IHSA Playoffs: 4A State Preview

During Monday’s super-sectional round, the state’s 4A class narrowed down its field of potential champions to four: St. Charles North, St. Rita, Hampshire, and Edwardsville. On Friday, all four programs will make their way to Joliet’s Route 66 Stadium to play in the state’s semifinals – St. Charles will battle St. Rita on one half, and Hampshire and Edwardsville will play in the other. The winners of both games will meet in Saturday’s championship tie and the losers will play a consolation contest in the afternoon.

Below, we’re breaking down each team and how all four of them got here.

ST. CHARLES NORTH VS. ST. RITA

The North Stars (28-10) vs. the Mustangs (34-6) – Friday, 3 p.m.

St. Charles North: The North Stars have just one previous state tournament appearance, and that came back in 2016. While it’s fresh enough that members of this version of St. Charles North were around the team at the time – seniors like Egon Hein, Mike Gattuso, John Hamer, and Pat Bellock – none the seniors on this year’s squad played in that state series. North played Mundelein in the 2016 semifinals and lost, 10-4, though they had the lead into the fifth inning. They rallied back to win the consolation game the next day against Plainfield North, but head coach Todd Genke has been striving to get his program back to Joliet ever since.

They were ousted from the 2018 playoffs abruptly and disappointingly in their regional final, to Lake Park, which actually went on to earn a state semifinals appearance.

Still, the North Stars have been using the 2019 campaign to scrub away the bad taste left in their mouths after last season’s early exit. And whatever they have been doing has been working.

This is a team with an interesting mix of seniors and impactful underclassmen who are becoming difference-makers. While seniors Gattuso, Hein, and Bellock typically occupy spots Nos. 1 to 3 in the daily lineup, sophomores Nick DeMarco, Zach Kempe, Andrew Jimenez, Kevin White, and Marco Torres are all key members of the batting order, too. DeMarco is the one you may be most familiar with. He’s a dynamic two-way player, already committed to Notre Dame, who trails only Hein in slugging percentage, on-base percentage, and batting average on this team. He hits clean-up for the North Stars and is a big reason why they’re here in the first place.

But keep an eye on fellow 2021 grad White, too. He’s been one of, if not the, hottest hitter on this team in these playoffs. He leads the team with eight hits, three doubles, and is hitting .500 through North’s five playoff games, thus far.

Also, a note on Hein. The senior is pacing this team in most offensive categories, operating out of the two-spot. He’s been on a hot streak that’s lasted the entirety of the season, slashing .429/.589/.684. Look for him to be that same spark when the North Stars meet the Mustangs on Friday.

The pitching has been suffocating this postseason. Kempe, a sophomore right-hander, and junior lefty Johnny Lambert have combined to pitch 27.2 of North’s 35 playoff innings and have allowed just four earned runs combined over that stretch. Lambert, specifically, has punched out a staggering 26 batters in his 16.2 innings of postseason work. This staff has yet to allow more than two runs in a game in these playoffs, but will, however, have its work cut out for them against Rita’s potent offense.

Their path to Joliet: St. Charles North, as a No. 2 seed, defeated Geneva (3-2), Wheaton Warrenville South (5-2), Lake Park (8-2), Elk Grove (4-2), and Plainfield Central (8-1), to earn its second-ever state tournament appearance.

St. Rita: The Mustangs were named our No. 1-ranked team on the latest edition of the Power 25 and will stay that way until we update the rankings at the conclusion of the 2019 season.

Year after year, the team that comes out of both the Chicago Catholic League – Blue conference and trudges their way through the rigorous Chicago-area sectional, is the most battle-tested team in the playoffs. That remains the same this spring, after St. Rita edged out St. Laurence for the CCL – Blue title and managed to win 34 games this season despite having one of the toughest schedules of any team in the state.

This offense is powered by its shortstop, Jalen Greer, a Mizzou recruit who was just tabbed in the fifth round of this week’s MLB Draft by the Oakland Athletics. Greer hit .364 this spring with 19 extra-base hits, including eight home runs and he collected a team-high 45 RBIs.

But it isn’t only Greer doing the heavy lifting here at the plate.

Brendan Carrane, Sean McDevitt, Luke Napleton and Gavin Mottl all surround Greer in the order and chip in on offense. Napleton, namely, was among its most productive bats. He hit fourth, which aligns perfectly with his prototypical clean-up-type pop. He has recorded nine doubles and four homers for St. Rita this spring.

But what makes the Mustangs so capable on offense is their depth. Matt Callahan and Bobby Atkinson hit in the bottom half of this lineup but are among their more valuable offensive weapons. Callahan hit .328 this season with 11 extra-base hits, the same number as Atkinson, who went deep five times himself (second only to Greer). And Atkinson is only a sophomore, so prepare yourselves to hear his name a lot more often in the coming springs, especially since he’s still uncommitted.

On the mound, Rita has gotten some of its biggest performances from an unlikely source: Vic Aguilar. The senior lefty flew under radars prior to this season, even our own, and has emerged as one of the team’s go-to arms. He tossed a complete-game shutout against Fremd in Monday’s super-sectional and has pitched a team-high 61.2 innings in 2019, and has an ERA of 2.38 to go along with it. Beyond Aguilar, Diego Koval, a senior right-hander and Loras College commit, is a much more familiar face who has been one of this team’s most reliable arms, too. He has the second-most innings pitched on this roster and an ERA of 2.18. Jimmy Moylan and Justin Valdez are high-leverage arms who have been greatly effective in limited roles. Moylan has K’d 33 batters in 29.1 innings and sports a sub-2.00 ERA, allowing just 17 hits in that span. And Valdez is this team’s ERA leader (1.79) and has punched out 26 batters in 31.1 innings. Yet another sophomore impacting this team is LHP Al Holguin. Holguin a big-bodied left-hander who has struck out 42 in 39.2 innings pitched and only given up 26 hits.

Rita’s all-around depth and big-game experience probably grants them the edge in this match-up, but it’s just one game, where anything can happen.

Their path to Joliet: St. Rita, as sectional hosts and a No. 1 seed, defeated Kelly (15-0), Riverside-Brookfield (10-0), Mount Carmel (3-2), Nazareth Academy (7-0), and Fremd (13-0) to earn their fifth trip to state in their program’s history, still seeking their first-ever win.

HAMPSHIRE VS. EDWARDSVILLE

The Whip-Purs (22-14) vs. the Tigers (35-5) – Friday, 5 p.m.

Hampshire: The Whip-Purs came into the playoffs losers of three of their last five, and, frankly had been struggling since late April. Hampshire defeated Crystal Lake Central 5-3 on April 20 but went 9-14 to close out the regular season, earning a No. 3 seed in the McHenry Sectional.

Well, they’ve erupted since, and their senior ace Matt Jachec is a critical reason why. There’s a case to be made that no player in the state as had a more positive impact on their team’s playoff race than their Indiana State recruit.

Jachec pitched 8.2 innings in his team’s extra-inning, walk-off win over Harlem on May 23, allowing just two earned runs and striking out 13 in the process. After Hampshire edged past Hononegah, Jachec was called on again in the sectional semis against Barrington. The Whip-Purs needed extra innings again to win, only this time they required Jachec to throw a staggering 10 shutout innings on his own – and he needed only 116 pitches to do so. He struck out seven of Barrington’s Broncos and allowed just three hits and a single walk. The Whip-Purs finally opened it up in the 11th inning to get it done.

And after Hampshire clung to its 5-0 lead, barely, in the sectional title game against Cary-Grove, Jachec starred yet again in the super-sectionals against Oak Park-River Forest, where he extended his scoreless streak to a whopping 22.1 innings. He punched out eight more Huskies, walked none, and allowed just five hits in more scoreless innings on the bump.

Jachec should be rested enough to pitch against one of the state’s most robust offenses, Edwardsville, on Friday.

On offense, Hampshire has benefitted from its timely hitting, leaning on athletic uncommitted junior shortstop Gavin Kriegel and senior Triton JC recruit Nick Sladek, surrounding Jachec who typically hits third in the order. Senior lead-off man Andrew Krajecki can also be a top-of-the-order catalyst and set the tone of the Whip-Purs early.

Their path to Joliet: Hampshire, a No. 3 seed, defeated Harlem (5-4), Hononegah (5-3), Barrington (3-0), Cary-Grove (5-4), and Oak Park-River Forest (4-0) to earn their program’s first-ever state tournament appearance.

Edwardsville: The Tigers have been one of the state’s best and most consistent teams throughout the 2019 campaign. They’ve lost consecutive games just once all season, and it came way back during our Metro-East Kickoff Classic in mid-March – to a pair of Power 25-ranked teams, no less. Since March 20, they’ve lost only three games and they’ve looked particularly dominant in these playoffs.

They beat what is very possibly the most talented team in the state, Marist, in a dramatic 5-4 contest in Springfield on Monday. They scored three late runs to escape with a narrow victory to get back to state.

But if Marist is the most prospect-laden team in Illinois, Edwardsville isn’t far behind.

They’re rostering five Division-I commits, including their hulking first baseman Drake Westcott, who is committed to Louisville. Westcott, still only a junior, has already had an historic career in Edwardsville, which is saying something. He hit .390 for the Tigers this spring with eight doubles and nine homers, and led the way with 38 RBIs in 33 games. After hitting a solo home run in his first Super-Sectional at-bat, he was intentionally walked the rest of the game. 

The last time we saw Westcott on this stage, he hit a home run as a freshman against Crystal Lake South in the 2017 championship game, but it wasn’t enough to push them past the Gators. He’ll look to get his revenge on another Fox Valley Conference opponent on Friday.

Hayden Moore, a sophomore and Missouri State commit, is one of the most productive top-of-the-order bats in the state. He’s a switch-hitting spark plug who hit .391 this season with 21 extra-base hits – 12 doubles, five triples, and four home runs. Seniors Joe Copeland (McKendree commit) and Max Ringering (John A. Logan JC) bolstered this lineup in a big way. The reliable senior bats have been arguably the team’s most productive, after Moore and Westcott, anyway. Copeland is hitting .415 in 32 games this spring and Ringering leads the team with 16 doubles. Also, Josh Ohl, who’s staying home next fall to attend SIU-E, missed the first couple of weeks of the season but didn’t miss a beat. He’s hitting .371 this spring with seven doubles, all while playing a steady shortstop.

This rotation is also among the state’s best, led by its durable No. 1 Matthew Boyer. The Saint Louis-bound senior has punched out 85 batters in a team-high 63.1 innings pitched and has groomed an ERA of 2.21. Grant Schaefer and Dawson Taylor have pitched an identical number of innings (46) and both have ERAs of 1.67. Taylor will join Ringering at Logan in the fall and has some of the most electric stuff in Illinois. He’s been up to 93 mph this spring and he backs it up with a hard-biting slider. That combo has helped him strike out 61 batters this spring, too. Both Boyer and Taylor pitched against Marist on Monday, so we’ll see if they’re available on Friday. Regardless, Schaefer as well as the likes of Jonathon Yancik and Collin Salter, should be more than enough reinforcements for the always grueling trip to Joliet.

Their path to Joliet: Edwardsville, a No. 1 seed and our Power 25's No. 2-ranked squad, defeated Quincy (11-1), Alton (8-1), Belleville West (4-0), Normal West (12-8), and Marist (5-4) to earn their 15th trip to the state tournament, and their sixth under head coach Tim Funkhouser. Funkhouser is, however, seeking his first-ever win and the program’s first since 1998.

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