Baseball: Scouting Lake County
Antioch Sequoits
Coach: Frank Fracek (1st season)
Last year's record: 10-21
Top returning players: TJ Schuyler, sr. (C-P-OF), Anthony Sacchetti, sr. (SS-P), Quade Moll, sr. (IF-OF-P), Jack Olson, jr. (P-1B-OF), Dylan Feldkamp, jr. (P-3B-OF), Jake Eriksen, jr. (C-1B)
Top new players: Jackson Mozina, soph. (OF-P), Michael Titus, soph. (IF-OF-P), Mason Willis, soph. (IF-OF-P-C), Nathan Yeager, soph. (OF-P), Zach Rubin, fresh. (2B-OF)
Worth noting: Fracek takes over the controls of the Antioch program. This is his 11th season in the program overall. Schuyler, an all-Northern Lake County Conference selection last year, will play at Indiana, while Sacchetti is headed to Bryant & Stratton (Wisconsin) and Aiden Niemczyk will be off to the University of St. Francis. "Our team has an incredible blend of seniors and youth," Fracek said. "The strength of our team is going to be our work ethic. These kids ae go-getters on and off the field and they mean business. We have a lot of pitching and guys who can play all over the field. I have an idea of what our 'floor' will look like, but if we can hit our 'ceiling' in regards to talent reaching our potential, I think we will be really good all over the place. We have a unique blend of hitters and guys who can move on the bases." Fracek said the work ethic he is seeing is impressive, "some of the best I have seen in my 10 years of coaching," he said. "The returning players are determined to prove last year was a fluke. They have worked and worked all winter and do not want to be denied this year. They have very lofty goals and want to be the last man standing at the end of the season." Fracek said Grayslake Central is the team to watch in the conference, though it will not lack for talented teams. "I think it always starts with Grayslake Central," he said. "The program Troy Whalen has built is second to none and you know they are always going to be the team to beat. Our conference has three coaches who are taking over their program (Grayslake North and Wacuonda as well), so three teams will look a lot different compared to the last few seasons. Lakes has an incredible coaching staff with three guys who have been varsity coaches at some point. Their team is going to be strong and Grant is always well-coached and incredibly competitive. Round Lake also has continued to improve over the last few seasons and will make some noise this season. It's a tough conference. We don't take anybody lightly."
Carmel Corsairs
Coach: Chuck Gandolfi
Last year's record: 17-13, 6-6 (East Suburban Catholic)
Top returning players: Rhett Wolff, jr. (C), Medkao Curry, jr. (CF), Juan Ledezma, jr. (2B), Jacob Chajet, jr. (3B-P), James Schott, sr. (SS), Adam Galdoni, sr. (P-1B)
Top new players: Will Bartels, sr. (P-OF), Jimmy Reim, sr. (OF-P), Gus Hoy, jr. (P-OF), Luis Arreloa, jr. (3B-P), Luke Nichol, jr. (P-SS), Tommy Maloney, sr. (P), Riley Wygant, sr. (P)
Worth noting: This will be Gandolfi's final season at the helm. He will retire at season's end. The longtime Corsairs coach returns a good chunk of talent that took second to St. Viator in the East Suburban Catholic and lost to eventual Class 3A state runner-up Crystal Lake South in a regional title game. Wolff, Curry, Ledezma and Chajet lettered on the varsity as sophomores last year, while Wolf begins his third year on the varsity. Schott hit .347 last year and earned all-conference accolades, while Butler University commit Galdoni also was an all-ESCC pick. "The strengths of this team is our depth and returning players who have played major varsity innings as sophomores," Gandolfi said. "Pitching, as always, will dictate this year's success. We have great team chemistry and hardworking young mean who are ready to compete in the tough ESCC." Speaking of the conference, St. Viator lost three games last year, while Nazareth won the Class 3A state title and Joliet Catholic won the Class 2A state title.
Grant Bulldogs
Coach: Dave Behm (14th season)
Last year's record: 20-15, 11-7 (Northern Lake County)
Top returning players: Jake Swanson, sr. (OF-P), Ryne Dzierzynski, soph. (IF-P), Tysen Royer, sr. (IF), Connor Mirocha, jr. (C), Braden Otahal, jr. (P-OF)
Top new players: Tyler Blake, soph. (IF-P), Kyle Stigler, soph. (IF-OF-P), Dominck Worklan, jr. (OF-P), Adrian Medina, soph. (IF-P), Jake Chrzastowski, soph. (IF-P), Race Kelley, sr. (OF), Kyle Allen, sr. (P)
Worth noting: Grant is fresh off a NLCC runner-up finish last season. Swanson, an all-conference pick last season, is a lefty pitcher who went 7-3 with a 3.31 ERA last year and also hit .352 with 3 homers and 14 RBI. He is headed to College of Lake County next season. "The strengths of the team will be up the middle," Behm said. "We don't return a lot of players, but the returns we do have all play important well. As well, we have a good group of arms that we are excited about getting out on the field."
Lakes Eagles
Coach: Chris Hoffman
Last year's record: 13-16, 9-9 (NLCC)
Top returning players: Cayden Hart, sr. (2B-P), Joe Kass, sr. (P), Ayden Fayta, sr. (P), Derek Lucier, jr. (OF), Spencer Kennamann, jr. (IF-P), Jaden Jackson, jr. (IF-P)
Worth noting: Youth will kind of rule the day for the Eagles, who only have five seniors. "We will be a very young team," Hoffman said. "In being a young team, there will be a lot of new faces for us this year. I am looking forward to seeing who steps up and takes on key roles." Three of those seniors are headed to play in college. Hart will play at Manchester University, while Kass is going to Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Fayta will play at Knox College. Lucier was an all-NLCC outfielder last year as a 10th grader. "I anticipate Derek having a big impact on our lineup and in the field," Hoffman said. Kennamann returns in the infield and on the mound. "Spencer will have a big impact for us this year in all areas of the game," Hoffman said. Jackson is also back in the infield and on the mound. "Jaden is a junior and will be a key contributor to our lineup and on the mound," Hoffman said.
Grayslake Central Rams
Coach: Troy Whalen (20th season)
Last year's record: 30-8 (NLCC champions); Class 3A regional champions
Top returning players: Chris Rogers, sr. (P-1B), Will Schufreider, sr. (P), Jack Gerbasi, sr. (OF), Ralph DeLeon, sr. (2B0, Adam Fitzgerald, sr. (OF), Colin Kornit, sr. (P), Nolan Mussay, sr. (P), Sam Cooper, sr. (SS)
Top new players: Cam Marson, sr. (C), Parker Greenfield, sr. (C), Sam Pirie, jr. (C), Max Woll, sr. (P), Max Motykie, sr. (P), Garrett Guenther, sr. (P-IF), Luke Mudd, sr. (OF), Jordan Dumas, jr. (OF), Cayden Woods, jr. (SS), Jerry Miller, jr. (P), Fikret Durmus, sr. (P)
Worth noting: The defending Northern Lake County champions once again are stacked with talent. Schufreider was an all-state pick after going 9-1 with an 0.87 ERA. He fanned 65 in 47 innings. Rogers hit .350 with 3 home runs and 25 RBI and also was 4-2 with 67 strikeouts in 43 innings. Gerbasi hit .370 with 30 runs scored and 20 stolen bases. DeLeon hit .350 with 25 runs scored. Fitzgerald hit .365 with 25 RBI and led the team with 8 doubles. Kornit was 4-2 on the mound with 56 strikeouts in 30 innings. Mussay went 4-0 with a 1.90 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 20 innings. Cooper hit .325 with 15 stolen bases. Schufreider, Rogers, DeLeon, Fitzgerald and Gerbasi are all returning all-conference players. Rogers is headed to Division I Lindenwood University, while Marson is headed to Loras, Greenfield to Buena Vista, Guenther to Central College of Iowa, and the group of Schufreider, DeLeon, Motykie and Woll are off to College of Lake County. Whalen noted the Rams return 200 innings on the mound with Schufreider, Rogers and Kornit having been pitchers on the varsity since sophomore year. Gerbasi and DeLeon have been varsity starters since sophomore year. "A lot of experience returns from a team that has won back-to-back NLCC championships, back-to-back regionals and back-to-back 30-win seasons," Whalen noted. Whalen said Antioch and Wauconda should be watched in the NLCC. "Both return a lot of experience on the mound this season," he said. "We have the pitching to make a deep playoff run if we stay healthy and can get some offensive contributions up and down the lineup."
Grayslake North Knights
Coach: Eric Lopez (1st season)
Last year's record: 14-17-1, 10-8 (NLCC)
Top returning players: Mitchell Hughes, soph. (C), Wyatt Dziekan, sr. (P), Casey Staver, sr. (P-1B), Kaiden Herman, sr. (P-OF), Ethan Feldman, jr. (OF), Jacob Donohue, sr. (SS), Ryan McCumber, jr. (2B), Jack Kerpan, sr. (P), Riley Lam, jr. (IF-OF)
Top new players: Nathan Kaczmarski, jr. (IF), Cameron Bates, soph. (P-OF), Chris Filas, soph. (P-IF)
Worth noting: Lopez previously coached lower levels at Lakes and now takes over a Knights program that took third in the conference last season. Donohue, Feldman, Dziekan and Staver were all-NLCC players last year. Staver will play at Carthage College next season, while Herman is off to Concordia Chicago and Kerpan to Rock Valley College. Lopez likes how the team's pitching staff is shaping up. "We will have strong pitching with four pitchers on the staff that will pitch at the collegiate level next year," he said. "We also have a lot of players who already have a good amount of varsity experience. Our opening day lineup could possibly be returning seven starters from last season." Lopez said Grayslake Central continues to be the team to beat in the NLCC. "Grayslake Central is always tough," he said. "Lakes is a well-coached program that is on the rise. I believe we will be competitive this season as well."
Lake Zurich Bears
Coach: Scott De Caprio (fourth season)
Last year's record: 12-13-1, 7-7 (North Suburban)
Top returning players: Lucas Foley, sr. (P-CF), Jonathan Fleaka, jr. (SS), Ryan Kondrad, jr. (3B0, Jackson Piggott, soph. (P-CF-RF), George DiCanio, soph. (P-RF)
Top new players: Cash Kaczmarcek, soph. (LF), Casey Shell, sr. (P-1B), Matthew Mosquera, soph. (2B), Josh Marzec, soph. (P-1B)
Worth noting: Foley, a left-handed pitcher, was an all-North Suburban pick, while Fleaka was honorable mention all-North Suburban. Foley is headed to Valparaiso, while Fleaka is committed to UIC. "We have a lot of young, returning starters, so we should be good defensively and able to hit the ball," De Caprio said. "Our starting pitching is experienced and extremely tough. This group is a hardworking one that I see fighting back into any game that teams may think they have us beat." De Caprio noted he's excited to see some of Lake Zurich's young, experience talent mesh with the young varsity inexperienced talent. "The returning guys should be great role models for our sophomores up on varsity," he said. "Our goal is always to go to state, and we've been talking daily about it." The Bears are looking to improve on their fifth-place North Suburban finish of a year ago. "Mundelein took second in conference and second in state, so that tells you how tough the NSC is," De Caprio said. "Libertyville won conference last year and is always tough. Warren and Stevenson, like us, always have realistic goals of winning conference, too." Lake Zurich, which reached a Class 4A regional title game last year, heads to Knoxville, Tennessee over spring break. "We're excited to see some warm weather," De Caprio said. "I'm really excited to see how our young pitchers handle themselves on varsity. We are ready and excited to play ball."
Libertyville Wildcats
Coach: Matt Thompson (seventh season)
Last year's record: 27-10, 13-1 (North Suburban champions)
Top returning players: Michael Scarpelli, sr. (P), Isaiah Vance (P-1B), Graham Goodman (P)
Top new players: Quinn Schambow, soph. (C), Josh Holst, soph. (1B-P), Cole Lockwood, soph. (IF), Drake Johnson, sr. (OF), Jackson Goldberg, sr. (P), Theo Schmidt, sr. (OF), Tyler DeFranco, sr. (OF), Justin Benes, sr. (P-IF)
Worth noting: The Wildcats won the North Suburban last year with one loss and advanced to a Class 4A regional title game. Vance and Scarpelli are headed to College of Wooster, while Benes (DePauw) and DeFranco (William Penn in Iowa) also have made college choices. Thompson said the catching position is a strength and noted Scarpelli and sophomore Holst, a left-handed pitcher, will compete for NSC pitcher of the year honors. "We have solid players who will compete with each other for playing time," Thompson said. "These are hungry kids with a chip on their shoulders knowing they won't be favored to win the conference." Thompson said top-tier contenders in the North Suburban include Mundelein, Warren, Lake Zurich and Stevenson.
Mundelein Mustangs
Coach: Randy Lerner
Last year's record: 29-6, 12-2 (North Suburban) Class 4A state runner-up
Top returning players: Ryan Geraghty, sr. (P), Bennett Musser, sr. (P), Michael Farina, sr. (SS), Danny Connelly, sr. (C), Christian Seminaro, sr. (LF)
Top new players: Griffin Troha, jr. (3B), Cody Yakimisky, jr. (P), Caden Earing, soph. (P-IF)
Worth noting: The Mustangs finished a game back in the North Suburban Conference last year and then went on to reach the Class 4A state championship game. Geraghty was a Class 4A all-state selection and Daily Herald All-Area pick after going 9-1 with 118 strikeouts in 64 2/3 innings pitched to go with a 1.19 ERA. Musser was 6-1 with 68 strikeouts in 56 1/3 innings. He had a 1.37 ERA. Farina hit .406 with 43 hits, 42 runs scored and 13 stolen bases. Connelly hit .289 with 6 doubles, 3 home runs and a .834 OPS. Seminaro hit .348 with 31 hits, 3 homers and a .920 OPS. Geraghty, Musser and Farina were all-NSC picks, while Musser and Farina were also Daily Herald honorable mention All-Area selections. The college commitments for the Mustangs are many. Geraghty is off to Wichita State, Musser to Valparaiso, Farina to Southeastern Junio College, and Christopher Callas and Connelly to UW-Oshkosh. "Our strengths will be our pitching staff and our defense," Lerner said. "We have a deeper and more experienced pitching staff. Defensively, we lost a few key players, but have some guys ready to step into those roles. I am pumped up about the brotherhood we are creating. Our seniors are hungry to get back to take care of our unfinished business." Lerner said it's hard to predict an NSC favorite. "The NSC is high-quality baseball. There are a lot of talented teams," he said.
Round Lake Panthers
Coach: Ed Adamson (15th season)
Last year's record: 5-24, 1-17 (NLCC)
Top returning players: Riley Walsh, jr. (OF-P), Ben Bleim, jr. (IF-P), Anthony Leo, sr. (OF-P), Aiden Rodgers, sr. (C-P), Javier Rolon, soph. (SS), Ryan Bleim, jr. (OF-P)
Top new players: Ryan Cabral, soph. (IF-P), Anthony Sementa, sr. (OF-P), Sergio Trevino, jr. (IF-P), LaMarr Pierce, sr. (OF-P)
Worth noting: Round Lake returns a good chunk of its team from a year ago. "We only lost a few seniors and started four or five sophomores last year, so we are bringing back a young, but experienced team," Adamson noted. "Six of our returners saw significant playing time last year. We have a good core of players who can play multiple positions, which gives us some flexibility when dealing with pitching. So far this spring, our focus has been very good and we have a bunch of guys who want to get better and compete." Health and defense will be keys as well. "As a team we need to stay healthy and continue to get better in all aspects of the game," Adamson said. "We are not going to have pitchers who strike out tons of batters, so we will need to throw strikes and make plays behind our pitchers." The pitching staff will be led by juniors Walsh, Ben Bleim and Ryan Bleim, and seniors Leo and Rodgers. "They threw most of the innings last year and we look forward to seeing what they can do with another year of development," Adamson said. Trevino, Sementa and Pierce have been added to the pitching staff. "We look forward to seeing them on the mound," Adamson added. Adamson said the team will focus on manufacturing runs at the plate. "We are relying on our young hitters to take the next step and develop into quality varsity hitters," he explained. "However, this can only be done if we play defense and keep the games close. As a program, we have been focusing a lot on defense and we are way ahead of where we were last year." Adamson said Rodgers brings a good set of skills behind the plate, "which in my opinion is crucial to have a good defense," he said. "I haven't seen many good teams without a good catcher." Middle infield also is a strength with Jonathon Lozada, Rodon and Ben Bleim. "We have a good set of middle infielders who are up to the challenge," Adamson said. Adamson noted the team has been trying to increase the level of competitiveness whether in contests or in live pitching-hitting matchups. Adamson said the NLCC schedule is filled with quality teams. "We play in a tough conference," he said. "It seems like any of our opponents can win the conference in any given year."
Stevenson Patriots
Coach: Nick Skala (fifth season)
Last year's record: 26-11, third place North Suburban
Top returning players: Joe Richardson (1B-P), JR Nelson (SS), Chris Iannuzzi (OF-P), Luca Morelli (C), Colin Schmitke (IF), Brett Gaynor (P), Brady Rosenkranz (P), Michael Belbot (P-IF)
Top new players: Nick Rayyan, jr., Joey Dolegna, jr., Brandon Schultz, jr.
Worth noting: Richardson hit .389 with 5 doubles, a homer and 18 RBI. Nelson hit .290 with 10 doubles, 32 runs scored and 15 RBI. Iannuzzi hit .296 with 20 RBI, 22 runs and 11 stolen bases and was 2-1 with a 1.84 ERA (23 strikeouts in 19 innings). Morelli hit .382 with 6 doubles, 1 homer and 21 RBI. Schmitke scored 19 runs, had 5 doubles and 9 RBI. Gaynor was 5-0 with a 1.56 ERA with 50 strikeouts in 31 1/3 innings, Rosenkranz was 4-1 with a 2.40 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 35 innings and Belbot had 5 doubles, 3 homers and 18 RBI and struck out 28 in 23 2/3 innings. Richardson and Rosenkranz are both returning all-NSC players, while Morelli was honorable mention all-conference. Nelson (Ohio University), Belbot (UIC), Schmitke (Southeastern Iowa CC), Iannuzzi (Southeastern Iowa CC), Richardson (Eastern Illinois), Gaynor (UW-Oshkosh), Morelli (Illinois Wesleyan) and Bobby Seltzer (Coe College) all have college baseball plans for a Patriots team that reached a Class 4A regional title game last year. "This group has six guys with 60 varsity games under their belt," Skala said. "Our leadership and in-game experience will be our super power. There shouldn't be anything we haven't seen or dealt with. We have team speed and our focus this off-season has been in the weight room and the boys have pushed each other to become faster and stronger. We are excited to prove ourselves in every game." Skala also sees a competitive NSC race. "Stevenson, Mundelein and Libertyville all have top-of-the-line arms and always match up well," he said.
Warren Blue Devils
Coach: Clint Smothers (16th season)
Last year's record: 18-11, Class 4A regional champion
Top returning players: Adam Behrens, sr. (P-1B), Tommy Bearman, sr. (P-OF), Adam Schilz, sr. (SS), Charlie Badgley, sr. (CF), Beck Kjeldbjerg, sr., Cole Clark, sr., Jacob Hall, sr. Albert Jaquez, sr.
Top new players: Justin Kretz, sr. (P), Landon Theron, jr. (P)
Worth noting: Plenty of returning talent resides on this Blue Devils roster. Behrens (Arizona State) hit .362 with 16 RBI and had 5 wins on the mound with 61 strikeouts. Beadman (UW-Eau Claire) won 3 games and struck out 29 last year. Schilz hit .379 with 22 RBI. Badgley hit .311 and scored 31 runs. Kjeldbjerg (University of Michigan-Dearborn), Clark (Carthage College), Hall (Milwaukee Area Technical College) and Jaquez (College of Lake County) also will continue their careers at the next level. Behrens and Badgley both are returning all-NSC players. "We have 17 seniors on our team this year," Smothers said. "We have great senior leadership." Smothers said Mundelein with "great pitching," Stevenson and Libertyville will be top contenders in the conference.
Wauconda Bulldogs
Coach: Shawn Rudolph (1st season)
Last year's record: 16-15, 9-9 (NLCC)
Top returning players: Zach Threde, sr. (P), Danny Newman, jr. (1B-P), Josh Efflandt, jr. (C-P), Colin Christensen, jr. (OF-P), Zach Johnson, jr. (INF), Connor Vanselow, jr. (CF), Tyler Tylka, jr. (P), Joey Lenz, jr. (C), Chase Groelle, sr. (1B-OF), Shane Svoboda, sr. (OF), Ryan Fostiak, soph. (OF-IF)
Top new players: Jackson Murphy, soph. (3B-P-OF), Blake Swanson, soph. (IF), Will Sickmeir, soph. (OF-P), Jackson Rudolph, fresh. (3B-P), Carson Koehler, soph. (P-OF)
Worth noting: Rudolph is in his first season as head coach at Wauconda and 21st year coaching overall at the school. Threde went 7-4 on the mound last season and hit .375. Christensen hit .356, while Newman hit .350. Johnson hit .318 and Vanselow had a .997 fielding percentage. Threde, Newman and Christensen were all-NLCC last year, while Threde and Newman earned all-area honors. Threde will continue his career at UW-Superior. "Pitching will be a major strength of our program," Rudolph said. "We have a number of experienced pitchers who are not afraid to work and are confident. Our hitting will be a strong point. We may be physically the strongest Wauconda team that has been put together. So far, the energy, willingness to work and make our team better each day has me excited as does the fun the boys are having while doing so." Rudolph said the NLCC will be a test for all teams. "The conference is well-rounded and will be a battle every game we face each other," he said. "The three-game series forces the better overall team to show up each series, and it can very well be taken over by many teams. Grayslake Central will be the top team to be knocked off the top, and once that is done the title could be handed off to a number of teams."