Diebold, Sabres stun Neuqua Valley in UEC
Matt Cohen scored the winning run on a throwing error in the bottom of the eighth inning Friday as the Streamwood baseball team stunned Upstate Eight Conference heavyweight Neuqua Valley 8-7.
"It was a great game," said Streamwood coach Steve Diversey. "It was a team effort to win in extra innings. Our hitters showed great composure late in the game."
The Sabres (6-6-2, 4-2) were down 6-3 but came back with 2 runs in the sixth and 2 runs in the seventh to tie the game.
Mike Diebold was the man of the hour for the Sabres. Not only was he 3-for-4 at the plate but he also threw a complete game on the mound for the win. He struck out four and walked two.
Ryan Kiesel (HR), Brian Brauer (2-run HR) and Dylan Nemcek (2-run HR) each had 2 hits for Streamwood.
Grayslake Central 12, Dundee-Crown 2: With winds gusting forcefully into right field Friday afternoon, the Grayslake Central baseball team didn't want to...blow it.
Here was the Rams' chance to end their hitting and scoring woes.
"I'm no Tom Skilling (WGN's popular weather man), but those gusts had to be 40 or 50 miles per hour at times," Grayslake Central coach Troy Whalen said. "That kind of wind can be a factor. We were able to score a month's worth of runs today."
As the winds helped carry the ball further through the air than usual, the Rams huffed and puffed and blew away visiting Dundee-Crown for a 12-2 Fox Valley Conference crossover victory in five innings.
Grayslake Central (11-6) also snapped a two-game skid and was able to up its scoring average. Whalen said the Rams were averaging a paltry 3 runs a game prior to the offensive barrage.
The Rams rolled up 13 hits against Dundee-Crown. Six of them came in the fourth inning when Grayslake Central turned a slim 3-2 lead into a comfy seven-run cushion by batting through the order to score 6 more runs.
Angelo Gargano (2-for-4) and four other Rams had multiple hits. Stefan Falbo was 3-for-4 (double), Mike Gentile was 2-for-3, Andrew Hosford was 2-for-3 (double) and Jack Karol was 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Grayslake Central's pitching wasn't too shabby either.
Despite being shaken early in the game when he was beamed in the shin with a ball that rocketed right back to the mound, Kevin DeRue was solid from start to finish. He tallied 4 strikeouts and allowed just 1 walk in four innings.
DeRue's only rough patch came in the third inning when he gave up 2 runs on 4 hits, singles by Scott Nowicke, Nick Torres, Jake Romano and Willy Larsen.
But that was quickly forgotten when the Rams put up their six runs in the very next inning. "We have to do a better job of cutting off a bad inning," said Dundee-Crown coach Jon Sawyer, whose team fell to 3-11. "When something bad happens, we can't let it snowball. We've done that all season and we need to forget about it and move on."
- Patricia Babcock McGraw
Waubonsie Valley 14, Elgin 4 (5 innings): Elgin (0-11, 0-6) fell to Waubonsie Valley in this Upstate Eight Conference matchup. Adam Jazwiec hit a grand slam in the bottom of the fifth inning, but that was all the offensive scoring the Maroons could muster. Tom Roth (0-2) took the loss on the mound going 4 innings, giving up 6 hits and 5 earned runs.
Westminster Christian 8, Kirkland 3: Westminster Christian (11-6) came back from an early 1-0 Kirkland lead to score 8 runs in the final 3 innings for the win. Ryan Perez (3-0) remained perfect on the season going 4 innings and striking out seven. Perez also came through on the offensive end registering 2 RBI. Brandon Sieweirt led the Warriors at the plate going 4-for-6 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI.
St. Francis 5, St. Edward 2: St. Edward (10-9, 4-3) played St. Francis tight through 5 innings until the Spartans scored 3 runs in the bottom of the sixth to seal a 5-2 Suburban Catholic Conference victory. Riley Coleman led the Green Wave offense going 2-for-3 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI. Julian Ramirez (2-2) suffered the loss pitching 6 innings while walking two and striking out four.
Jacobs 2, Johnsburg 0: Bryan Baker (1-1) led the Golden Eagles on the mound pitching 5 innings while striking out six leading to a Jacobs shutout. Brandon Richmond (HR) and Zach Battes (2-for-2) led the Golden Eagles offensively.
McHenry 4, Huntley 2: Huntley (13-3-1) fell just short to visiting McHenry in this Fox Valley Conference crossover matchup. Andrew Sepena (2-for-3) and Jimmy Gordon (1-for-3, 1 RBI) led the Red Raiders offensively. Chris Klein (0-1) suffered his first loss of the season going 51/3 innings, giving up 8 hits while striking out two.
South Elgin 10, Larkin 4: South Elgin (7-8-1, 4-3-1) relied on a strong start scoring all 10 runs in the first two innings to carry it to this Upstate Eight Conference victory over Larkin (10-10, 5-4). Charlie Sabo led the Storm going 2-for-2 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI while Brandon Stevens (2-for-4) and Kyle De Roo (2-for-3) also chipped in offensively. Brett Huisman earned the win on the mound pitching 5 innings while striking out five and walking five. Luc Geier took the loss for Larkin. Jon Meidel and Carlos Rojo had doubles for the Royals.
Cary-Grove 7, Crystal Lake Central 5: Cary-Grove (12-5-1) came out on top of this 8-inning matchup scoring 2 runs in the top of the eighth to earn the victory. Stu Gaulke earned the victory on the mound going 5 innings, giving up 4 hits while striking out two. Offensively the Trojans were led by Matt Nelsen (2-for-4, HR) and Chris Waylock (3-for-3).