St. Edward, Driscoll split SCC doubleheader
St. Edward pitcher Riley Coleman was as hot as an outdoor furnace bearing his name Saturday.
Coleman (5-0) fanned 10 Driscoll batters without allowing a walk as St. Edward took a 2-1 victory in the opening game of the Suburban Catholic Conference twinbill at Elgin's Wing Park.
But Driscoll loves doubleheaders. At least the second game of them.
After falling in the opening game, the Highlanders rebounded for a 9-8 victory in Game 2. In their fourth doubleheader of the season, the Highlanders (9-7, 3-3) are now 1-3 in the opening game and a perfect 4-0 in Game 2.
The Green Wave (8-8, 3-2) nearly put a blemish on that mark.
Steve Schwabe's sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh scored Connor McDannell to secure a 9-8 win for Driscoll in the back-and-forth contest.
Trailing 6-0 after two innings, St. Edward put up 6 runs on 5 hits in the sixth to take a 7-6 advantage. The Green Wave batted around the order with junior T.J. Madzy (2-for-3, 3 RBI) nailing a 2-run home run over the 360-foot center field wall.
"In the sixth inning in both games, we had some defensive lapses," Driscoll coach Steve Bieterman said. "That allowed them to take the first game and come back in the second game."
All four of Driscoll's runs in the second inning came from a massive swing by Highlanders' leadoff batter Gabe Tumlos. The right fielder nailed his first home run of the season in grand fashion by smacking a grand slam to center. Tumlos scored again in a 2-run sixth, which allowed Driscoll to retake the lead 8-7.
"We're a second game team," Tumlos said. "We start off shaky in the first game. The second game is where we turn it on."
Jordan Torres (1-2) suffered the loss for the Green Wave, but did not give up an earned run in the game. An infield error allowed Driscoll to load the bases before Schwabe nailed his sacrifice fly. Joe Conti (1-2) notched his first win of the season for Driscoll.
Aside from Coleman's strong outing, St. Edward was able to get a pair of runs in the sixth to take the victory in Game 1.
"We were hitting right at them," Coleman said. "(But) I had a couple of days off and my pitches were working today."
St. Edward took its lead despite not recording a hit in the sixth inning. Jim Fraczek got a one-out walk and Adam Gilles reached base on an error. Jon Godfrey got an RBI fielder's choice scoring Fraczek and Gilles would reach home on a second Driscoll error.
"Riley has very dominant in every single start," St. Edward coach Gene Belmonte said. "He struck out 10 and didn't allow a walk."
Driscoll got its lone run when Phil Bongiovanni's triple scored Tom Alt to give the Highlanders a 1-0 lead in the top of the sixth. Adam Halick (1-1) got tagged with the loss for Driscoll.