Close calls turn into St. Viator sweep

The two East Suburban Catholic Conference baseball games St. Viator won Saturday at Marian Catholic were the kind it lost last season and early this season.

But a pair of 4-3 victories — the first in 8 innings — in Chicago Heights are why the Lions are all alone atop the ESCC standings by a game over preseason favorite Nazareth.

Viator (14-9, 8-2) has won 7 of its last 8 games and three straight 1-run games. It lost its first three 1-run games this spring after going 2-8 in them last season.

“Our kids are believing in what we’re telling them,” said Viator coach Mike Manno. “It’s nice because nobody expects us to be where we’re at in the conference right now. We’ve got a chance but we have a tough series with Marist (Monday and Wednesday).”

Manno brought up sophomore Gunnar Kay to start the first game and he took a shutout into the seventh when Marian scored the tying runs on a bases-loaded double.

Manno brought in senior ace Robert Romano and he gave up a walk but got a strikeout to end the threat. In the top of the eighth, Kole Luthringshausen came through with an RBI single.

Sophomore Joe Rossi homered in the third inning and Kevin Patzke was 2-for-4.

In the second game, junior Tim McElroy pitched into the seventh inning and Cosimo Cannella provided the offense as the Lions came back from a 3-0 deficit.

“He grinded it out,” Manno said of McElroy.

Cannella started the comeback with a two-out, 2-run doulbe in the third. He completed it with a 2-run homer on an 0-2 pitch in the fifth.

Marian loaded the bases in the seventh on a bad-hop single, an infield single and a walk but Mac Mastrangeli came in and got a groundout to complete the sweep.

Viator plays Marist on the road Monday and at home Wednesday before hosting Nazareth in a doubleheader next Saturday.

Leyden strikes Gold: The Eagles clinched the West Suburban Gold title with a 6-5 victory over visiting Hinsdale South in 12 innings.

Leyden (22-1, 15-1) trailed 5-4 with two outs in the sixth inning. Then Carlos Olavarria drove in a run with a single, stole second and scored on a single by Justin Stawychny that landed on the right-field line.

That made a winner of Stawychny, who’d relieved starter Eric Palmer. Both pitched 6 innings.

Leyden last won a West Suburban Gold title in 2008.

Prospect 7, Buffalo Grove 0: MSL East leader Prospect (17-5, 8-2) used the pitching of Jack Landwehr and power of homers by Peter Bonahoom, Luke Bergman and Kurt Donner to open a 1½-game lead on Elk Grove.

Donner supplied a two-out, 3-run homer in the sixth inning, Bergman went 3-for-3 with a homer, Bonahoom had a solo homer and Matt Molini was 2-for-4.

Landwehr started and struck out seven in 5 innings; Shane Joyce tossed 2 innings of scoreless relief.

BG (9-12, 4-5) lost its fourth straight and was shutout for the second straight game.

Elk Grove 2, York 1: The Grens scored 2 runs in the first inning, then watched a pair of sophomores pitch their way past York in nonconference play.

Starter Mike Woods allowed 5 hits and struck out six in his first varsity appearance, which lasted into the seventh inning. When Woods surrendered a leadoff walk, sophomore Luc DiMaso relieved him.

DiMaso got into trouble and York scored 1 run, but with two outs and the bases loaded, he struck out York’s cleanup hitter to finish the game.

Ryan Daubenspeck had an RBI single in the first inning for the Grenadiers (13-8).

Bartlett 8, Meadows 1: Bartlett scored 7 runs in the final two innings of the nonconference win at Rolling Meadows (12-9). Joe Bartucci took the loss but allowed only 1 run the first five innings.

Dan Larson was 2-for-3 and Matt Dennis had a second-inning sacrifice fly for the Mustangs.