Korienek's glove work helps lift Downers South

The bats stole the show for Downers Grove South's baseball team this week.

In the end, though, the Glenbard South regional championship came down to the flash of a glove in a seventh-inning jam.

Mustangs first baseman Pat Korienek took away an extra-base hit from Benet's Luke Terna, turning an amazing double play to help preserve a 7-4 Downers South win over the Redwings in Thursday's title game in Glen Ellyn.

Downers South advances to the Elite Eight of the IHSBCA Phil Lawler Summer Classic. They'll begin pool play at 10 a.m. Monday at Lisle's Benedictine University against the champion of the Carmel regional.

The Mustangs scored 6 runs in the bottom of the fifth in breaking out to a 7-1 lead. Benet responded with 3 runs in the sixth and put the leadoff man on in the seventh.

Korienek, however, stabbed a liner going down the first-base line. After stepping on the bag he fired to second for the double play. It turned out to be a critical play as Benet's Andrew Jachna and R.J. Gatto followed with singles.

"I just wanted the ball in that situation and, right down the line, I reached out for it," Korienek said. "It was in my mitt and just threw it to second. I wasn't really thinking. Just the adrenaline was going."

Connor Reilly, the Redwings' top hitter this summer, followed the 2 singles with a shot up the middle but the ball banged off pitcher John Dillon and went to shortstop Dan Walsh, who fired to first for the final out.

Two errors opened the door for Downers South's 6-run fifth. Walsh, Korienek, Matt Wivinis and Nick Tenerelli each drove in runs.

Run-scoring singles by R.J. Gatto and Reilly, and a sacrifice fly by Nick Moore narrowed Benet's deficit to 7-4 in the sixth. Drew Burdi pitched 5 innings to notch the win, with Dillon earning the save.

"We just had that one bad inning defensively," said Benet coach Jeff Bonebrake. "That was the key to the game. I was real proud of the way we played, it was just that one bad inning."