Baseball: Marmion grabs third-place finish in first state tourney

The Marmion baseball team barely had a .500 record in the regular season playing in the nails-tough Chicago Catholic League.

But the Cadets had a huge advantage in the Class 3A state tournament.

It paid off Saturday in Joliet as the Cadets, making their first appearance at the state tournament in program history, captured the major consolation prize with a 7-1 victory over Champaign Central in the third-place game.

"We sent these seniors out the right way," Marmion coach Frank Chapman said.

Brandon McPherson was at the forefront of the Cadets' victory.

The junior allowed a mere 2 hits as Marmion was in double digits in the base hit total before Champaign Central recorded its first single.

"As I have said in the past, when my teammates have my back it just makes pitching that much easier," McPherson said. "Even if I make a mistake, they've got my back in every fight. Everything was working."

Bobby Pierce was not too far behind in the importance of the Marmion victory.

The senior, a Batavia native headed to Quincy College, produced runs in his 3 at-bats for the Cadets.

"It was awesome," Pierce said of his third-inning solo home run that gave Marmion a 3-0 lead. "You just have to be happy we went out on top."

Pierce doubled home Jack Molenhouse for Marmion (22-17) in the Cadets' 2-run first.

Pierce had yet another RBI-single in the fourth to drive home Molenhouse as part of the Marmion attack against Champaign Central (30-11).

Marmion pounded out 15 hits against four Champaign pitchers.

The Maroons could muster only 4 hits against McPherson and reliever Eric Lundell, who pitched the final 3⅓ innings for Marmion.

"They had quality at-bats," Chapman said of the Cadets' attack. "Guys were just taking what the (Champaign) pitchers were giving us. We were making good adjustments at the plate. That was huge for us."

The Cadets were in complete control the entire game.

Marmion scored a trio of runs in the third inning to take a 5-0 lead.

Trevor Taus' extra-base hit scored Bryce Burton to account for back-to-back doubles in the inning.

"It was not our day today," Champaign coach John Staab said. "(The Cadets) outplayed us in all three phases. You have to give them credit. They were the better team today."

Chapman predicted both Marmion junior catcher Chase Stanke, orally committed to Arkansas, and McPherson would be drafted.

But the second-year coach also expects a change for next year.

"My guess, with the multiplier, we're going to be (Class) 4A," Chapman said. "It will give us new opportunities."