Baseball: West Aurora wins thriller over St. Charles East
With aces Hannah Beatus and Delaney Devor squaring off in a matchup of Top 20 teams Wednesday in Aurora, there weren't many hits for either Upstate Eight powers West Aurora or St. Charles East.
But boy were there some big ones.
Rylee Stout blasted a clutch 2-run homer in the top of the sixth inning putting St. Charles East ahead 2-1 only to see Kallie Rundle launch an even more dramatic 2-run homer in the bottom of the sixth, giving West Aurora a thrilling 3-2 victory.
No. 5 West Aurora (11-2, 4-0) defeated No. 12 St. Charles East (9-3, 2-2) in similar fashion last year, 1-0 on a homer in the seventh inning.
"It's a typical West Aurora-St. Charles East game," West Aurora coach Randy Hayslett said.
The Grand Valley State-bound Beatus was unhittable most of the game. Through 5 innings she had 10 strikeouts while not allowing a hit or a walk.
Maddie Candre started the sixth with a line drive double. She scored on Stout's towering home run way over the left-field fence.
"Rylee came through and had a huge at-bat," Saints coach and West Aurora graduate Jarod Gutesha said. "She knows how to hit."
West Aurora answered in its half of the sixth. Sophia Delgado reached on an infield single, and two batters later Rundle took a 3-2 pitch over the left-field fence to put the Blackhawks back up 3-2.
Rundle just missed a home run earlier in the at-bat that she pulled foul. Her homer was her third of the year and came off her future Rock Valley College teammate, Devor.
"She was pitching inside, that's what I like," Rundle said. "Eventually it had to come in my favor.
"When we are able to bounce back that's nice. It doesn't happen often that she (Beatus) gives up runs. When it happens it's good to be able to support her."
Beatus closed the door on the Saints in the seventh, retiring three straight with two more strikeouts. She finished with 15 strikeouts and no walks.
"I felt really amped up today. My rise ball was spinning well today," Beatus said. "You have to rely on your offense to pick you back up and that's exact what Kallie did. It was such a good at-bat. She waited for her pitch and once she got it she took it right over the fence."
West Aurora grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second. Faith Pokryfke singled, Sarah Hansen reached on an error, and after falling behind 0-2, No. 9 hitter Aislinn Strusz shortened her swing and lined an RBI single to center.
Beatus nearly made that run hold up until Stout's homer in the sixth.
"I don't worry about Hannah at all," Hayslett said. "Those things (Stout's homer) don't phase Hannah. She was throwing as hard as she has all year, 63, 64. She was throwing hard."
Devor allowed 2 earned runs, 5 hits and 1 walk while striking out four.
"That was one heck of a softball game," Gutesha said. "Fun game from start to finish."