Prep Baseball Report

No. 12 Hinsdale Central Sneaks Past No. 10 Downers Grove South


By Peter Hamot
Area Scout

The Red Devils of Hinsdale Central and the Mustangs of Downers Grove South faced off to open up Class 4A Sectional play. The two teams battled it out, trading leads multiple times, but Hinsdale Central eventually came away with the win 6-4.

Hinsdale Central (23-3) went into the top of the seventh inning down 4-3. Senior Evan Chatterjee started the inning off with a sharply hit single to right field, but would be thrown out on the next play. Sophomore Ben Oosterbaan would reach base via a bunt single, followed by back to back walks from junior Blake Edmonds and senior Brian Daker. With the bases loaded and two outs, senior Luke Adams, a Michigan State commit, hit a fly ball to center field that looked like it was going to end the game. However, the ball was mishandled and three runs came around to score, giving the Red Devils a 6-4 lead. 

Downers Grove South (27-4) claimed a 4-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning. Senior Joe Cosenza, a College of DuPage CC commit, led off the inning with a single. Senior Joey Turek, a Saint Ambrose commit, came up next and put down a sacrifice bunt to move Cosenza over to second. After a walk to A.J. Taylor, a senior College of DuPage CC commit, Junior John Szalko would proceed to rip a ball up the middle to score both Cosenza and Taylor to claim a 4-3 lead at the time.

The Red Devils got things started early in the first inning as freshman Luke Jurack would open the game with a walk, followed by a single from Edmonds, which brought home Jurack for the early 1-0 lead. Edmonds would later score on a passed ball to extend their lead to 2-0 at the time. 

The Mustangs of Downers Grove South evened up the score in the bottom of the fourth inning. Senior Cole Warehime, a Southeast Missouri State commit, started the inning off with a sharp single to centerfield. Senior Noah Edders would help his own cause at the plate delivering a single to right-field which brought home Warehime to make the score 2-1 at the time. Junior Maxx Palenik followed with a single up the middle to score Taylor, who reached base via a fielder’s choice, evening the game up at two a-piece.

Hinsdale Central was led on the mound by sophomore Ben Oosterbaan. The talented right-hander tossed six strong innings to give the Red Devils a chance to win. He featured a running fastball that sat 85-89 mph early on, settling in at 84-87 mph later in the game. Oosterbaan went to a slider in the 77-81 mph range with sharp 10/4 action and feel for the zone.

Downers Grove South was led on the mound by senior right-hander and Bradley commit, Noah Edders. Edders went 4.2 innings while only allowing 2 hits and punching out 9 hitters. He featured a fastball that sat 90-93 mph early on with life through the zone, settling in at 90-91 mph later in the outing. Slider was his go-to secondary offering, featuring a sharp 10/4 breaker thrown in the 79-81 mph range with plus feel.

Hinsdale Central added on a run in the top of the fifth inning to lead 3-2 at the time after Edmonds singled to bring home Jurack, who walked the at-bat prior. 

With the win, Hinsdale Central advances to the Sectional Championship game on Friday against No. 15 Brother Rice. First pitch is slated for 4:30 pm. 

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES

+ Blake Edmonds (Hinsdale Central): 2-for-3, 2 RBIs 
+ John Szalko (Downers Grove South): 1-for-2, 2 RBIs
+ Joe Cosenza (Downers Grove South): 3-for-4
+ Maxx Palenik (Downers Grove South): 1-for-3, RBI
+ Noah Edders (Downers Grove South): 4.2 innings, 2 hits, 9 Ks, 1-2, RBI
+ Cole Warehime (Downers Grove South): 2-for-4 

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