Comeback Kaneland kids do it again, win regional

When Kaneland posed for photos with the plaque following a 4-2 victory over Sycamore in the Class 3A Hampshire regional title game Monday, the Knights players all held up four fingers.

The players were letting everyone know what they thought of their No. 4 seed in the regional, a number that looks low in retrospect given their run through Wheaton Academy, No. 1 Burlington Central and finally the title game win over the Spartans.

"We just wanted to show what seed we were," Kaneland right fielder Matt Rosko said. "We're not really mad, we'll take whatever seed we get, we just come out and play. We could have gone without playing the extra game but obviously it didn't matter."

Kaneland (22-12), who had lost 2 of 3 to Sycamore (24-11) in conference play last month, will play Belvidere North at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Class 3A Sycamore sectional.

The Knights beat an old nemesis to get there, Sycamore senior ace Colan Treml. Not only did he beat Kaneland in 8 innings in conference this year, he threw a 1-hitter to knock Kaneland out of last year's sectional.

It looked like the Spartans caught a break when Saturday's game was rained out, allowing to Treml to start after pitching Thursday.

But Kaneland battled, overcoming a 2-0 deficit after one inning with patient at-bats.

"He's a stud, you want 10 of them on your team," Kaneland coach Brian Aversa said. "That rainout was big in their favor. We had to wear him down, make him throw, make him throw. It was good on our part to chip away. When we evened it up it was anybody's game. We were hitting him well now, we knew he threw 86 pitches on Thursday. We feel the only team that can beat us right now is ourselves."

Treml couldn't have got off to a better start, striking out the side looking in the first inning all on curveballs.

The Spartans then quickly jumped on Kaneland starter Matt O'Sullivan for 2 first-inning runs. Rosko prevented a bigger inning by throwing out a runner at the plate for the third out. Catcher Joe Laudont applied the tag.

"After striking out three times to a guy who had our number last year in our sectional game, we were really down," Rosko said. "I feel that (out at the plate) got us going, got our momentum going."

Rosko followed with a key hit in Kaneland's 2-run second, a flare that he fought off that landed a foot inside the left-field line that went for a double and moved Jacob Bachio to third.

Danny Hammermeister plated a run with a ground out and Jacob Violett tied the game at 2-2 with an RBI single to center.

"We knew they would answer," Sycamore coach Jason Cavanaugh said. "They always do. It wasn't going to end up 2-0 for sure. They made him (Treml) work today. They earned every run they got."

Rosko resumed his big day in the third, battling the sun to catch 3 straight fly balls in right including a diving catch to end the inning.

The Spartans put runners at second and third with no outs in the fourth. After an O'Sullivan strikeout, Cameron Godinsky lined a ball to right field that Rosko caught and threw to shortstop Joe Panico for a double play.

"Coach is good at positioning us," Rosko said. "Not a lot balls fall out there. I got a good read on it and the runner didn't. Joe Panico, that's the loudest I've heard him yell. He's the quietest guy in the world off the field but he was yelling his butt off."

In all three of the Knights' postseason games they have come from behind. Kaneland completed the comeback with a run in the fifth. Violett was hit by a pitch, and Austin Wheatley laced an RBI double for a 3-2 lead.

A Sycamore error in the sixth led to pinch runner Tyler Paulson stealing second, taking third on a passed ball and scoring an insurance run on Violett's sacrifice fly.

O'Sullivan said his change-up wasn't working well Monday. He mixed his fastball and curve to hold Sycamore scoreless from the second through sixth. After the Spartans put the first two runners on in the seventh, Steven Limbrunner relieved and got 3 straight outs to give Kaneland its second regional title in a row and third ever.

"Rough first inning," O'Sullivan said. "I just tried to keep calm, throw strikes, let the defense work. We just came and played our best today."

Panico finished with 2 of Kaneland's 6 hits.