Libertyville avoids deja vu all over again

Libertyville shortstop A.J. Schurr had one goal as the Wildcats entered Friday’s Class 4A regional semifinal against Carmel.

“I was pretty confident that we were going to win,” Schurr said. “Going into the game, one of our biggest thoughts was that (Carmel) had come back to beat us last year, and we didn’t want to let that happen again.”

Schurr’s biggest fear almost came true.

A year ago, Carmel came back from an 8-1 deficit against Libertyville, scoring 8 runs in the top of the seventh to win 9-8 in the teams’ regional final.

This time around, Libertyville was cruising along with a 6-0 lead when Carmel’s Tommy Ryan hit a 3-run homer in the top of the seventh.

But host Libertyville hung on to win 6-3.

Libertyville (20-14) will host Warren (20-12) in the regional final at 2 p.m. today.

The North Suburban Conference Lake Division rivals split their two games during the regular season.

Carmel finished its season at 17-16.

Winning pitcher Joey Eichmann (6-3) pitched all 7 innings. Ryan’s homer was only the second hit the Purdue-bound righty allowed. Eichmann’s 2-hit performance included 3 strikeouts and 4 walks.

“We hit real well and played good defense back there,” said Eichmann, who improved his record to 6-3.

“I felt good with my fastball and slider and was able to throw a lot of strikes.”

In the Carmel seventh, the 6-foot-4, 205-pound Eichmann walked John Salvi and then retired the next two batters. Libertyville’s ace almost gave his team a scare when he slipped on the mound.

Eichmann said he tweaked his back. After the Libertyville coaches and trainer checked on him, he resumed pitching.

Eichmann promptly walked the next batter, and Ryan crushed the third pitch over the fence in left field.

“It was too little, too late,” said Ryan, whose homer was his third. “I got a first-ball curveball and was looking for a fastball. I just missed two already. I squared up and I hit the next pitch hard. I was hoping to start a rally.”

Eichmann got the final batter to fly out to preserve the win.

“(Eichmann) pitched a great game,” Libertyville coach Jim Schurr said. “He gave us 7 innings of his best pitching and his best effort and made one mistake.

“The keys were to have quality at-bats, to put the ball in play and make plays behind Joey,” Schurr added. “(Carmel) is a good-hitting team. We knew that the ball was going to be put in play and we needed to support him defensively.”

Wildcats right fielder Joey Ruppert made the defensive play of the day.

In the top of the first inning, with one out, Carmel’s Timmy Hendricks lofted a flyball to right. Ruppert sprinted and made a diving catch.

Losing pitcher Hendricks (4-3) pitched the first 4 1/3 innings. He didn’t allow a hit for the first three innings, but then gave up 3 runs on 3 hits in the fourth.

“(Libertyville) had some timely hits and I felt good hitting my spots,” said Hendricks, who will be playing basketball for Concordia.

Schurr (3-for-4) started Libertyville’s fourth with a single. He stole second, and catcher Evan Skoug singled him in. Robbie Dittman singled home Skoug and sped to second on an errant throw. He eventually scored on an error.

The Wildcats added a run in the fifth, as Eichmann helped himself with an RBI single. The hosts tacked on two more in the sixth, taking advantage of three walks and two hits.

“Any time you end a season on a losing note, it’s disappointing,” said Carmel coach Joe May, who loses 8 seniors. “(Libertyville) got some timely hits and we made several mistakes with the ball.

“I was particularly disappointed for our seniors, but we battled all year long. We knew coming into the season that we would have a younger club and we needed senior leadership, and we got that.”