Cary-Grove routs Batavia, storms into Final 4

ROCKFORD - The Cary-Grove baseball team advanced to the Final Four the way General Sherman marched to the sea - by leaving scorched earth behind.

The Trojans gained a state berth in baseball for the first time in school history by demonstrating superiority in all three phases of the game in a 10-1 victory over Batavia in a Class 4A supersectional at Road Ranger Stadium in Rockford Monday.

In five postseason games the Trojans have outscored their opponents 40-11. They played error free for the third time in their last four games, and their starting pitcher tossed a complete game for the fourth time in five outings.

Cary-Grove (31-8) will play New Trier (30-7) in a state semifinal at Silver Cross Field in Joliet on Friday at 7 p.m. The Trevians ripped Barrington 14-4, also in Rockford.

Is this the best team in Cary-Grove history?

"I think you'd have to say it is," 22nd-year coach Don Sutherland said. "We have depth, a power pitcher, a finesse pitcher, great defense, a balanced lineup. We knew we had a chance to be good with two classes back to back that won conference as sophomores.

"This team plays complete baseball. We're coming up big making plays defensively and hitting every cut off. Offensively, we're hitting the ball up the middle, and (Matt) Nelsen pitched great."

In a battle of right-handed pitchers with 10-0 records, Nelsen emerged with the win against Batavia's Adam Karger. Nelsen scattered 6 hits over 7 innings and didn't allow Batavia a run until his team led 10-0 with two outs in the top of the seventh.

Batavia baseball coach Matt Holm said his team usually figures out pitchers like Nelsen "by the fourth or fifth inning." He throws a sharp curveball and an effective changeup, both of which make his well-located fastballs seem quicker. The win improved Nelsen's record over two seasons to 19-0.

"I think we were just starting to get to him, Bulldogs senior Jordan Coffey said. "Maybe if we'd had one more inning. But he mixed his fastball and his off-speed well."

Cary-Grove touched Karger for a run in the third inning. Leadoff hitter Eric Chandler tripled off the top of the right-field wall and later scored on a groundout by Chris Waylock.

The Trojans scored 4 runs on 4 hits in the fourth inning to take a 5-0 lead. Senior Luke Mottashed and junior Stu Gaulke each delivered run-scoring infield hits, and Waylock drilled an opposite-field single to right that scored a pair.

"The first couple of innings we wanted to get some runs to support Nelsen," Waylock said. "He always pitches better when we score runs for him."

Said Nelsen: "Our offense has been hitting the ball all year. I don't throw the ball overpowering, but everything was working, my curve. The changeup was really working well today. I was able to hit spots and throw strikes."

Scoring chances were few for the Bulldogs. They had a runner thrown out at third base in the second inning. Another was thrown out at the plate in the fifth, thanks to an accurate relay throw by Waylock from the outfield grass.

"That was a great play," Holm said of Waylock's throw. "He changed his cut and threw home. I thought that might have been the start of something."

Reliever Jordan Coffey retired the Trojans on 1 hit in the fifth inning, but Cary-Grove got to him for 3 runs in the sixth and 2 more in the seventh to pull away. Cary-Grove finished with 14 hits, led by 3 apiece from Waylock (4 RBI), Mottashed (2 RBI) and Nick Hammonds.

"We just tried to have good at-bats and take the outside pitch to right field," Hammonds said. "This feels great - best team in school history."