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newlenoxpatriot.com sports
the New Lenox Patriot | July 21, 2016 | 47
fastbreak
James Sanchez/22nd Century
Media
1st-and-3
Top West
standouts in
loss against East
1. Ryan McWilliams
(ABOVE)
The Central transfer
is continuing to
impress his new
teammates in the
outfield and at the
dish, as he went
1-for-3 with an RBI
and a run scored.
2. Noah Hibler
The senior infielder
made the most of
his opportunities,
scoring three
times in four plate
appearances in the
leadoff position.
3. Brendan Sturm
The sophomore
catcher is continuing
to make a splash
on varsity. He hit a
pinch-hit two-run
double in the fourth
inning to get the
Warriors to trail by
only two runs.
Baseball
Central runs into red hot
Plainfield North, loses 18-5
New coach Nowicki
finishes summer
league at 7-5 record
James Sanchez
Assistant Editor
The proverb “when it
rains, it pours” can certainly
describe Lincoln-Way
Central’s July 11 matchup
against Plainfield North during
the IHSBCA summer regional
tournament.
After striking first to open
the game with a 1-0 lead
and maintaining it for a
several innings, the Tigers
put on a hitting display that
not many high school teams
can duplicate. The barrage
started with back-to-back
home runs to capture the
lead, and they never looked
back. Plainfield North won
18-5 to advance to the
regional quarterfinals.
“They hit everything we
threw at them,” said head
coach Mitch Nowicki. “We
changed pitchers a bunch of
times, but we just ran into
a really hot team and really
hot hitters.”
The Tigers’ high-powered
offense carried over into the
next round against top-seed
Minooka the following day,
as they scored 14 runs in the
top of the first inning alone.
They are on the rise after a
fourth place finish at state in
June, while Central’s program
is in a completely different
phase.
The Knights are under the
guidance of new head coach
Nowicki, who led Lincoln-
Way North to a 30-plus win
season in spring, and also
have to deal with Mokena
students transitioning over
from Lincoln-Way East.
Central is in a more unique
situation in its baseball program,
compared to the other
Lincoln-Way schools. Both
Paul Babcock, of East, and
Jake Zajc, of West, stayed
put, which meant they maintained
the familiarity of
their players and only had
to introduce the transitioning
athletes to their system.
Nowicki was the only coach
in new surroundings.
The only familiarity he
had with his new roster was
the few games North had
competed against them. So,
there was a lot to tackle in
the short summer season,
Nowicki said.
“We weren’t able to implement
new things and a
mentality,” he said. “It was
a lot of getting some guys
opportunities and watching
them play baseball for
a coaching foundation for
next spring. … For me, everybody’s
brand new, so
there was a lot of personality
learning this summer.”
Despite the adversity,
Central finished the season
a game over the .500 mark
with a 7-5 record, which
included wins against both
district rivals. The Knights
kept a large summer roster
to give everyone a chance
to play and see where pieces
fit, and they still maintained
a respectable record.
In the short sample size
with the new club, Nowicki
said he sees the Knights as a
“high-potential” team with
a defensive-minded focus,
especially in the infield. The
strong regard for his deep infield
talent led him to move
Matt Duske to the outfield.
Not only did he excel outside
the diamond, but his bat
came along with it. Duske
had a strong summer, which
included a three-run home
run in the final game against
Plainfield North.
Cam Post was another
name that stuck out to Nowicki
as one of his top performers.
He is a versatile
player that could play first
base, third base, outfield and
catcher, as well as produce
in the heart of the lineup,
like he did last season with a
.421 batting average.
“He was a game changer
for us,” he said. “He plays
the game at a really high
level. He’s just a fierce competitor,
so I think [Post and
Duske] are rock solid seniors
for us and will kind of lead
the way next spring.”
Baseball
Errors, walks eliminate
LW West from regional
James Sanchez
Assistant Editor
Lincoln-Way East coach
Paul Babcock described
East’s July 11 matchup
against Lincoln-Way West
with one word: sloppy.
There were eight errors
along with a handful of
passed balls and wild pitches
between the two teams,
which accounted for eight
of the 20 runs scored in the
game.
“Nobody deserved to win
that game,” Babcock said.
“That was bad. There were
times when it was our offense
against their sloppy defense.
But then we’d give it right
back to them.”
So, it was a matter of who
made the least mistakes and
who made the most of the opportunities
from them. The
Warriors allowed five free
runs through their mistakes,
and the Griffins did the rest to
win 13-7 in New Lenox and
advance to the quarterfinals
of the Illinois High School
Baseball Coaches Association
State Tournament.
It was the Griffins, however,
who dug themselves
into a hole at the beginning
of the game. Throwing errors
in the infield during the first
and second innings allowed
the Warriors to start off with
a 2-0 lead.
West’s Noah Hibler (1 for
2, 3 runs) and Kevin Davis
(1 for 4, 2 runs) were the
beneficiaries with runs scored.
The tables turned in the third
inning, though, with the
Griffins’ largest production of
the game: a five-run frame.
East scored all three of its
fourth-inning runs from errors.
“We let them back in the
ball game with our own mistakes,”
said West coach Jake
Zajc. “They’re a good team
and took advantage of it.”
West made its biggest
surge in the bottom of the
fourth inning with a four-run
frame to make it an 8-6 ball
game. Jim Helfrich’s lone hit
was an RBI single that drove
in Davis, and with two outs,
pinch-hitter Brendan Sturm
hit a two-RBI double down
the right-field line.
However, the two-run deficit
was the closest West was
going to get to tying the ball
game. It mustered only one
more run the rest of the way.
“I think everyone’s a little
disappointed [in] how it
went,” Zajc said. “It was kind
of an ugly game all around,
but there was some good
things too. We were down
8-2 and kept battling back.
We even gave ourselves an
opportunity in the last inning
where we got some guys on.”
The Warriors finish their
summer league at 8-6. It had
big wins, including last-inning
comeback wins against
the 4A state champions Providence
Catholic and Palatine
high schools.
LISTEN UP
“We got some guys in different positions. We gave guys
some opportunities on where they fit in. We had some big
wins, we had some comebacks. It’s a learning experience for
them and for us as we look forward to the regular season.”
Jake Zajc — Lincoln-Way West baseball coach, on the team’s summer league season
TUNE IN
Semi-professional football —7 p.m.
Saturday, July 23
The Lincoln-Way Patriots football team is to
travel to Melrose Park to play against the
Leydon Lions.
INDEX
42 - Going Places
42 - Athlete of the Week
FASTBREAK is compiled by Assistant Editor James Sanchez,
j.sanchez@22ndcenturymedia.com.