Baseball/Fox Valley roundup
Both teams share the nickname Rockets, but it was Burlington Central that prevailed 5-3 in Thursday’s arms race against Richmond-Burton in Big Northern East play.
Central senior pitcher Sam Klein improved to 4-0 by holding R-B to 3 runs on 5 hits in 5 innings of work. He walked a pair and struck out 3. Chris Mull tossed 2 innings of scoreless relief to earn the save. Senior Nick Hahn went 3-for-3 with a single, double and a home run and drove in 2 runs, and junior Tanner Scott homered for Burlington Central (9-3, 2-0).
Hampshire 10, North Boone 2: Tyler Crater enjoyed a productive afternoon at the plate and on the mound in this Big Northern East victory. The sophomore improved his record to 2-1 after throwing a complete-game 2-hitter. He held the Vikings without an earned run, struck out 11 and walked 2. At the plate, Crater went 2-for-3 with a double and 3 RBI. Danny Grzywa walked and scored 3 runs and Dylan Nihells went 2-for-4 for Hampshire (6-5, 1-1).
Huntley 11, Jacobs 6: The Red Raiders erupted for 11 runs in the second inning and went on to complete the 2-game sweep of this Fox Valley Conference Valley Division series in Huntley. Justin Gundlach (3-0) earned the win by holding the Golden Eagles to 2 earned runs on 6 hits in 5 innings with 4 strikeouts and 1 walk. Nick Corpolongo went 3-for-4 and drove in a run and Karmeron Salee and Gundlach drove in 2 runs apiece.
Junior Greg Mixon (0-2) took the loss for Jacobs, which lost its fifth straight game and eighth in nine outings.
“We did not come ready to play and it showed in the second inning,” first-year Jacobs coach Erik Kehoe said via e-mail. “We are a team that is feeling sorry for ourselves, and it will only improve with us competing and being tough. We will put the toughest nine guys out there who want to compete and play the game hard.”
Dundee-Crown 10, Johnsburg 3: Senior Mike Lodi (1-2) held the Skyhawks to 1 earned run on 6 hits in 6 innings, and the Chargers exploded for 14 hits in a Fox Valley Conference crossover in Johnsburg. Nick Spagnola (2 hits), Kirk Hanselmann and Erik Brewer each drove in 2 runs for Dundee-Crown (8-6, 5-1), which won its fifth straight game.
Cary-Grove 6, Crystal Lake South 3: The Trojans trailed 2-1, but a 3-run third inning made a winner of starting pitcher Matt Panek (3-0), who held the Gators to 3 earned runs on 7 hits in 6 innings with 4 walks and 3 strikeouts. Nick Taylor doubled and drove in 3 runs, and Nick Richter and Tyler Lau each added RBI for Cary-Grove (8-4, 5-1), which won for the sixth time in 7 games.
Robbie Lemke (3-2) took the loss after allowing 5 runs (2 earned) on 8 hits in 6 innings with 2 walks and 5 strikeouts. Jeremy DeJesus doubled and drove in a run for CL South (7-4, 3-3).
Westminster Christian 11, Alden-Hebron 1: Led by 2 hits apiece from Ryan Perez, Dylan Scully, Tommy Greene and Ben Stevenson, the Warriors amassed 13 hits and beat the Giants in six innings in a Northeast Athletic Conference game in Elgin. Zach Barfield (2-1) held A-H to 1 earned run on 3 hits. He struck out 7 and walked 1 in 6 innings pitched for Westminster Christian (9-5, 4-0), which has won 7 of its last 8 games.
Lake Park 8, Elgin 0: Ryan Walker’s double was the only extra basehit among the 5 hits the Maroons managed in this Upstate Eight Conference crossover loss in Roselle. Eric Daly (0-2) allowed 5 runs (1 earned) on 5 hits in 3 innings for Elgin (2-6-1, 2-3-1).
College baseball
Elgin Community College wins twice: The Spartans swept a Skyway Conference doubleheader in Elgin from Illinois Valley College, winning both games by 2-1 margins.
The Spartans pushed the winning run across in the ninth inning of Game 1. Steve Cocat and Julian Ramirez singled before George Tintera and Tom Roth were each hit by pitches to force in the game-winner. Brett Loeding (1-1) earned the win in an inning of relief.
ECC (20-6, 4-4) finished the sweep by scoring twice in the seventh inning to overcome a 1-0 deficit. Craig Lipp’s RBI triple tied the game and Justin Kalusa’s basehit provided the go-ahead run. Ryan Hudspeth (3-1) held Illinois Valley to 1 run on 5 hits in 7 innings, struck out 7 and walked only 1.
Boys volleyball
Benet d. Bartlett: Russell Martin had 10 kills and David Upp added six but Bartlett (8-4) fell to Benet Academy 27-25, 25-19 in nonconference action. Andrew Harris added 11 assists for the Hawks.