North suburban Lake baseball preview

Warren

Coach: Clint Smothers (2nd year)

Last season: 18-14 (5-7 NSC Lake)

Key players graduated: OF Vince Viverito, P/3B Tony Roberts, P/OF Ryan Pyles

Returning players: P/3B Chad Johnson, P/1B Sean Kennedy, SS Ryan Economos

Newcomers: C Scott Heelan, jr.; 2B Matt Dowd, jr.; 3B Kevin Colburn, soph.; CF Tim Bodine, jr.; P Jeff Johnnson, jr.; P Zach Schnieder, jr.; 2B Ryan Kennedy

Outlook: On paper, the Blue Devils are green, which sets the stage perfectly for them to catch many teams by surprise. Heck, the Blue Devils surprised their own coach last summer when they advanced to the Elite Eight in the summer state baseball tournament. "We have only three returners," Warren coach Clint Smothers said. "No one expected us to do much (in the summer tournament) and we surprised everyone by getting as far as we did. Maybe we'll surprise some people again this season."-What Warren lacks in experience it makes up for in talent, starting with two solid veterans on the mound in Sean Kennedy and Chad Johnson. Kennedy is the team's ace and has already committed to the University of Jacksonville. He led the team with 6 wins and 82 strikeouts last year. Warren's other top returner is shortstop Ryan Economos, who has college recruiters calling Smothers almost daily. He is recovering from an injured shoulder and will likely have a slow start to the season. Look for rookies Ryan Kennedy, Sean's younger brother, and Kevin Colburn, a big hitter, to make an immediate impact.

Libertyville

Coach: Jim Schurr (7th year)

Last season: 26-11 (7-5 NSC Lake)

Key players graduated: OF Tim Matheson (Butler), P Jacob Booden (Bradley), OF Chase Guarnaccio (Air Force), IF/P Joey Aiello (Carthage), DH/1B Lee Gough (Concordia), IF Jeremy Butler

Returning players: P Troy Barton, sr.; P Brooks McDowell, sr.; CF Adam Quinn, sr.; 1B Lucas Guarnaccio, sr.; OF/P/DH Mike Seefeldt, sr.; C Jon Lewis, sr.; LF Clint Carlson, sr.; RF Mike Styler, sr.; 3B Kevin Johns, sr.; C Chad Uhler, jr.

Newcomers: OF Brandon Fowkes, jr.; SS Tyler Schweigert, jr.; P/C/DH Joey Eichmann, soph.; 2B A.J. Schurr, soph.

Outlook: In their first two games this season, the Wildcats turned four double plays. That, and two veteran Division I pitchers, gives head coach Jim Schurr a good feeling about his team's defensive prospects. "We just need to be able to score runs," Schurr said. "We've got good pitchers and we'll be able to make plays around our pitching. We'll be able to keep teams down. Pitching carries a lot of teams and we'll be putting a lot of stock in that."-Libertyville boasts two big guns on the mound in seniors Troy Barton and Brooks McDowell, who have committed to Eastern Illinois and Southern Illinois Edwardsville, respectively. Both signed back in November-Barton and McDowell will be backed up by a middle infield that is young, but talented. Sophomore second baseman A.J. Schurr and junior shortstop Tyler Schweigert already have proven their chemistry and proficiency with the double plays-The Wildcats also welcome back centerfielder Adam Quinn and first baseman Lucas Guarnaccio and will be in even better shape when catcher Chad Uhler is back to 100 percent after off-season shoulder surgery. He will be cleared to start practicing at full speed in April.

Mundelein

Coach: Todd Parola (15th year)

Last season: 28-6 (10-2 NSC Lake)

Key players graduated: P Eric Rohe (Carthage), P/1B Justin Piasecki (College of Lake County), C Brad Medina (Northpark), 1B/OF Jack Walliser

Returning players: SS Kevin Barber, sr.; IF/OF Colton Tortorello, sr., CF Dillon Smith, sr.; P Jay Mueller, sr.; P Ian McDermott, sr.

Newcomers: OF Jack Cunnion, sr.; 2B Juston Button, sr.; 2B Jimmy Cantagallo, sr.; 1B Anthony Cancellli, sr.; C Matt Risdon, jr.; C Bill McMahon, soph.; P/IF Colin Franklin, jr.; OF Tyler Adams, jr.; IF Mike O'Donoghue, jr.; OF Sam Carasco, sr.

Outlook: Flip-flop. No, we're not talking politics here, we're talking Mundelein baseball. What the Mustangs were last year, which was a team that rode a couple of proven pitchers to an NSC Lake Division co-championship and its fourth regional title in a row, is not what the Mustangs are this year. "It's the complete opposite," Mundelein coach Todd Parola said. "Last year, we had two guys in Eric Rohe and Justin Piasecki who we knew would always give us a great outing on the mound. Our thing was that we didn't know if we would score the runs for them. This year, we're definitely going to score runs. We lost some thoroughbreds, though. We just don't have those two veteran pitchers like that. I'm not even sure we have an ace at this point."-Eventually, either Jay Mueller or Ian McDermott will likely slide into that spot. McDermott got four wins last season and rolled up 49 strikeouts even though Rohe and Piasecki were piling up most of the innings-Offensively, the Mustangs have some dangerous hitters in veterans Kevin Barber, a shortstop who hits leadoff, Colton Tortorello and Dillon Smith.

Lake Zurich

Coach: Gary Simon (9th year)

Last season: 26-8 (10-2 NSC Lake)

Key players graduated: P Joey DeBernardis (Penn State), P/1B Danny Zummo, SS Reid Bergstrom, 2B Corey Halicke, P/1B/DH Steve Cleary (Beloit), C Tim Nolan (Elmhurst), LF Austin Schmeiser, P/CF Brock Simon (Western Illinois), 3B Peter Romanelo (North Central)

Returning players: P Ricky Erickson, sr.; P Tanner Witt, sr.; P Chas Evans, sr.; P Austin Cox, sr.; P Tyler Schmitz, sr.; P Logan Matthews, sr.; C Scott DeGraeve, sr.; C Peter Sandstedt, sr.; IF/OF Sam Aslan, sr.; OF Mike Miller, sr.;

Newcomers: P Ryan Baartmans, jr.; Parker Asmann (soph.); C Jordan Johnson, jr.; OF Kyle Sanders, jr.; OF Danny Johnsen, jr.; OF Justin Russell, jr.

Outlook: Talk about big shoes to fill. Last spring, the Bears graduated a senior class that was one of the best in school history and clearly put the program on the map. Those seniors, including all-stater Joey DeBernardis, who is now playing at Penn State, won four conference or division titles over their high school career. Last season, they led the Bears to their first overall North Suburban Conference title. Lake Zurich beat Prairie Division champ Vernon Hills in the title game. "This squad is eager to maintain the tradition and the high level of play passed on by the Class of 2008," Lake Zurich coach Gary Simon said. "They exhibited that type of championship baseball during the summer by going 19-5."-The Bears have a deep pitching rotation that includes six veteran seniors in Ricky Erickson, Tanner Witt, Chas Evans, Austin Cox, Tyler Schmitz and Logan Matthews. Erickson was the team's top reliever last season and Witt has the tools to be one of the best pitchers in the area. He'll be motivated, too. He missed the majority of last season fighting a life-threatening blood clot in his right shoulder that required a 12-hour surgery. He was hitting .435 and had just thrown a one-hit shutout prior to his diagnosis.

Stevenson

Coach: Paul Mazzuca (2nd year)

Last season: 15-16 (5-7 NSC Lake)

Key players graduated: C Jason Douglas (Cornell College)

Returning players: P Scott Firth, sr.; P Brad Sorkin, sr.; P Matt Robin, sr.; SS Kyle Ruchim, jr.; 2B/SS Bill Dorn, sr., C Matt Geissler, sr.; OF Pat Coulbourn, sr.

Newcomers: 3B/1B Pat Wilson, jr., C Jeff Ferstein, jr., OF/P/IF Kory Cutler, jr.

Outlook: This is big. Never happened at Stevenson before. And plenty of big things have happened to this illustrious baseball program over the years. But never before, according to head coach Paul Mazzuca's best calculations, have the Patriots had three players go Division I in the same year. And the fact that Scott Firth (Clemson), Brad Sorkin (Illinois State) and Matt Robin (Ohio University) are all pitchers gives Stevenson an excellent chance to reclaim its usual spot atop the heap this spring. The Patriots had an unusual down year last season, finishing below .500 for the first time since 1984. "We have high expectations," Mazzuca said. "We're pretty strong in the pitching department and that's where you want to be strong." The Patriots' No. 4 pitcher, Kyle Ruchim, is also solid. He played up on varsity last year as a sophomore and will play shortstop when he's not pitching. "Kyle would be a No. 1 pitcher on a lot of teams and he's No. 4 with us," Mazzuca said. "Our pitching staff is that strong and should be able to carry us."-But the Patriots won't be one-dimensional. Mazzuca is also confident in his team's defense and hitting. Senior Pat Coulbourn brings punch at leadoff and newcomers Pat Wilson, Jeff Ferstein and Kory Cutler showed plenty of promise at the plate over the summer.

- Patricia Babcock McGraw