Naperville North 9, Naperville Central 8
The Naperville North baseball team provided the perfect case study for the positive effect of momentum Thursday afternoon.
The Huskies grabbed a 9-8 victory over Naperville Central on a last at-bat single by Ben Kelsey in a continuation of Tuesday's suspended game, then parlayed that victorious energy into a 6-1 triumph in the second. Coupled with Wheaton North's 2-1 loss Thursday afternoon, Naperville North now sits alone atop the DuPage Valley Conference.
A series sweep of the Redhawks today in Naperville gives the Huskies the DVC championship outright.
For the fourth time this season, the Huskies' senior center fielder gave his team a walk-off victory.
"I just get attracted to the situation. I come up there, you can feel the adrenaline going, and it seems like every time there's a big situation, I'm up at the plate," Kelsey said. "I am really confident when I go up there now because it's been so many times. It makes things a lot easier for me."
Junior Jake Naumann finished the first game on the mound for the Huskies (21-9, 13-7) and kept rolling right through the second one. Naumann earned his eighth and ninth victories Thursday afternoon, including a complete-game, 8-strikeout performance on the back end.
"I was hoping the whole game I would have enough to finish out the second one, and I did," Naumann said.
Immediately after securing their first victory, the Huskies went right back to work in the second game. A Mike Nodzenski sacrifice fly to center field scored Jordan Tassio, putting Naperville North ahead 1-0.
Nodzenski kept the Huskies on his back all game long, poking an RBI single to left field in the third inning before knocking a long RBI-double to left in the fifth. The latter gave Naperville North a 3-0 lead.
According to Nodzenski, a more patient approach at the plate led to the catcher's big-day success.
"I was able to work longer at-bats. I had been swinging at some early pitches in the count for a couple games," Nodzenski said. "I was able to get deep in the count, see a bunch of pitches and eventually got some pitches to hit and didn't miss them."
The Redhawks (16-11, 11-9) got to Naumann in the bottom of the sixth, getting their lone run on catcher John Holm's sharp infield single. Holm's single kept the bases loaded with one out in the inning, but Naumann induced the next Redhawks hitter into an inning-ending 6-3 double play.
Naperville North tacked on two more runs in the top of the seventh to seal the victory.
"I'd like to think that we started from scratch and we were able to start all over again (in Game 2), but we didn't," Redhawks coach Bill Seiple said. "To a great degree there was a lot of disappointment after the first game."
-- Matthew McClarey
Softball
Downers Grove South 5, Neuqua Valley 3:ŒDowners Grove South coach Ron Havelka found out first hand what he already suspected -- these Neuqua Valley Wildcats have a lot more fight in them than a year ago.
Neuqua Valley, beaten 10-0 by Downers Grove South in a regional final last season, dropped a 5-3 decision to the Mustangs in Naperville.
"They were good last year but young," Havelka said. "They're still young but even better now."
Indeed, the Wildcats only have three seniors and two juniors on the varsity roster.
But they are 12-3 over their last 15 games, with the losses by a combined 5 runs to Bartlett, Lake Park and Downers Grove South. Neuqua Valley and Downers Grove South could play again in a regional final next Saturday in Naperville.
"Today we showed we're capable of winning a regional," Neuqua Valley coach Michelle Schmidt said.
Downers Grove South (22-5), hitting nearly .400 as a team coming in, capitalized on a Neuqua Valley mistake to grab the lead in the third.
Jacqueline Riordan reached on an infield error with one out, and freshman leadoff hitter Marissa Mersch promptly laced a double down the left-field line to score the game's first run. Kaelene Curry reached on a bunt single, and Brooke Andresen banged a double to the left-center gap to score Mersch.
Curry came home on a groundout and Andresen followed on a high throw to home, making it 4-0.
"You have to get the hits when the opportunity comes up," said Andresen, batting well over .500 on the season. "This lineup can string some hits together."
Facing the early deficit, Neuqua Valley battled back with 2 runs in the fourth and another in the fifth.
Amanda Mener's slap single scored Megan Rice with the first run, and Summer McKenzie's sacrifice fly drove in Katie Wido. A basehit by Rice in the fifth scored Jenna Marsalli to make it 4-3.
The Wildcats could not draw closer, despite 9 hits and baserunners in all but one inning. Neuqua Valley (17-12) left 10 runners on base, five in scoring position.
"A couple hits one way or the other," Schmidt said, "and it would have been a whole different game."
Schmidt was heartened by the fact that 7 of her team's hits came from batters No. 6 (Rice), No. 7 (Wido) and No. 9 (Mener) in the lineup.
Neuqua Valley plays its first regional game Wednesday against Plainfield South.
"I appreciate the respect we're getting from other teams," Schmidt said, "but I always tell the girls we have to start earning that respect."
-- Joshua Welge
Glenbard South 1, Sycamore 0:ŒJill Trzaska struck out 17 batters, and Glenbard South beat Sycamore in 11 innings to move a win away from its second consecutive unbeaten run in the Western Sun Conference.
In the 11th Nikki Simpson singled, and stole second. Jess Fijolek was walked intentionally, and on a blooper in the infield Simpson scored from third as Sycamore tried to throw out Fijolek. Glenbard South (23-5, 11-0) hosts Rochelle today.
Naperville Central 7, Hinsdale South 3: Erin Graham had 3 hits, drove in 2 runs and scored a run, and Stephanie Lynch added 3 doubles for the Redhawks (19-6) in an nonconference game.
West Chicago 4, Elmwood Park 2: Chrissie Rovtar went 2-for-3 with an RBI, Izzy Bruce drove in 2 and Mary Connolly (18-6) struck out 6 for West Chicago (19-8) in an nonconference game.