Baseball: Cabrales, Stevenson stymie Warren
After getting rained and snowed out on Monday at Warren, the visiting Blue Devils faced host Stevenson Tuesday afternoon on the baseball diamond in Lincolnshire.
The Patriots got an unearned run in the bottom of the first inning and they never looked back as they posted a 4-1 North Suburban Conference victory in a well-played game by both teams.
Stevenson (11-4, 3-2) got on the scoreboard against Arizona State University-bound Warren pitcher Adam Behrens when Owen Housinger walked with one out, Joe Richardson reached on an infield hit, and Chris Iannunzzi reached on an error by Behrens to load the bases. A sacrifice fly by J.R. Nelson drove in Housinger for a quick 1-0 lead.
Stevenson winning pitcher Daniel Cabrales was in control on the mound the whole way as he went the distance while allowing 5 hits.
Warren (11-3, 4-1) fell behind 3-0 in the bottom of the third as Housinger doubled to center field with one out before Richardson singled to right field. Iannunzzi drove in Housinger with a fielder's choice RBI before an RBI double to left field by Nelson gave the Patriots a 3-run cushion.
"He (Cabrales) kept us off balance all day long, he got ahead in the counts, and their guys made plays behind him," said Warren coach Clint Smother, whose team will host Stevenson in a makeup game on Wednesday.
"Our pitcher battled, he's one of the best, but we got hurt a little bit with them hitting it deep to left and deep to center. We're getting better every day. You know our No. 1 and 2 have kept us pretty well in every game and right now we're just trying to find that 3-4-5 pitcher and see where they fit in."
The Blue Devils broke up the shutout in the top of the fifth when Jeremy Walton walked with one out before teammates Anthony Font and Nick Palmieri both singled to load the bases. After Charlie Badgley was called out for stepping on home plate on a bunt attempt, Adam Schilz (double in first inning) walked on a full-count pitch to cut the lead to 3-1.
Stevenson got an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth as Iannunzzi was hit by a pitch, stole second base, and scored on Colin Schmitke's double down the right-field line.
"They have had our number the last four years, and that was actually my first win against Warren so Chris (Smothers) does a great job over there," said Stevenson coach Nick Skala, whose team had 6 hits. "Daniel is just an absolute bulldog on the mound. He competed his head off out there, and we turned our first two double plays of the year today in critical spots."
The Pats had a 5-4-3 double play to end the sixth with third baseman Bryan Park making the throw to second from his knees, and a 6-4-3 double play to end the game.
"I don't do this without the defense. The defense was great today and they helped us to victory," said Cabrales. "I just wanted to locate the ball, don't make mistakes, and trust my defense. It was a great win."