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Baseball: Sanchez plays longball as Mundelein ousts Fremd

Basketball would seem to be a perfect fit for Steve Sanchez.

The Mundelein junior is athletic and long … 6-foot-7 long.

He tried it, but it didn't quite stick.

"I played (basketball) my freshman year and it didn't really work out for me, and then I fell in love with baseball," Sanchez said. "Baseball is my game. It's my sport. It's my life."

Sanchez certainly had the game of his life, in the sport that has become his life, on Saturday.

He made a play that Hollywood couldn't have scripted any more dramatically to give host Mundelein a 3-2 victory over Fremd in 10 innings for a Class 4A regional championship.

With two outs in the bottom of the tenth inning, and an 11th inning looming, Sanchez stepped to the plate and moments later couldn't believe his eyes.

"I saw that baseball, and it just said 'Hit me!' Sanchez said of a fastball pitch from Fremd reliever Tom Narey. "It was like 'Hit me, hit me.' That was the pitch and I just swung with all I could. I was waiting for a fastball and I got it."

In fact, Sanchez got every square inch of that ball because he sent it over the centerfield fence for a walk-off home run that ended the game. As Sanchez rounded the bases on his third home run of the season, Mundelein's fans erupted.

"It was like the world just exploded," said Sanchez, who has already committed to play college baseball at Arkansas. "It was like the greatest thing ever. It was awesome. That was for my teammates, the seniors especially. This was our last game here (at Mundelein High School) this season and I just wanted to give it my all.

"This is our field. I was not going to let Fremd leave here with a win. They're a great team, but I wanted this game really bad."

Sanchez also helped Mundelein, which improves to 31-6 and next faces Libertyville at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday in the Glenbrook South sectional semifinal, put the game away from the mound as well. He was the third pitcher of the day for Mundelein, entering in the top of the seventh inning in relief.

He limited Fremd to just 2 hits over the next four innings and also rolled up 10 strikeouts. In the pivotal top of the tenth, what would prove to be Fremd's last at-bat, Sanchez struck out the side.

"I think you could call Steve Sanchez the MVP today," Mundelein coach Todd Parola said. "He did a great job in relief. Came in and shut the door and was in command. And obviously, the home run. That was a rocket. How often do you see an IHSA playoff game end on a solo home run with two outs? Pretty amazing."

Mundelein got on the board first in the fourth inning when Sanchez, who was 3-for-4 on the day, drove in Brendan Murphy with a double. The Mustangs got another run in the fifth inning when shortstop Ryan Patel doubled and then eventually scored on a Fremd fielding error.

But Fremd finally answered, scoring 2 runs in the top of the sixth inning to tie up the game. A single by right fielder Eric Bennes brought in both runs.

"We battled, just like we did (in the regional semifinals against Stevenson)," said Fremd coach Chris Piggott, whose team closes out its season with a 17-17 record. "Unfortunately we came out on the wrong end, we had chances that we couldn't take advantage of, but we played hard.

"I told them to keep their heads up. There's nothing to hang their heads about. We weren't supposed to win the game and I think the pressure might have gotten (to Mundelein) a bit. We were pretty loose the whole game. We just couldn't get that one (big) hit. But it was a good game and I'm proud of them."

Piggott would also be proud of the way his players lifted up Narey, who gave up the homer to Sanchez.

"Everybody said that I shouldn't hold that on myself because we had already had plenty of chances to win the game, and it's a team game," said Narey, who pitched the last three innings for Fremd. "I didn't think (Sanchez's hit) was going (over the fence), but it went by in a flash.

"It's hard, but we played with all we had and we had a chance to win it."

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