Eichmann pitches Libertyville past Hoffman Estates

Joey Eichmann’s won-lost record in his varsity baseball career remains unblemished after Libertyville’s 2-1 win over visiting Hoffman Estates in the teams’ season opener.

His right elbow remains unblemished, too. It’s scar-free, even though it did provide a scare last spring.

Eichmann pitched 4 innings of 4-hit ball to notch the win Saturday, and Dar Townsend fired the final three innings, inducing a double-play groundball in the seventh to thwart a would-be rally by the Hawks.

“It was fun,” Eichmann said. “I feel totally back to 100 percent. It feels great to throw again.”

Eichmann, a 6-foot-4 right-hander, improved to 12-0 in his varsity career, which started his sophomore year. He hadn’t pitched a regular-season game on his home field since he took himself out of the Wildcats’ contest against Lake Zurich on April 15 of last season.

“He got some tightness in his forearm, and that’s all he complained about,” Libertyville coach Jim Schurr said. “He went to the White Sox’s team surgeon and they did every test under the sun. (The doctor) said, ‘I’m going to analogize it to the equivalent of spraining your ankle.’ He sprained a ligament in his elbow. He had no structural or joint integrity damage.

“It took a long time to come back.”

Eichmann, who was 3-0 last year after an 8-0 sophomore campaign, returned to pitch in Libertyville’s regional final last season. He then pitched sparingly in helping Top Tier win a CABA World Series championship last summer.

He shut out Hoffman Estates for three innings in his 2011 debut, before Hawks junior cleanup hitter Mark Roberts led off the fourth by hitting an 0-2 fastball over the fence in deep right-center field.

“He just left a fastball high,” said Roberts, who had 1 home run last season as the Hawks’ everyday shortstop.

Jimmy Ward followed Roberts’ blast by slicing a line drive, but Libertyville right fielder Nick Coutre made a diving catch. Riley Mugerditchian (2 for 2, walk) then doubled and advanced to third.

But Eichmann got a flyball to left fielder Trevor Freberg and struck out his final hitter of the day to prevent further damage.

Eichmann struck out two and walked one.

“Very happy for his first outing,” Schurr said. “His mound presence was right where it’s always been. His velocity was there, and it will only get better as the weather gets warmer. Good command around the zone.”

“My teammates did a great job,” Eichmann said. “They were all behind me. They played excellent defense.”

Eichmann’s teammates immediately picked him up after Roberts’ homer. Not only did Coutre making the defensive gem in right, but he led off the bottom of the fourth with an infield single. A.J. Schurr then doubled for the second time in as many at-bats, driving in Coutre.

Townsend followed with a single, scoring a speedy Schurr from second with the go-ahead run.

“It was great to take the momentum back,” Eichmann said.

Townsend got a well-earned save, striking out five of the nine batters he faced.

After retiring the side in order in the fifth and sixth innings, he issued a walk to Mugerditchian leading off the fourth. He then fell behind 3-1 on Drew Roesch, who had singled in the second.

“Once I got into the stretch, I think I was trying to rush it a little bit,” Townsend said. “I was thinking too much about the runner on first base. I was just getting ahead of myself a little bit.”

Roesch hit a sharp groundball to first baseman Mark Boyle, who threw to second base for the force. On Schurr’s relay, Boyle squeezed the throw with his foot on the base, but then dropped the ball. He quickly picked it up, after the umpire had called Roesch out at first.

Hoffman Estates coach Todd Meador hustled over from his third-base box to argue the call.

“It was a good play (by Boyle),” Townsend said. “He stuck with it and got (the ball) right back to us and kept going, instead of watching the ump and letting him decide.”

Townsend got the game’s final out on a swinging strike.

“Dar was lightning today,” Eichmann said with a big smile. “He was on fire.”

Hawks starter Trent Rehusch suffered the tough-luck loss, knocked out after Townsend’s tiebreaking single.

While Libertyville played errorless ball, the Hawks made only 1 error.

“We looked really good,” said Roberts, who turned a 4-6-3 double play and pitched 3 scoreless innings in relief, allowing only an infield single and fanning three. “We weren’t really sure how we were going to come out. We could have had a little better energy, but overall I thought we played really solid.”