LaFleur pitches WW South to win in first varsity start
In Thursday’s rubber game of the Wheaton Warrenville South versus Glenbard North baseball series, there were fewer footprints for the home plate umpire to sweep away.
But there were enough off them to allow the Tigers to win 3-1 in Carol Stream and take the series. The day before the Panthers had won 11-8.
Tigers coach Tim Brylka was not surprised with the amount of scoring generated.
“They threw their No. 1 pitcher (Matt Frawley). He’s a good one. I’m not surprised it was a low-scoring game,” he said. “I was very impressed with how Ryan (LaFleur) did, and we got a few timely hits with two outs.”
LaFleur, a Tigers junior, went the distance in his first varsity start, allowing five hits and striking out six.
“I haven’t pitched much varsity. I got the jitters early on and got rid of them. I was confident in the defense behind me,” he said.
Sandwiched between the Panthers’ one-run, two-hit third were a second inning where Glenbard North (15-10, 8-5 DuPage Valley Conference) loaded the bases with LaFleur getting a strikeout for the third out and the fourth through sixth innings when LaFleur allowed just one hit.
Chris Amen worked the seventh for a save.
A single by Matt Stencel in the fourth scored Adam Villanueva, the courtesy runner for catcher Mike Rostine, who had walked.
The Tigers (15-11, 7-7) came right back in their half of the fourth. Matt Walsh led off with a single followed by catcher Rich O’Neil, who was hit by a pitch. A fielding error brought home Walsh and Ben Bach, the courtesy runner for O’Neil, scored on Mike Shelton’s two-out double to left center.
WW South got a needed insurance run in the seventh and it happened again with two outs.
Matt Sturgeon led off the inning with a single to left. A sacrifice bunt by Torey Willsey moved him into scoring position. Then with two outs, leadoff hitter Kevin Giltz singled to center, scoring Sturgeon.
Frawley went six innings, allowing six hits also and struck out five.
Coach Rich Smelko said the Panthers have not learned yet to generate scoring on a regular basis. Eight runners were left on base.
“We’ve been pretty inconsistent offensively all year. We score one run one game and seven or eight the next. Our pitchers have not had a lot of run support. We had the opportunities today. We just didn’t come up with the hits.”