Picture perfect for Prairie Ridge
For all the bulbs flashing and cameras pointing at Prairie Ridge's baseball team, Dave Haskins wanted one shot just for himself.
The coach calmly aimed his camera at the center-field scoreboard and snapped a picture of the bold letters proclaiming Prairie Ridge as the 2008 Class 4A state champions.
The Wolves (32-8) more than earned their first baseball title with Saturday's hard-fought 3-2 win over Oak Park in front of a lively crowd of 1,567 fans at Joliet's Silver Cross Field.
Winning 26 of their last 28 games including 14 straight to close the season, the Wolves lived up to their billing of being the hottest team in the state.
"It feels great," said Wolves starting pitcher T.J. Swank, who got a no-decision but drove in the tying run with an RBI triple in the top of the sixth inning.
"The whole playoffs -- every game we've been in -- we've been battling," he said. "We've had guys on our team that have really stepped up. You look down our lineup, and every single guy on our team has been contributing."
That was again the case against Oak Park (29-10), which took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning with an unearned run that scored on a bases-loaded walk to Sam Picchiotti. Swank emerged from the frame without further damage and set the stage for reliever Nick Martini (7-2) and an impressive 3 scoreless innings of 1-hit ball.
"It's definitely nerve-wracking," said Martini, who also singled and scored 2 runs. "But once you start throwing strikes and you know you can find the zone, it just feels real good."
After a 50-minute weather delay before the game, Oak Park jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Jo Jo Maldanado doubled home Drew Golz. Huskies starter Kyle Glancy (9-4) held the lead until Prairie Ridge tied it in the fourth when Martini walked, stole second, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on Swank's groundout.
Trailing 2-1 in the sixth, the Wolves electrified the crowd with the tying and go-ahead runs. Martini led off with a single and scored on Swank's triple to right-center field.
Nolan Jacoby then drove in the game-winning run with a sacrifice fly.
Oak Park managed only one baserunner in its final two innings at the plate. Picchiotti coaxed a leadoff walk in the seventh, but Martini retired the next three batters capped by a strikeout to send the Wolves into celebration mode in front of a shower of fireworks.
A Prairie Ridge season that began with a 6-6 start ended with a state championship.
"Playing great baseball at the right time," is how Haskins described his team's turnaround. "I truly believe our pitchers were on a roll, the defense has been playing sound and we had some timely hitting."