Weekly Diamond Notes

Will Aubel, SS, Okawville, 2019
The junior shortstop had a dynamite week last week at the plate, going 12-for-18 with five doubles, a triple, and a home run -- and he only struck out once in that span. He scored seven runs and stole two bases, too. Most notably, the Okawville slugger went 3-for-4 against rival Nashville, leading his team back from a 5-0 deficit. He finished that game just a single shy of the cycle. On the season, Aubel is hitting .460 and has an OPS of 1.197. He’s struck out just five times in 61 plate appearances.

Angelo Cantelo, C, Marian Catholic, 2019
Cantelo has caught every single inning for Marian Catholic this season, which is impressive in its own right, but he’s also been an important member of this offense, too. Last week, the junior catcher lit it up at the plate. He went 12-for-17 with three walks in the Spartans’ five games, including two doubles and a home run. He also drove in eight important runs.

Nathan Garard, RHP/C/OF, Gibson City, 2019
The junior two-way prospect helped Gibson City in a multitude of ways last week, including his seven-inning shutout of Paxton-Buckley-Loda. In that start, he allowed just four hits, one walk, and struck out six. In the same game, he had a double and two RBIs. On the year, he’s maintaining an ERA of 1.75 in 36 innings and has struck out 43 and walked just 11 over that span. At the plate, he’s got an OBP of .500 even and a batting average of .339.

Luke Gomes, OF, Kaneland, 2018
For the second time this spring, Kaneland’s senior outfielder has been named to the Weekly Diamond Notes list. Last week, Gomes was 8-for-15, with six of those hits going for extra bases. He tallied three doubles, a triple, and slugged two homers in five games. He also drove in nine runs and scored six times himself during that stretch.

Paddy Hincks, INF, Benet Academy, 2018
A Brown University commit, Hincks put together another robust week from the batter’s box. The Benet middle infielder went 9-for-18, including an 8-for-10 line in their May 5 doubleheader with Niles Notre Dame. Hincks drove in seven runs on three doubles and energized the offense with his five runs scored.

Mason Hull, SS, Effingham, 2018
Hull is a Missouri State commit who’s helped his Flaming Hearts to a 19-3 record this spring. He actually started for Effingham against Taylorville on May 5 and allowed just one unearned run despite preventing the opposition from tallying a hit or walk in his 4.1 innings of work. He struck out seven of the 14 batters he faced, too. Hull is more known for his menacing bat though and he shined last week. In that same game he started at Taylorville, the senior mashed two homers and drove in seven runs. This season, Hull is hitting .574 with an OBP of .675 and a slugging percentage of .984.

Justin Janas, 1B, Marist, 2019
The top-ranked first baseman in Illinois’ junior class has been a staple in the Redhawks’ lineup all season long, but last week he came in clutch during Marist’s recent hot streak and subsequent climb up the Power 25. Janas went 9-for-18 last week and was a critical reason why Marist won four of their five games last week. The Illinois commit smacked three doubles, hit a triple, and blasted a homer, too. More importantly, he drove home 14 runs and scored six of his own.

Nick Kosmetatos, INF/RHP, St. Francis, 2019
Kosmetatos remains uncommitted but with more performances like the ones he put together last week, that could change quick. He’s the top-ranked third baseman within Illinois’ junior class and he’s been integral to St. Francis, both in the batter’s box and on the mound. Last week, the junior worked in relief against the mighty Mount Carmel and needed to work out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam with the Spartans down a run already in the 7th. Kosmetatos forced a fly out and notched a strikeout to set the table for a St. Francis come-from-behind, walk-off win. In their two-game series split with the Caravan, Kosmetatos went 3-for-6 with a home run. He also homered in their game with Kaneland earlier in the week, too. In that same game, he tossed a complete game and allowed just one run on four hits while he struck out 11.

Nathan Lavender, LHP, El Paso-Gridley, 2018
Lavender has long been identified as one of the state’s top prospects. Now a senior, the Illinois commit is only re-asserting his dominance at the amateur level at El Paso-Gridley. On May 4, Lavender struck out 18 of the 24 batters he faced in his complete game shutout of LeRoy. In that game, he allowed just one hit, two walks, in addition to those 18 punch-outs across seven innings of mastery on the mound.

Josh Mesenbrink, 3B, Triad, 2018
Mesenbrink continued his hit parade this season with another dynamite week. In five games last week for Triad, the senior third baseman went 12-for-20 and mashed three homers and five doubles, driving in seven runs. He also recorded Triad’s walk-off single in their win against Valmeyer, too.

Bryce Moskiewicz, C, Lyons Township, 2018
Moskiewicz, a Pitt commit, powered the Lions last week to four wins in four tries, including their three-game sweep of Downers Grove North. In those four games, the senior catcher went 12-for-16 with a double, triple, and seven RBIs.

Ryan Nagelbach, 3B, Deerfield, 2020
The switch-hitting sophomore had a great week for Deerfield amidst some serious Central Suburban League action. Nagelbach went 8-for-13 and bopped a couple of homers, driving in four total. He leads the Warriors this season with 30 hits, resulting in a .405 batting average, and is getting on base at a .495 clip while slugging .608.  

Philip Reinhardt, LHP, Valmeyer, 2020
Reinhardt was the Friday night starter against Normal U-High in the O’Fallon Tournament and he was very sharp. The lefty sophomore struck out 14 of the 24 Pioneers he faced. He pitched six innings and allowed just one run on two hits, three walks, to go along with those 14 Ks. He was relieved with his team up 2-1 in the 7th when Normal U-High mounted a come-from-behind win, unfortunately for Reinhardt.

Danny Russo, INF, Stagg, 2019
Stagg played three games last week and won two of the them with Russo right in the middle of the action. The Chargers junior went 7-for-12 and slugged five home runs, including three in his team’s victory over Shepard on Friday and a clutch three-run shot against Bolingbrook on Tuesday.

Mason Schaller, C, Mundelein, 2018
Mundelein won four games last week, including three against rivals Libertyville, and Schaller was vital in all of them. In that three-game series with the Wildcats, the senior catcher had three timely hits. In game two, his two-run single ultimately put the game out of reach and in game three his single energized the offense to break the scoreless tie. He’s been praised all year long for his work behind the plate and was excellent defensively catching one of the state’s top prospects, Steven Sanchez, in the April 30 pitcher’s duel.

Tommy Smith, INF, East Peoria, 2018
Last Wednesday, Smith tallied three of East Peoria’s five hits against Morton and drove in three of their five runs on his two doubles. In their third game of the week on Friday against LaSalle-Peru, the senior infielder led the way again in their huge 18-0 win. Smith once again went 3-for-4 with two more doubles, four runs, and three RBIs -- and he also blasted a home run that reportedly went over 400 feet.

Tyler Stuart, RHP, Herscher, 2018
Stuart’s within the top 50 of his state’s class for good reason, he can be electric on the mound. He showed that again last week Monday against Wilmington. In the game, he allowed just one run on four hits and struck out 10, nine looking. So far this season, the 6-foot-8 righty is grooming an ERA of 0.496 and has struck out 77 batters in 42.1 innings.

Conrad Tauer, LHP, Lemont, 2019
Tauer has been nearly untouchable this season and he reiterated that this past week. Against Thornton Fractional South on May 1, Tauer threw a complete game shutout and allowed just two hits, two walks, and he struck out nine in seven innings of work. In his last four outings, Tauer is 3-0 with a sub-1.00 ERA at 0.37. His last three starts he turned into complete games. That’s 20 innings pitched allowing just one run on four hits, three walks, and has struck out 19 over that span.

Bobby Wisz, INF, Lemont, 2019
In a six-game stretch last week, Wisz went 14-for-20 for Lemont and tallied three doubles and three triples along the way. He also walked seven times, drove in eight runs, and he stole eight bags, too.

Zaid Walker, OF, Homewood-Flossmoor, 2018
From April 30 to May 4, Walker played in three games and rocked opposing pitching by going 10-for-13 with three homers and three doubles, driving in 10 runs for the Vikings. Walker’s committed to Michigan State but he’s also garnering some attention from Major League scouts ahead of next month’s draft. As a prelude to next week’s Weekly Diamond Notes edition, Walker has five home runs in his last eight at-bats as well as a freakish 15 RBIs.

Nate Younkin, SS, Athens, 2019
Athens won five of its six games last week and that had a lot to do with the kind of production they were getting from their junior shortstop. Younkin was 9-for-19 with two doubles, three homers, and he drive in six runs and scored seven times.

Cory Ronan, LHP, Routt, 2021
Ronan has spent his freshman season dominating the varsity level on the mound. Against Triopi last Monday, Ronan threw another shutout, allowing just one hit, two walks, in five innings of work. No one has been able to square up Ronan this spring. The lean, wiry lefty has allowed just 13 hits in 33.1 innings and just one earned run, good for an ERA of 0.210. He’s also struck out 47 batters through that stretch.

Antoine Kelly, LHP, Maine East, 2018
This is the second straight week Kelly has earned a spot on Weekly Diamond Notes. Last week, the lefty threw a complete game shutout over Maine South, one in which he only needed 89 pitches to strike out 17 batters. He allowed just one hit and one walk in those seven innings. Kelly has a 0.63 ERA this spring having allowed only two earned runs this spring in 23 innings -- and he’s up to 56 Ks this season.

Collin Witzke, RHP, Oswego East, 2019
Witzke’s outing against rivals Oswego last week certainly warrants a nod on our Weekly Diamond Notes. In that start, he threw 6.1 innings and allowed just one unearned run on three hits, one walk, and he struck out 10. He’s a top-100-ranked junior within Illinois’ junior class for his athleticism on the mound and his upper-80s fastball and tight curveball mix.

Anthony Baturin, 2B, Lake Park, 2018
Last week, the Lake Park second baseman was 9-for-13 with three doubles and six RBIs for the Lancers in their four games. Lake Park won three of those games, including Friday against Glenbard North, in which Baturin singled in the walk-off run.

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