Metro East Kickoff Classic: Game Recaps

March 17, 2019
By Illinois Scouting Staff

Continue to check this page for updates on game recaps throughout the Metro East Kickoff Classic.

SATURDAY, MARCH 16 GAMES

Blazier Field (O'Fallon)

No 2. Brother Rice 12, O’Fallon 5
In the morning game at Blazier Field the Brother Rice Crusaders paced to a 12-5 victory over the host O’Fallon Panthers. Senior starting RHP Eli Sweiss (2019) was dealing early and often on the bump for the Crusaders allowing only two hits in his four inning start. He struck out five not allowing a single runner to reach second base.

The Crusaders offense was kick started by senior Danny Doligale (Illinois commit) who singled, forced an errant throw advancing to second, stole third and then scored on a pass ball. His savvy baserunning was followed up by a moon shot over the right field fence by senior 3B Marquis Jackson (Oklahoma commit).

Brother Rice scored three more in the 4th drawing four walks, a HBP and a defensive miscue by the Panthers. They’d tack on three more in the 5th putting them up 8-0.

The O’Fallon bats were awoken by one swing off the bat of senior LF Wes Collins (Drury commit) on a solo round tripper to left. Four walks later and the Panthers put up a crooked number on the board, 8-4 score after 5.

The Crusader answered the Panthers with four runs of their own in the 6th. Senior 1B Ryan Maher (Heartland CC commit) junior 2B Dylan Robertson, senior C Mike Hopkins (John Carroll commit) and senior CF Mike Bolton (Purdue commit) all drove in runs in the frame.

The Crusader baserunners combined for eight stolen bases in the game causing havoc all over the basepaths.

In a final attempt to get back into the game, the Panthers scrap one in the bottom of the 7th on a double and two singles, sophomore OF Drew Tebbe collecting the RBI. C Kyle Becker had the only multi-hit day for O’Fallon.

Hopkins led the Crusader offense going 3-for-3 with a double. Maher and senior LF Kendall Pettis (Oklahoma commit) collected two hits apiece, while Maher touched home three times. Jackson drove in two and scored twice.

St. Joe Ogden 4, Harrisburg 2 (8 innings)
The second game of the day at Blazier Field saw bonus baseball with a 2-2 tie after regulation. St. Joe Ogden claimed the lead in the top of the 8th innings when two unearned runs came into score on a ball that tipped off the first baseman’s glove just past the infield dirt. Harrisburg had nothing happening in the bottom half of the 8th as LHP Keegan McCarty shut the door on Harrisburg earning the win out of the pen.

The Spartans tacked on one in the 1st inning when senior C Kaden Jacobs singled and came around to score on two pass balls. St. Joe received their other run in regulation tying it up in the seventh on CF Blake Primmer’s sac fly.

Jacobs, SS Crayton Burnett and DH Nick Boggs all had multi-hit games for St. Joes, while 2B Drew Coursey led in RBIs with two.

Harrisburg scored their two runs in the third frame on three extra base hits. LF Jacob Penrod leadoff the inning with a double and was driven in on Will Holland’s double three batters later. Next man up C/RHP Isaac Crabb sent an RBI triple deep to left field scoring Holland.

Senior RHP Adam Rose (Lincoln Land CC commit) started for the Spartans going four innings with two runs and two strikeouts before handing it off to McCarty who went four as well. McCarty whiffed four allowing only one runner reach scoring position.

Sophomore RHP Noah Boon started for Harrisburg going six innings with three punchouts, one walk, five hits and two unearned runs. Crabb and sophomore RHP Andrew Bittle each struck out two in their inning of work out of the Harrisburg pen.

Coal City 3, Harrisburg 2
There was a pitching duel in game three at O’Fallon High School as the Coal City Coalers bested the Harrisburg Bulldogs 3-2. Coalers senior starter LHP Keegan Gagliardo (Lincoln Trail JC commit) tossed four innings of one hit ball striking out two pacing the game as he pleased. Junior RHP Jack Bunton garnered the three innings save in relief of Gagliardo allowing two unearned runs striking out five.

Harrisburg junior starter Isaac Crabb took a very tough loss in a quality four inning start for the Bulldogs. In 65 pitches, Craab allowed zero hits striking out eight of the sixteen batters he faced with one unearned run. Junior RHP Connor Phalin tossed three innings in relief with four strikeouts allowing two runs to score, one being earned.

Craab was the only player in the game with multiple hits going 2-for-3 and teammate CF Jack Martin (2020) picked up two RBI for the Bulldogs.

Gagliardo helped his cause at the plate with a hit and an RBI.

No. 17 Lockport 2 , Washington 1
There was another pitching duel in the nightcap matchup between the Lockport Porters and the Washington Panthers. The Porters bested the Panthers 2-1 in a team effort on the mound. Panter senior starter Luke Markunas (Heartland CC commit) delivered an impressive performance in his four innings of work striking out seven, allowing four hits and one earned run.

Junior southpaw Bryon Mane started for Lockport going two innings allowing one hit and fanning two. Senior right-handers Zach Wehrman and Logan Strutz each went two innings out of the pen. striking out two of their own. Strutz allowed the only Panther run to score. Senior RHP Jack Vrba was nails out of the back end of the bullpen picking up the two punch out save.

Sophomore SS Ryan Moerman (Illinois commit) led the Lockport offense going 2-for-4 scoring both of the Porter runs. Moerman and junior LF George Andretich both smacked doubles in the game.

Washington senior SS Caleb Fisher laced up a double of his own, scoring the lone Panther run. Senior C Cole Ludolph picked up the RBI.

EDWARDSVILLE HS

Benet 14, No. 16 Oak Park-River Forest 6
A mirroring first inning saw both teams trading passed balls in the first inning for a 1-1 tie. Junior Jared Novak then gave the Redwings an early one-run lead with a sac fly to center field.

The No. 16 ranked Huskies looked like they would pull away with a five-run rally started in the third on a Tommy Cronin RBI double off the right-field wall. Junior SS Dylan Whitney capped off the rally with a bases-clearing three-run double two left-center, his second double of the day.

Benet rallied back with a four-run fourth inning of its own. Jared Novak again supplied the firepower after he doubled to center field plating two runs, and a 9-6 Benet lead after four.

Another five Redwing runs in the fifth put things out of reach for Oak Park-River Forest. As Benet capped off a 14-6 victory.

Novak finished with three RBI on a two hit day. Benet SS Connor Hincks also chipped in two hits before being intentionally walked his last two at bats.

No. 14 Huntley 6, Moline 4
LHP Hunter Rumachik got the start for Huntley and was sharp the first time through the Moline order working a perfect three frames, protecting a one-run Red Raider lead.

Moline got their bats going in the fourth. Noah Sebben singled home a pair of runs to give Moline the lead. Michael Conner followed up with an RBI single of his own, capping four straight Maroon singles started by Aiden Michna and Brody Harding.

The Maroons held onto their lead until the fifth when Michael Talesky’s sharp single to right sparked a two-out rally with nobody on, leading to two runs and a 3-3 tie after five.

A scoreless Huntley sixth frame set the table for a seesaw back and forth finish. Moline pushed one across thanks to Calvin Wall who singled home Conner. But it wasn’t enough to keep the Red Raiders at bay.

Leadoff hitter Michael Talesky got another rally started, this time a line drive single to center. AJ Henkle put together a quality at bat to produce a go-ahead sac fly to right scoring Rumachik. Talesky led the way with a 2-for-4 day scoring two runs.

No. 16 Oak Park-River Forest 10, No. 9 Mount Carmel 3
A seven run fourth inning did in the Caravan, as Oak Park-River Forest went on to a comfortable 10-3 win.

Senior RHP Griffin Holderfield got the start for the Huskies, the Creighton commit worked four innings scattering five hits and two runs while striking out eight.

Alan Brown and Tommy Cronin both drove in three runs for the Huskies on one hit, Cronin’s a double. Dylan Whitney has started his 2019 campaign off on the right foot adding another two hits and two runs in this contest.

No. 3 Joliet Catholic 5, No. 14 Huntley 4
Joliet Catholic took the lead with a three run third inning, kick started by Tony Fleishauer’s RBI single. A pair of fielder's’ choices followed giving the Hilltoppers a 4-1 lead after three.

Zak Gould pitched a determined five innings of two hit baseball, surrendering just one run and striking out eight en route the victory. Greg Zeigler struck out the side in the seventh to nail down the save.

Fleishauer finished 2-for-4 with two RBI , while Nick Iannantone collected three hits and scored on run.

GCS STADIUM

Moline 5, No. 11 Marian Catholic 4
No. 11 Marian Catholic entered the bottom of the seventh with a 4-2 lead and needing three outs to secure the win in their first game at the Kickoff Classic. Moline had other plans, stringing four singles in a row together, tying the game before an out was recorded. Then with one out, Devin Breiholz grounded a ball through the right side of the diamond, scoring Noah Sebben for the walk off 5-4 win.

Brody Harding and Michael Conner had two hits apiece in the win for Moline. Conner also knocked in two runs and threw two innings out of the bullpen, striking out two and allowing one hit.

Marian Catholic, senior LHP Jordan Smevoll looked to be in line for the win until the late Moline rally. Smevoll went three shutout innings, striking out seven and allowing one hit. CF Pierce Jones, Northern Illinois commit, went 3-for-4 with a double, two stolen bases and run scored in the loss.

No. 17 Lockport 9, Oswego East 1
The Porters of Lockport broke the game open for good, scoring six runs in the top of the sixth inning, ultimately knocking off Oswego East 9-1. In the frame, Joshua Bentley and Jacob Kampf delivered RBI singles and also scored. Kampf finished the day 3-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI. He also came in to pitch close out the game in the seventh and struck out the side, sitting 80-84 mph with his fastball.

The game remained scoreless until the top of the fourth inning when the Porters struck for two runs. Bentley walked, Kampf followed with a single and they both eventually came around to score. They tacked on one more in the fifth thanks to a two out triple by Collin Woulfe which was followed up by a double from Bentley.

Nolan Weis, John Weis and Kampf combined to five hit the Oswego East offense and struck out eight.

OF Connor Gill went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in the losing effort.

No. 2 Brother Rice 2, Normal West 1
No. 2 Brother Rice, capped off an impressive 3-0 Kickoff Classic with a 2-1 win over Normal West. Sophomores LHP Michael Bernas and Sebastian Barrera combined on a one hitter for the Crusaders. Bernas struck out four in three innings of work and Barrera did not allow a hit and struck out one in his four innings.

With the score tied at one in the top of the fifth inning, Oklahoma commits, Marquis Jackson and Kendall Pettis, sparked the offense. Jackson grounded a clean single through the right side. A few batters later, Pettis delivered a clean two-out single to left field scoring Jackson from third. That was all the offense the Crusaders would need as they held on for the 2-1 win.

Brandon Roth delivered the one hit of the day for Normal West. Senior RHP Austin Collinson threw well in the loss for Normal West. Collinson went all seven innings, scattered four hits, allowed two earned and struck out four.

FRIDAY, MARCH 15 GAMES

EDWARDSVILLE SITE

No. 3 Joliet Catholic 11 vs. Oswego 2
Oswego jumped out early lead and gave the No. 3 ranked Hilltoppers a scare before JCA piled on the runs in the later innings securing an 11-2 victory.

Senior Jason Crafton got the scoring started for Oswego in the top of the second with an opposite-field home run. JD Miller followed suit in the third with a home run of his own to right center, giving the Panthers an early 2-0 lead.

Senior LHP Codey Quirin was on a roll through three innings striking out six, and holding the Hilltopper bats in check.

Joliet Catholic finally got on the board in the fourth with two runs to tie the game. Jared Cushing got the scoring started with a sharp RBI single to left. JCA broke the 2-2 tie in fifth when Cushing and Max Cullen each had RBI singles.

Joliet Catholic opened up a big sixth inning rally with back-to-back doubles from Mike Gurka and Dan Wuestenfeld that put the nail in the coffin.

No. 2 Brother Rice 12 vs. No. 7 Edwardsville 5
Edwardsville would face its second top ten matchup in as many days as they played host to the No. 2 Crusaders season opener. It was a tight hotly contested contest as expected until the seventh inning when the Brother Rice fire power couldn’t be stopped.

Edwardsville held a 4-0 lead after four innings, but that was all the Tigers would manage, and they had their opportunities.

Brother Rice trailed by just one heading into their last at bats and wound up rallying for eight runs in the frame, putting this one out of reach.

The Crusader’s Benji Brokemond went a perfect 4-for-4 on the day with a home run, while Marquis Jackson drove in five runs on three hits, including a two-run home run in the seventh.

Moline 4 vs. Benet 3 (8 innings)
The Moline Maroons wrapped up Day 2 of the Metro East Kickoff Classic with a walk-off win over Benet.

Michael Conner was the hero for Moline driving in the winning run on a clean single to left field. Brody Harding set the table for the dramatics as he tied the game with a sacrifice fly to center, giving way to Conner’s walk-off single.

Junior leadoff hitter Sam Monroe led the way with two hits, while Harding drove in a pair on a 1-for-3 day.

Oswego East 3 vs. Galesburg 2
Pitching was the key for Oswego East in a 3-2 win over Galesburg. Junior LHP Tyler Heidkamp picked up the win out of the pen going four innings of no-hit baseball striking out eight. He teamed up with starter RHP Connor Gill (2020) to fan a total of 15 Silver Streaks.

GCS BALLPARK

Benet 3, Triad 2 (1:30 p.m.)
Benet Academy won its first game of the spring in extra innings, 3-2 over Triad, on a sunny afternoon at GCS Ballpark.

Triad were the ones, however, that got off to a quick start, after a lead-off walk and back-to-back singles from Hunter Boyd and Joe Wade made it 1-0 in the top of the first.

Benet’s big junior righty Jared Novak, who’s still uncommitted, pitched over that run in the first and put together three straight scoreless to help his Redwings fend off the Knights – for the time being. He was relieved to start the fifth, so he finished his first outing of the spring having allowed just one run on three hits, two walks, and he struck out four.

Benet didn’t get its first hit until the third, as Triad’s starter Wade worked a pair of quick innings to kick the game off, but in the third, the Redwings’ half inning was sparked by a lead-off triple by Mike Wymer. He immediately scored on a groundout to second, but the offense was jumpstarted again when shortstop Connor Hincks earned a walk and stole second on the first pitch he could. Ben Wright’s single to left was enough to bring Hincks around to score, to give Benet the 2-0 lead.

Triad reliever Ethan Gratton kept the Redwings off the scoreboard for four frames, but the Knights couldn’t even the contest in that time, either. Finally, in the seventh, a one-out single from Drew Parres and double from Zach Tonn set Triad up to tie things at two. An error in center field in the following bat eventually put this game into extra innings.

In the bottom of the eighth, Hincks led the inning off with a laser double into the left-center gap. After an intentional walk to Wright, it was Novak who put the finishing touch on this game. He ripped a double to the left field fence, allowing Hincks to celebrate the win on his way home to score the walk-off run.

Oak Park-River Forest 8, Mater Dei 2 (6 innings; 4 p.m.)
It took until the fourth, but the No. 16-ranked Oak Park-River Forest Huskies finally awoke their bats from the offseason, scoring a pair in the frame plus another six in a busy fifth inning.

The problem might not have been an offseason of rust build-up, but more likely who they were squaring off against: Mater Dei’s sophomore righty Parker Johnson. The deceptive righty did not allow the Huskies to record their first hit until he had left the ballgame, after his three innings of work.

In total, Johnson pitched three frames and allowed no runs, no hits, walked two, and struck out seven of the 12 batters he faced.

Meanwhile, OPRF’s junior starter Austin Divello allowed just one Mater Dei run in a wild first, and uncommitted senior southpaw Nathan Boyer relieved him in the second. Boyer kept Mater Dei off the scoreboard again until the sixth; he worked a clutch 3.1 innings from the bullpen, allowing just one run, which was unearned, on two hits, two walks, and he struck out five.

The Huskies’ first hit came after an Adam Landsman walk led off the fourth and designated hitter Tommy Cronin launched a baseball to deep center, plenty far enough to score Landsman from first. Cronin’s pinch-runner came around to score on an Eamon Toye sacrifice fly to left, giving OPRF a 2-1 lead at the time.

Mater Dei battled back right away, however. In the top of the fifth, Boyer ran into trouble for the first time in his outing, when Cadyn Schuchman’s deep double to left field scored the tying run that had initially reached via an error.

The Huskies called on lanky righty Aaron Mishoulam to relieve Boyer with the bases loaded and one out, and he couldn’t have done a better job, stranding the bags full, keeping the score tied at two.

The OPRF offense exploded in the next half-inning, sending 10 batters to the plate and tallying six runs total, highlighted by another rocket double off the bat of Cronin.

Mishoulam came on the close it down in the sixth, as time restricted a seventh inning from beginning, granting the Huskies a win in their first game of the spring.

Lockport 2, Civic Memorial 0 (6:30 p.m.)
Lockport starter Vincent Sartori carved through Civic Memorial on a chilly Friday evening at GCS Ballpark. Neither team’s bats could heat up the action, but Sartori made absolutely sure his team’s quick run scored in the top of the first could withstand anything the Eagles could throw at them.

Porters sophomore shortstop Ryan Moerman acted as the catalyst for this offense from the get-go, shooting a line-drive single back into center field to lead off the ballgame. He swiped second base as soon as he could and was promptly moved to third on a groundout to second. Moerman scored in the very next at-bat on a wild pitch and that 1-0 lead wound up sticking around until Jake Dagys launched a home run over the big left field fence to make it a 2-0 Porters lead in the fifth.

All the while, Sartoris prevented an Eagle from reaching second base in his five innings of work. He finished his start having allowed no runs on two hits, no walks, and he struck out five.

The bumpy first wasn’t enough to deter Civic Memorial starter Zach Vaughn, who really didn’t find himself in trouble again until the fifth, when Dagys homered and Lockport loaded the bases soon after. The Eagles called on senior righty Trenton Smith to help them escape the bases- loaded with nobody out and he did so flawlessly, striking out the first two he faced and getting the third to pop out to first.

Still, Civic Memorial couldn’t muster an offensive rally long enough to scratch across a couple of runs. Lockport reliever Justin Gasper came on in the sixth and walked the lead-off man Vaughn, but halted things there before they really got going.

Gasper stuck around for the seventh and pitched around a one-out single to secure the 2-0 win for Lockport – their second of the day – over Civic Memorial.

GRANITE CITY

Lockport 4, Alton 2 (2 pm)
In the first game of the double-header at Granite City, The Porters of Lockport ousted the Cardinals of Alton 4-2. The Porters put up a run in the top of the first when senior 1B John Weis top spun a line drive, RBI single between the first and second baseman scoring SS Ryan Moerman who reached on an ground ball error.

Alton responded hastily taking advantage of a shaky start from Lockport senior starter, LHP John Gallet. The Cardinals drew two walks and a hit-by-pitch, two of which scored. Sophomore 2B Tyler Steward flared an RBI single to right field and fellow Cardinal sophomore Preston Schepers brought one home on a groundout to short. That would be the last of the Redbirds scoring.

The Porters put up two more in the fourth frame headlined by a leadoff double from Weis. He then swiped third base and scored on an errant throw attempt. Senior 2B Josh Bentley singled two batters later and would be drove in courtesy of an RBI double from junior 3B Jake Kampf.

Weis delivered again an inning later scoring Moerman on a triple deep to his opposite field. The hulking left-hander did most of the damage for the Porters offense going 3-for-3 with a double, a triple two RBI and a run scored. Kampf was the only other Porter to collect multiple hits on the day.

Gallet earned the win for Lockport settling in nicely after a rough first. Junior Nolan Vlacek threw three innings of one hit ball in relief striking out six and walking three. Joseph Tor earned the one inning, three punchout save.

Effingham 9, Granite City 5 (5:30 pm)
The Flaming Hearts of Effingham jumped out to an early lead scraping five runs in the top of the first, never looking back. The inning saw three hits and three errors resulting in only one earned run for Granite City Warriors starter Jordan Slay.

Kentucky commit and PBR Super 60 standout Zachary Lee got the start for Effingham, impressing the multiple pro scouts in attendance to see the senior right-hander. He went five innings on 79 pitches allowing only two hits and two unearned runs, striking out nine.

The sole excitement from the Granite City bats came from senior CF Austin Bonvicino who drove a hung changeup over the centerfielders head. The centerfielder threw his hands up early signaling a ground rule double, then picked up the baseball in play while Bonvicino kept trucking around the bases scoring himself and Spencer Barrett, who struckout but reached on an a catcher error.

Effingham would take advantage of multiple defensive miscues by the Warriors scoring one in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh. Senior CF Kendall Ballman drove in one of the eighth inning tallies on an RBI hustle double. Ballman had the only multi hit day finishing 2-for-5 with two runs and an RBI.

Granite City showed signs of a come back in the sixth courtesy of a leadoff walk and back to back singles by sophomore C Mason Roehr and senior RF Cameron Hibbets, but that wouldn’t be enough. Effingham sophomore RHP Matthew Loy earned the save striking out the side in the seventh.

BELLEVILLE WEST

Belleville West 4, St. Joseph-Ogden 0 (4:30)

BLAZIER FIELD (O'FALLON)

Mascoutah 4, Mt. Zion 3 (2 pm)
In a game that saw a total of eight hits, Mascoutah came away with a 4-3 win. Mascoutah scored their four runs on only three hits. They did however walk three times and a big three run bottom of the fifth inning was the difference in the game.

Junior, RHP Jack Owens, got the start for Mascoutah and went five innings, scattered three hits, two runs, none earned, six strikeouts and one walk. Owens sat 80-82 mph, touching 83 and kept hitters off balance with a low-70’s curveball. Logan Moll got the save, going two innings and striking out five.

Junior Nash Mose, got the start for Mt. Zion. The left-hander was on his game early and through three innings had given up one run with seven strikeouts. The Mascoutah offense got to Mose in the fifth but he ended with nine strikeouts in 4.2 innings.

O’Fallon 11 Kaneland 6 (4:30 pm)

Coal City3, Teutopolis 1 (7 pm)
Illinois commit, LHP Payton Hutchings, got the start for Coal City and was his usual dominant self. The dynamic left-hander attacked hitters in his three innings stint striking out eight Teutopolis hitters. The Coalers of Coal City got on the board in the top of the first inning. Two-hole hitter, Keegan Gagliardodoubled to left-center field and later scored on back-to-back passed balls. They tacked on another run in the second when Cameron Lander singled home Mickey McDowell.

Hutchings led the way offensively for the Coalers going 2-for-4.

Hutchings, Lander and Gagliardo combined to two hit the Wooden Shoes of Teutopolis.

BELLEVILLE EAST

Belleville East 3, Naperville Central 2 (4:30 pm)
Arkansas commit, RHP Evan Gray, was lights out in his first start of the spring. Gray, who sat 90-92 mph, touching 93 in the early innings, struck out eight straight at one point and 14 total in his six innings of work. Gray also won the game for the Lancers at the plate. With the score tied at two in the bottom of the seventh and the bases loaded, Gray was hit by a pitch, forcing in the winning run.

Gage Cruz and Gabe Tindall, two seniors, had multiple hits for the Lancers. Joe Morgano had an RBI double for Naperville Central in the loss.

THURSDAY, MARCH 14 GAMES

GCS Stadium

Oswego 14, Mt. Vernon 5 (1 pm)
The Panthers of Oswego used eight runs in the bottom of the first inning to help propel them past Mt. Vernon by the score of 14-5. Oswego (1-0), who collected 11 hits on the day, got multiple hits from JD Miller, Cal Hejza, Garry Maynard, Jack Lemke and Codey Quirin. Lemke finished 2-for-3 with a double, two runs scored, an RBI and a walk. Quirin went 2-for-3 with two runs, two RBI and a walk.

Matthew Sorrells and Tommy Picha combined to strike out 10 for Oswego. Picha went 4.2 innings out of the bullpen, allowed four hits and struck out five.

Charley Allen came out of the bullpen and threw four innings, scattered four hits, allowed one run and struck out two in the loss.

Althoff 7 Teutopolis 4 (4 pm)
Althoff Catholic broke a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the fifth scoring three runs and ultimately held on for a 7-4 victory over Teutopolis. In the three run inning, Kaleb Laramore doubled, scored a run and Tyler Tieman singled and later scored on a wild pitch. 2020 CF Josh Dima had a big day offensively for Althoff going 2-for-2 with two runs scored, a double and also stole two bases.

Payton Whitehead started for Althoff and struck out eight in five innings of work. Michael Sinovic allowed one hit and no runs in his two innings of work out of the bullpen for Althoff.

Trenton Schwerdt paced the Teutopolis offense, going 3-for-3 with a double, run scored and a walk. Junior RHP Mitch Hemmen started on the mound and struck out seven in 3.1 innings for Teutopolis.

No. 7 Edwardsville 4, No. 9 Mount Carmel 2 (7 pm)
In the highly-anticipated matchup between two Top-10 teams, it was Edwardsville, who came away with a 4-2 win on a cold and blustery Thursday evening. The story of the game was the three Edwardsville pitchers: Senior RHP’s Matthew Boyer, Dawson Taylor and Junior Collin Salter combined to strike out 14, allowing only one earned run and two hits.

Boyer (Wisconsin-Milwaukee commit) started, went three innings and pounded the zone behind his fastball/curveball combination. Boyer struck out six and did not walk a batter, working 83-86 mph with his fastball. Next up was Taylor (John A. Logan JC commit), who went two hitless innings and struck out three with a fastball that got up to 93 mph. Salter, closed out the game, going two innings, allowing one hit and striking out five. Salter sat in the low-80’s and had advanced feel for his breaking ball that had late sweeping action and froze a number of hitters.

The game was tied at two heading into the bottom of the fourth and the Tigers were able to scratch across a run in the fourth and the fifth to pull away from the Caravan. Joe Toscano led off the fourth with a walk and after a single by sophomore Hayden Moore, scored on an error. In the fifth, unsigned senior C Dalton Wallace, doubled down the left-field line and later, Aaron Young, who came in to pinch run for Wallace, scored on a groundout by Joe Copeland (McKendree commit).

Moore and Max Ringering (John A. Logan JC commit) had two hits apiece in the win. Joshua Houston and Tony Livermore (Northwestern commit) had the lone hits for Mount Carmel, Houston’s being a double down the line.

Nic Vitiritti, a Carthage College commit, went three innings out of the bullpen, giving up two hits, no earned runs and struck out two for the Caravan.

SIU-E

Mt. Zion 8, Triad 3 (5:30 p.m.)
The Braves’ five runs combined in the first two innings was more than enough support for starter Daniel Chausse to help secure Mt. Zion the win over the Triad Knights, in their first game at the PBR Kickoff Classic. The uncommitted senior made it 6.1 innings having only allowed two earned runs, setting his team up to comfortably keep adding to their lead. Chausse finished his outing having recorded one out in the seventh, and allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits, one walk, and he also struck out six – and with the wind gusting up to 30-plus mph, they weren’t exactly favorable positions to pitch or field fly balls in.

The Knights added a couple late, but there weren’t enough outs left in the ballgame to mount the full comeback.

For the Braves Chausse added a couple of hits and drove in a run – he was also responsible for arguably the hardest hit ball of the game, a triple into the right-center gap. Mt. Zion junior Braden Highley went 2-for-4 at the plate, scored a pair of runs and also drove in another two.

Triad’s back in action against Benet Academy tomorrow afternoon, around the same time that Mt. Zion will meet Mascoutah.

Chatham-Glenwood 14, Alton 0 (7:30 p.m.)
The Titans’ pitching towered over Alton’s lineup on this blustery evening at Roy E. Lee Field in Edwardsville.

Gavin Wahlbrink started for Glenwood and pitched over an ominous start, a lead-off triple by the Redbirds’ Robby Taul. But frankly, this was as close as Alton came to scoring. The Lincoln Land CC-bound righty struck out the next batter he faced, got the next one to ground out right back to him, and his battery mate Lucas Ryan nabbed a would-be base stealer after a walk to keep the game scoreless.

Wahlbrink put together another scoreless inning in the bottom of two, but that was after Glenwood sent 12 batters to the plate in the top half, taking an out-of-nowhere commanding 8-0 lead.

Uncommitted senior Adam Holm and Jacob Jurgens, another Lincoln Land commit, were the two Titans with multi-hit days. Holm scored three times and so did Wahlbrink, actually, with the help of his three walks. Jurgens collected three hits, a game-high, scored another two runs.

Wahlbrink was finished after two and made way for Evan Rightnowar, a 6-foot-2 Snead State commit, who was equally as impressive, if not, more so. Rightnowar faced eight batters in his two innings of work and struck out five of them, mixing in a hammer of a breaking ball and reaching back and touching 90 mph. The two combined to limit Alton to just two hits in the five-inning game, as their offense behind them added five more runs after the whirlwind second frame.

Alton has two opportunities tomorrow to get back on track to start their spring, one against Lockport and one against Effingham.

Tom Pile Field; Edwardsville

Champaign Central, 18 Freeburg, 12 (2:30 pm)
The Maroons sent 17 hitters to the plate in the first inning of the game giving themselves a 12-run cushion on seven hits and three errors. Starting pitcher Joel Sarver and DH Sam Beesley each deliver two-run singles in the frame.

The Midgets of Freeburg would claw back in answering with one in the bottom half of the first on a RBI double from C Brady Schmitz. Their big inning came in the second when the Midgets put up a five spot headlined by an RBI double off the bat of you guessed who, Brady Schmitz.

From here on out, the Maroons and the MIdgets would trade off runs back and forth. Champaign Central would manufacture two in the top of the 5th and Freeburg answered right back in the bottom of the frame courtesy of a two-run blast from sophomore 3B Colin Bruggemann.

The Maroons would tack on insurance runs in the 6th and 7th getting one on Isaiah Jackson’s RBI triple and another on an RBI single from Sarver. Jackson reached base five times with two walks, two doubles, a triple, two runs and the RBI and Sarver would go 2-for-5 with four RBI.

Champaign Central right-hander Caleb Pyrz and sophomore right-hander Jack Born went two plus out of the pen striking out three apiece with Born earning the victory. Cole Jones, Sarver, Sam Chapman, Pyrz, Beesley and Jackson all had multi-hit games for the Maroons. Jones would touch home four times in a productive day out of the leadoff spot. Illinois commit Connor Milton scored two runs with a walk tracking down balls with ease in CF on a wind gust filled day. Beesley collected four RBI for the Maroons.

Travis Bergkoetter would take the loss for Freeburg. Schmitz paced the offense with two hits and three RBI while Paden Muskopf collected two hits of his own with two runs and two RBI.

Mater Dei 19, Pleasant Plains 4 (6 pm)
Another shootout in game two from Tom Pile Field that saw 23 runs touch home. The Knights from Mater Dei put up a ten spot in the third inning in a team effort batting through the order. The Cardinals of Pleasant Plains would answer with four of their own in the bottom half of the inning.

The Knights then tacked on seven more in the very next inning, putting them up comfortably in the game. Pleasant Plains would then leave the bases loaded in the fifth with a strikeout ending the five inning run run-ruled affair.

OF Drew Dant and 1B Craig Oertel each scored four times for the Knights. Dant, C Grant Muntan and DH Brock Timmerman would each collect two hits apiece.

Plains sophomore LHP Mason Williams took the loss on the mound. INF Joel Niermann and C Corgan Greer would each pick up a base knock with a run scored for the Cardinals offense.