Softball: Wauconda's hot bats knock out Cary-Grove
All season Wauconda has relied on a deep and potent lineup to beat teams.
That was clearly evident in the third inning of Tuesday's Class 3A Lakes sectional semifinal against Cary-Grove.
The second-seeded Bulldogs scored 7 runs in the third to cruise to a 15-7 victory over the sixth-seeded Trojans. The Bulldogs belted 14 hits to set up an all-Northern Illinois County Conference sectional championship game, facing No. 1 seed Antioch on Friday at 4:30 p.m.
The Bulldogs (24-7) split their two regular season games with the Sequoits, who defeated Lakes 1-0 in the opening semifinal on Tuesday. Wauconda suffered a 12-2 loss on April 11, but recorded a 2-0 win over the Sequoits (27-3) on May 11. Still, the Bulldogs have waited a long time to face off against the No. 1 team in Class 3A after suffering an 18-11 defeat to Antioch in the sectional finals last season.
"We've gone on a nice run, and are playing really good softball at the right time when you should be," Wauconda coach Tim Orisek said. "We've shown in this stretch of games that we can win some tight games with good defense, can win some games when the other teams is hitting the ball just as well. We can also take advantage of other teams' mistakes well, and do a great job of minimizing the amount of runs scored and don't let the moment get to us.
"We've had those ups and downs, but we found our rhythm and know who we are. We enjoy being on the field together. Our plan is to continue to play our game on Friday. I really like our chances."
Wauconda shortstop Lily Jurczyk led the hitting parade with a 5-for-5 day, which included 2 RBI and 1 run scored.
"We all adjusted to the pitching and everyone contributed," Jurczyk said. "It was a great third inning and that helped seal it for us. We're really excited and have all been working hard. There's no else we rather face on Friday."
Wauconda third baseman Haley Baldwin finished with 2 hits, 2 RBI and 2 runs scored, including a line-drive single to pad the lead to 5-2 in the third.
"It was an amazing (third)," Baldwin said. "Everyone was loud and up and everyone contributed to help us get the lead."
The Trojans (11-17-1) seized a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Maddie Crick drilled a double off Lakes pitcher Rachel Peat. The Trojans added another run in the third on a single up the middle by Crick.
The Bulldogs' seven-run explosion in the third was triggered by a 2-run tomahawk single with the bases loaded by Lia Taglia, who had 2 hits and 5 RBI.
"Cary-Grove is a young and pesky team, and they're well-coached and got some really good speedy hitters and get on base and put pressure on a defense," Orisek said. "I was proud of our girls for not having that freakout moment when they scored first. Lia had two big singles, including the single with the bases loaded to continue to help us pour it on in the third inning. Lily also came out blazing hitting the ball. If someone is not having a great day, we have eight others girls in the lineup who can pick her up."