St. Laurence Shocks Mount Carmel With Seventh Inning Comeback

April 24, 2017

By Drew Locascio
Illinois Scouting Director

No. 1 St. Laurence 5, No. 6 Mount Carmel 4

BURBANK, IL – No. 1 St. Laurence stormed back from three down in the bottom of the seventh inning, for a walk-off 5-4 win over No. 6 Mount Carmel.

With Mount Carmel (16-3) starting pitcher Cameron Hupe finally out of the game in the bottom of the seventh inning, the Vikings bats came alive. The inning started with a walk, a fielder’s choice and a hard-hit ball that got by the second baseman. Four consecutive singles followed and just like that, St. Laurence (17-1) had shocked the Caravan.

With one out and the bases loaded, talented sophomore, Matt McCormick delivered the game-ending, walk-off blow. The left-handed hitting, West Virginia commit, lined a base hit back up the middle, scoring Brian Lyle and UIC commit Tommy Farrell, the tying and winning run. The final run did come with some controversy however. As Farrell was coming down the third-base line and approaching home plate, he ran through Jake Kapers, the Mount Carmel catcher, instead of trying to avoid him. Kapers, a Valparaiso commit, was in the third-base line waiting for the throw when the collision took place. After a long discussion between the coaches, the umpires and then the coaches again, it was ruled Farrell was safe at home and the game was over.

Mount Carmel built a 4-1 lead heading into the seventh inning by scoring one run in the second, one in the fourth and two in the sixth. The run in the second came on a Kapers solo homerun and the run in the fourth came on a two-out RBI single by Christian Lucio.

Lucio then doubled in one of the two runs in the sixth and freshman Ed Howard grounded out to third base scoring Kevin Dowling for the fourth and final run for the Caravan.

St. Laurence starting pitcher Jimmy Burnette, an Illinois commit, went 5.1 innings, allowed two earned runs and struck out eight. Burnette, who hits in the four-hole, helped his cause at the plate, by driving in Farrell in the first inning with a sacrifice fly to center field, the only run the Vikings would score until the four-run seventh.

Hupe started on the mound for the Caravan and left the game after six innings with a 4-1 lead. Hupe, who was closing in on 100 pitches, scattered four hits, allowed one run, none earned, struck out seven and walked three.

Lucio led the way for Mount Carmel offensively, going 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI.

Farrell, McCormick and Lyle paced the Vikings offense with two-hits apiece.

For more in-depth notes from the game - and all other games that we cover - visit the Illinois Scout Blog later.