Stender proves to be quite a catch for Antioch

Those young ballplayers on Antioch's baseball team can learn a thing or two from senior Justin Stender.

Take Tuesday. After Stender pitched 4 innings of 2-hit ball in the Sequoits' 15-0 win over host Round Lake in a North Suburban Prairie Division game, he and his teammates honed their catching skills in shallow right field.

"We were testing," Stender said. "If you're at a Major League Baseball game and a home run gets hit, what's the best way to hold your hat to catch it, if you don't have a mitt?"

The Sequoits - including sophomores Connor Geidner, Ben Gutke, Michael Mentone and Connor Kaiser, and freshman John Petty - watched and learned.

The best way to catch a big-league homer, when a baseball glove isn't available?

"You grip the bill of the hat," Stender said.

Hey, it's important stuff. Sort of.

"You got to pass on as much information as possible," Stender said with a laugh.

Stender is one of just four seniors on the roster for Antioch (6-13, 3-4). He showed how it's done on the mound against Round Lake (3-17, 0-7), striking out eight and allowing just four base runners, one of which the right-hander picked off first base.

"I was just trying to work on fastball command," Stender said. "Overall, a win's a win. We've had a lot of close games, so it's nice to get a big win like this."

"He's had some good times out on the mound, been snake-bitten a few times," Antioch coach Paul Petty said of Stender. "He's getting a little bit better every time out."

Stender gave himself the only run he needed with an RBI single in the second inning against Panthers starter Ben Graff, breaking a scoreless tie. The Sequoits then took advantage of 5 errors and 6 hits in a 9-run third. Stender singled in two more runs, Gutke ripped a 2-run triple into the gap and raced home for a "Little League" homer when the throw to third bounced into foul territory, and Geidner capped the inning with a 2-run single.

Antioch's 5-run fifth included Gutke's third RBI (on a single), Derek Snellman's 2-run single and John Horton's run-scoring base hit.

The freshman Petty was 2-for-4 with a bunt single in the game, while junior Austin Marisglio had a double. Kaiser pitched a 1-2-3 fifth.

"(The future) looks really good," Stender said. "We also have some guys on the freshman and sophomore level that have a lot of talent. I think over the next couple of years Antioch's going to be really good."

"They're all getting the job done in certain ways," Paul Petty said of his underclassmen.

Round Lake played short-handed after some players took an unexcused senior day off Monday. Junior Austin Disch was one Panther who took advantage of a rare start. The first baseman hit a clean single into left field leading off the bottom of the third, breaking up Stender's no-hitter. Disch then hustled to second on a passed ball.

"He doesn't play, but he's a kid who wants to play," Round Lake coach Ed Adamson said. "He gets a chance, gets a hit, takes an extra base on a ball. He does all the little things that we want him to do."

Josue Cruz had the only other hit for Round Lake, while Tyler Sanchez walked in both of his plate appearances.