Fremd sneaks by Warren in pitcher's duel to reach sectional championship

In a game with a combined 21 strikeouts through 9 innings Wednesday, the most meaningful throw in the Warren-Fremd game came to an unexpected spot - third base.

Fremd relief pitcher Henry Bond closed out a marathon game by picking off a Warren runner at third for the final out in the bottom of the 10th inning. His pickoff lifted No. 8-seed Fremd to a 2-0 victory over No. 5-seed Warren in a Class 4A Stevenson Sectional semifinal.

"We practice that pickoff all the time," Bond said. "I was very nervous, but we got it done. Coach told me we could get them at third (base). I just tried to throw it to the base, so it came naturally. This feels great, plus we're the underdog every game, so it feels good to get a win."

Fremd second baseman Mitch Burchert knocked in 2 runs with a two-out, line-drive single to right field in the top of the 10th.

"It's crazy because I thought we battled throughout this game," Burchert said. "We came through at the end. I just drove that outside pitch that way."

The Vikings (17-13) advanced to play No. 2 Mundelein at 10 a.m. Saturday for the championship.

The game featured a few odd plays, combined with stellar performances by both starting pitchers, and countless runners left on base, especially in the final four innings.

"There was some great pitching on both sides, and their guy (Joe Neilson) kept us off-balance all day," Warren coach Clint Smothers said. "You have to tip your hat to both (starting) pitchers. Adam (Behrens) has been great all year, and he competes. We were one swing away from tying the game. These guys have done an unbelievable job."

Behrens and Neilson battled pitch for pitch, with Behrens allowing 6 hits and striking out 13 in 9 innings. Meanwhile, the Blue Devils managed just 3 hits in the loss.

"Every game I just come in with a competitive mindset, and try and get that first pitch as a strike and work from there," Behrens said. "I tried to throw it inside, above and under their hands to create weak contact and go away with the slider or curveball to shock them. It was a fight and fun to be competitive with another pitcher like that."

Neilson worked out of tough situations. He scattered 2 hits and fanned 8 in 8 innings.

"All my pitches were working, and I just focused on throwing strikes and having my defense make the plays for me," Neilson said. "It was my best outing of the year. They were pitching pretty good, so every pitch mattered and there was a lot of pressure. My curveball and fastball were working. I knew they had Behrens pitching, so I just focused on doing what I could to get my team a win."

"Both pitchers pitched amazing, and unfortunately someone had to lose that game," Fremd coach Chris Piggott said. "We had four or five opportunities early and couldn't get that hit to score a run. We couldn't do it until the end. Joe pitched great. That's his top one or two of the year. Mitch had a big hit, so I'm happy to see him come up with a big hit."

The game took a unique turn in the top of the ninth.

After leaving three runners on base in their last 2 innings, the Vikings loaded the bases with no outs via a single by James Philipp, a double by Burchert and an intentional walk. One out later, Behrens' fastball looked to have struck out Thomas Plizga, but the ball missed the catcher and struck the plate umpire, knocking him to the ground. In the confusion, 2 runs scored. Both teams stopped in bewilderment over the play.

The three umpires met before ruling a foul ball, putting all runners back on their original bases. A few minutes later, just as the umpires looked to be ready to reverse the call to put 2 runs on the board for Fremd, Warren's coaches complained, leading to another conference among the umpires who let the original call stand.

Behrens recovered from the 15-minute delay to strike out the next two batters.

"It was a crazy game," Piggott said. "You had that long delay, but unfortunately someone was going to be unhappy. We didn't let that get to us, and were able to get two runs when we needed to."