Baseball: Brueske, St. Charles East stop St. Charles North's streak

Not many teenagers look forward to waking up early and heading to their first class.

Especially high school seniors with less than three weeks of school remaining.

Brett Brueske will buck that trend Wednesday morning after the senior pitcher helped lead St. Charles East's baseball team to a 3-2 victory over cross-town rival St. Charles North (23-3, 17-2) Tuesday afternoon in St. Charles.

"My first-period class (college accounting) is at St. Charles North," said Brueske, who held a potent North Stars offense to 1 earned run on 6 hits during a solid 5⅔-inning outing. "It'll feel a little better going to class tomorrow."

Normally used as a starter, senior right-hander Jeremy Cox came on to get the final out in the sixth and worked out of a 2-out, 2-on seventh-inning jam to record the save as the Saints (19-8, 17-4) ended a 3-year losing streak - covering 9 consecutive games - to the North Stars.

"It has been three years since we got to say, 'hey, we've got more runs than those guys,' so it feels good for us," said Saints coach Len Asquini. "I thought our kids played a heck of a ballgame."

St. Charles North grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first as Ryan Thiesse reached on an infield single, took third on a throwing error following a bunt and scored on Justin Dunne's groundout.

After the Saints tied it in the second on Thomas Schroeder's steal of home following a first-and-third play, they took the lead for good with a 2-run, third-inning rally in unconventional fashion.

With 2 out, John DelloStritto's infield hit and a walk put runners on first and second before an infield error allowed DelloStritto home to put the Saints up 2-1.

The lead grew to 3-1 a few moments later when an apparent pickoff play at first was ruled a balk, allowing another run to score.

"The game was decided on an umpire's balk call," said North Stars coach Todd Genke. "The explanation was that our pitcher was coming toward home plate. I simply asked, 'why didn't the first-base umpire call it?' and he said, 'evidently, he didn't see it.'

"It's disappointing because a game like this shouldn't come down to a call like that but we also didn't make a play on a pretty routine groundball that kept the inning alive."

North Stars starting pitcher Steven Hamer (6⅓ IP, 3 R, 7 H, 6K) helped his own cause by slicing an RBI double to left to cut the deficit to 3-2 in the fifth.

With a man on first and 1 out in the seventh, Hamer launched a deep fly that Saints junior right fielder Ben Testo caught at the base of the fence.

"I've seen that ball cause us troubles and cost us games," said Asquini. "Coming in there as a defensive replacement, Ben did a great job staying with that ball. It was a big play."

"I just turned and ran," said Testo. "I got all the way to the warning track and caught it."

Brueske's 91-pitch outing included 17 first-pitch strikes as the southpaw improved his record to 6-1.

"Everything we asked, he executed," said Asquini. "He pitched a heck of a ballgame no question about it."

"It feels great," said Brueske. "Everyone is all amped up. The whole team experience - it's amazing."