Baseball: Neuqua Valley glad to have a little insurance
Insurance runs aren't always needed, but they're always nice to have.
Neuqua Valley's ability to add on made things much more comfortable in Tuesday's 7-2 DuPage Valley Conference baseball victory over visiting Naperville Central.
A 4-2 margin grew to 7-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning when Justin Blazek, who launched a 2-run first-inning homer, singled home 2 runs and Mitch Rokosz, who went 4-for-4, added an RBI double.
The scoreboard boost didn't seem like a big deal until Naperville Central loaded the bases in the top of the seventh. Cooper Avery, relieving starter Anthony Sterchele, escaped the jam to secure the win in the DVC opener.
"I don't know if we have as much power as we did last year, but we're definitely making solid contact," Blazek said. "We're getting on base. We're moving runners. We're getting the job done."
Sterchele, who struck out 8 in 6 innings, didn't allow a hit until the fourth inning and didn't allow a ball out of the infield until a Danny Hughes single up the middle in the fifth. Early wildness, though, allowed the Redhawks (1-11, 0-1) to take a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Riley Suda scored on a wild pitch.
Neuqua Valley (8-3, 1-0) answered with 3 runs in the bottom of the first against Redhawks starter Jared Suchevits. Josiah Scott had an RBI double after Blazek's 2-run shot.
The Redhawks loaded the bases to start the second inning but managed only 1 run on a double play.
"We've got to have more competitive at-bats," said Naperville Central coach Mike Stock. "We were one barrel away from taking advantage of those early opportunities. We've got to get guys on and make it happen. We'll get there."
Suchevits, who struck out seven in 5 innings, settled in during the middle innings. He allowed an unearned fifth-inning run on Kevin Butler's RBI single.
"We've been getting some key runs late in games," said Wildcats coach James Thornton. "Any coach prefers to get those runs earlier in the game, but I'll take them whenever we can get them right now."
Twitter: @kevin_schmit