Wheaton North upsets top seed Schaumburg

Wheaton North's fourth-inning outburst arrived and passed quickly Saturday.

But 7 runs in a 9-pitch sequence did more than enough damage to top-seeded Schaumburg in the Larkin Class 4A baseball sectional title game in Elgin.

Junior right-hander Trey Martin made sure he wasn't victimized by any similar storms. Martin shut down the powerful Saxons on 3 hits as No. 2 Wheaton North won its first sectional title 10-2.

"It feels great," said Wheaton North junior Aric Dama, whose 2-run homer started the scoring. "We're all really excited to play Monday to have a chance to go to state."

Matt Palackdharry and Mike Small each had 3 hits as the Falcons (23-13) finished with 14. Martin (6-0) didn't allow an earned run as they advanced to Monday's 4:30 p.m. Lisle supersectional at Benedictine University against Loyola (24-13), which beat Leyden 11-4 for the Niles West sectional title.

Martin, making his third start after a three-week layoff with a bicep strain, had 7 strikeouts and 2 of his 4 walks were in the seventh.

"He's been shutting down teams all year," Dama said.

"I stuck with the fastball a lot," Martin said. "I had my location on that and kept them off balance with the other pitches."

Schaumburg (24-7) was averaging 7½ runs with 13 double-figure scoring games.

"He had us the whole game and had our number today," said Purdue-bound Saxons catcher Dominick D'Agata, who went 0-for-4.

"I was a little fearful that we hadn't seen a right-hander who threw hard all year," said Schaumburg coach Paul Groot. "I told our kids we were going to see a good fastball and he just threw it right by us.

"They're a good club. They impressed me."

Schaumburg righty George Kalousek (9-2) got out of first-and-second, one-out jams in the first and third. With one out in the fourth, Wade Cervenka lined a 3-2 pitch for a single to center.

Dama hit the next pitch to center and it kept carrying for his second homer of the year.

"I didn't put that great of a swing on it, but I hit it on a perfect spot on the bat and it kept going with the wind," Dama said.

"It was awesome," Martin said. "We like to say he's 'wise eyes.' That got it going and once it's rolling…"

Martin reached on a single and error, Brett Kirchhofer bunted for a hit and Small lined an 0-2 pitch to right-center for an RBI double.

After Jack DeAno was intentionally walked, Palackdharry lined a 2-run single. Kalousek was relieved by Kyle Pusateri and Ryan Javech singled in 2 runs through a drawn-in infield.

"It's been happening all year for us that way," Palackdharry said. "One through nine we can hit the ball and get guys on base."

Schaumburg didn't get its first hit until Dave Compitello's two-out double in the third. Three throwing errors and Mike Mistrata's flyball to right that was lost in the high sky for an RBI double cut its deficit to 7-2 in the fifth.

Travis Otto got the runs back for the Falcons with a 2-run single in the sixth. Martin did the rest to end Schaumburg's two-year run with a 49-14 record and consecutive Mid-Suburban League championships.

"Looking back on it, it was two great years … but it wasn't what we wanted," the classy D'Agata said. "We wanted state and we didn't get there. That's what it comes down to."

Neuqua Valley 9, Lockport 4:ŒOne fact emerged from the loaded Class 4A Neuqua Valley baseball sectional -- the fittest survived.

The defending state champion and host Wildcats won their second straight sectional title, and third in program history, with Saturday's 9-4 victory over Lockport in Naperville.

The Wildcats' bats -- overshadowed by their tremendous pitching throughout much of the season -- came alive again while facing the third-seeded Porters (22-10), who used four pitchers.

Jason David's 2-run first-inning single spotted starting pitcher Geoff Rowan (5-1) to a 2-0 lead. When Neuqua Valley burst ahead 8-0 with a 6-run fourth inning, the Wildcats felt more comfortable than they had in a long time while competing in perhaps the toughest sectional in the state.

"I feel like I've been drug through a knot hole," said Wildcats coach Robin Renner. "To have to beat Naperville North, Lincoln-Way East and Lockport, it's amazing."

In the opening innings against Lockport, the most amazing thing was Neuqua Valley's performance. Rowan was perfect on the mound through four innings while the bats padded the lead in the bottom of the fourth.

"All year long we've hit the ball well," David said. "And in a game like this, I think most of our guys like it when we face good pitching."

Rowan, who went 3-for-3, doubled home 2 runs in the fourth and Brian McNabb drove him in with a double. An error and a sacrifice fly by Ryan Wagner brought home another run and Jordan Williamson capped the scoring with a 2-run single as 12 batters came to the plate.

"It was great," Rowan said. "When we come out and hit the ball, that's just what we want. Everyone was hitting the ball top to bottom. There's no weak links."

Lockport rallied with a pair of unearned runs in the fifth inning, and then put Rowan in a sixth-inning jam. Reliever Mike McKinley came in at that point, and escaped the sixth with 2 runs scoring.

Rowan allowed 2 hits, struck out six and walked two in 5½ innings. McKinley pitched the final 1¿ innings, allowing a hit and striking out one.

Krol, who hasn't lost since his first outing against St. Charles North on April 15, is slated to pitch Monday's game at the University of Illinois. He'll take a 7-1 record, a 1.08 ERA and 88 strikeouts into the matchup.

"We've got Geoff and Ian, two of the best pitchers in the state, I think," McKinley said. "I like being the closer out there. Getting the last out of the game feels real good."

-- Kevin Schmit

Glenbard South 1, Riverside-Brookfield 0:ŒA softball team with Illinois' career stolen base leader coaching third is a team looking to take the extra base.

Amanda Straka took it and ran.

Green-lighted by Glenbard South coach Julie Fonda, Straka scored from second on a wild pitch in the Raiders' 1-0 victory over Riverside-Brookfield on Saturday in the Class 3A Glenbard South sectional final.

Leading off the bottom of the fifth, Straka beat out an infield hit then stole second. The junior left fielder was there with two outs and catcher Jess Fijolek at bat.

Bulldogs pitcher Emma Forsberg delivered a pitch in and in the dirt, skipping to the backstop. R-B's catcher couldn't locate the ball.

Straka scrambled into third. Fonda saw an opening.

"As soon as (Straka) was coming to the base I told her, 'The catcher can't find it.' " Fonda said. "She rounded and I saw the pitcher take off after it and I yelled, 'Go,' and she just took off."

No hesitation.

"Not at all," Straka said. "I hit the base and I ran.

"She said that as soon as I hit the bag," Straka said. "She's like, 'She can't find it.' I was like, 'OK, gone.' "

Fonda, who stole 208 bases at Glenbard South from 1993-96, said: "That's great instinct. We work on those types of things, though. That's our type of ballgame."

Aggressive base-running, tight defense, sharp pitching. All accounted for, to send Glenbard South to its second straight supersectional, 4 p.m. Monday against Oak Forest at Glenbard South.

Top-seeded Glenbard South (27-6) -- which could have kicked itself for not scoring when Forsberg (13-3) walked the bases full in the first -- pulled out the defense in the top of the fourth.

April Hutchens led off with a double for No. 2 seed Riverside-Brookfield (24-9). Glenbard South pitcher Jill Trzaska struck out the next batter, but hit the next.

Then R-B's Michelle Demitro cracked a single into right-center. Raiders center fielder Nikki Simpson ran it down and threw home. Fijolek tagged Hutchens on the hook slide.

"I was like, 'Thanks, babe, for saving my life,' " Simpson said. "Without that tag she might have been safe. It was a really close play."

Mixing fastball, changeup and location, Trzaska (19-2) struck out 10 and allowed 4 hits. The senior right-hander stranded a runner at second in the sixth and retired R-B in order in the seventh.

Riverside-Brookfield coach Dan Hull shouldered blame for the loss. He said the costly play, which tarnished Forsberg's 3-hitter, was an intentional walk gone awry.

"If I would have just let her pitch to her maybe we would have got her out," Hull said.

-- David Oberhelman