 82-84 mph topping at 86 mph. Braden Thelander (Prairie Ridge, 2022) closed the game for Prairie Gravel striking out two batters. Thelanders fastball sat 81-83 mph and topped at 84, with a low-70s breaking ball that reached a peak of 2,597 RPM. Despite the loss, Anthony Nino (Von Steuben, 2022) homered for Rake City.

+ Northwest Revolution 16U defeated Raider Baseball Academy-Adams 3-1. Northwest Revolution was led by their starter, RHP Nick Tinajero (Fenton, 2023). Tinajero threw five innings allowing only one run. Tinajeros fastball sat 77-81 mph, topping at 83 mph and he mixed in a curveball at 62-65 mph that reached a peak of 2,344 RPM. Josh Katz (Lane Tech, 2023) came in to close the game, striking out one batter. Katz also reached on two infield singles for Northwest Revolution. Raider Baseball Academy-Adams RHP/OF Ethan Storm (Sycamore, 2022) got the start on the mound and threw five innings, giving up two earned runs. Storm works with a short, over-the-top arm action, getting downhill with his fastball that sat mostly 83-84 mph early on, topping at 86 mph (T2367 rpm). 

+ Yard Goat Baseball defeated the Chicago Warriors Green 16U 10-0. 6-foot-3, 175-pound, high-waisted RHP Blake Wolters (Mahomet Seymour, 2023) led the Yard Goats, throwing an eight-strikeout, complete game, and failed to allow an earned run. Wolters held his velo throughout, sitting 82-83 topping at 84 mph with his fastball. 

+ Toby Schriefer (Bradley Bourbonnais, 2024) threw 5.1 innings for the Bourbonnais Braves in their 10-4 victory over Chicago Elite Black. Schriefer allowed four runs while surrendering nine hits and struck five. Schriefer has a clean, quick, athletic arm action and filled up the strike zone behind a fastball/curveball combination. Schriefer’s fastball held at 78-80 mph with four seam type action to go along with a 69 mph curveball with feel. Left-handed hitter Thomas Offill (Bradley-Bourbonnais, 2024) opened some eyes out of the leadoff spot. Offill showed off advanced foot speed, running a 4.43 (on the turn) on a base hit to left-field. Offill has a simple swing, stays inside the baseball and looks to control the barrel.

+ Chicago Elite 15U Black brought in LHP Aidan Flinn (Marist, 2025), a 6-foot-3, 165-pound, high-upside left-handed arm out of the ‘pen. Flinn, has a highly-projectable, long-limbed frame and showed off a quick arm from a ¾ slot creating advanced run and sink to his fastball that sat 73-75 mph while flashing a mid-60’s breaking ball. Flinn will be one to keep an eye on in the coming years as he enters high school.

+ Chicago Elite 15U Royal defeated Illinois Lightning 2024 15-5 in their Saturday afternoon game. Louisville commit Cole Crafton (Lincoln-Way West, 2024) continues to prove he is one of the top incoming sophomores in the Midwest. Crafton has a 6-foot-2, 175-pound, highly-athletic, high-waisted, frame and has been driving balls with authority all weekend long. Crafton is quiet and relaxed in the box with minimal moving parts. Crafton stays short and quick through the zone and creates extremely easy bat speed. Crafton launched a deep home run to right-field in his second at-bat and then lined a double into the right-center field gap in his third at-bat. 

+ Jackson Ugo (Andrew, 2024) came in relief for Chicago Elite 15u Royal. Ugo pitched four scoreless innings with five strikeouts, three hits and walked one. A lean, lanky frame, listed at 6-foot-1, 160-pounds, the left-handed pitcher throws from a short, loose arm action out of a high ¾ slot. Ugo controlled the zone with a two-seam type fastball at 78-80 mph. He also flashed feel for the zone with an upper-60s curveball that spun off a 1/7 plane. 

+ Michael Kuska (Pontiac Township, 2024) found three barrels for Chicago Elite Royal. Listed at 5-foot-11, 150-pounds, the left-handed hitting outfielder went 3-for-4 in the game with two doubles and an RBI. 

+ AJ Iwinski (Marmion Academy, 2024). The right-handed hitting outfielder went 3-for-3 in the night game for White Sox Elite 15U Black. In the first innings, Iwinski jumped on the first pitch of the game for a lead off double to left center. In his final at bat, Iwinski beat out an infield single to the shortstop. 

+ House of Sportz Hustlers 17U came back and took a win against the Illinois Braves after the game was suspended due to weather conditions. House of Sportz had a combined seven hits on the day, Tyler Murray (Herscher, 2022) went 2-for-3. Right Fielder Jairus Harris (Kankakee, 2022) showed off his arm when a Braves runner tried taking third late in the game and was thrown out by Harris. House of Sportz Catcher Caden Martin also flashed his arm when he threw a laser to put out a Braves runner attempting to steal third. 

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