Stevenson Big Bats Crush Warren for NSC Lake Title!

 

By Drake Skleba

 

LINCOLNSHIRE - Four and a half innings. That’s all it took for No. 4 Stevenson to wrap up the 2010 North Suburban Conference Lake Division championship on Tuesday. The Patriots’ all-out offensive assault produced 17 runs and 17 hits as Stevenson defeated Warren 17-1 in a stunning slaughter-rule victory.

 

Stevenson junior right-hander Tyler Radtke allowed an unearned run and two hits in four innings to improve to 7-0 on the season. With the win, Stevenson (27-3; 10-2), will move on to Thursday’s North Suburban championship game against North Suburban Prairie Division champion Lakes (22-9). The championship game will be played at Lakes in Lake Villa.

 

Warren (25-8; 9-3) actually scored the first run of the game and led 1-0 after a half inning of play. The Blue Devils picked up an unearned run without the benefit of a hit.

 

Stevenson struck quickly against Warren starting pitcher Jeff Johnson. Patriot leadoff man Corey Lasky (1-for-3, 2R, RBI, BB) walked and scored on a two-run blast by senior designated-hitter Kory Cutler. For Cutler, the home run was his second of the year. Cutler would later double home two runs. For the day Cutler was 3-for-4 with four RBI.

 

“It feels good to win the championship,” said Cutler. “We are all seniors and have been playing together a long time and it is great to win this championship together. I hit the ball well today and it felt good to get the homer in the first inning.”

 

Johnson walked Northwestern-bound Patriot shortstop Kyle Ruchim and his day was done. Warren junior right-hander Ryan Kennedy entered the game and was greeted by a double by Patriot first baseman Patrick Wilson (2-for-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI). The Blue Devil defense would desert Kennedy and the Patriots would add two unearned runs for a 4-1 lead after one.

 

The assault continued in the second inning. Stevenson had eight consecutive batters hit safely to lead off the inning, scoring eight runs on eight hits, to extend its lead to 12-1 after two.

 

The Patriots added four in the third and mercifully scored a single run in the fourth.

 

Radtke cruised to his seventh win of the season. Radtke struck out three and walked four.

 

“It feels great to beat a great team like Warren for the championship,” said Radtke. “We really brought our A game tonight. I didn’t have my best stuff tonight but I kept the ball down and got the win.”

 

The list of offensive heroes for the NSC Lake champions was large. Senior right fielder Erick King had three hits and drove home a run. Left fielder Alex Daar added two hits and two RBI.

 

Senior catcher Jeff Ferstein had a perfect 3-for-3 day with a RBI. Junior third baseman Mike Martin chipped in with a two-run single in the eight-run second.

 

“This is exactly what we hoped for at the beginning of the year,” said Ruchim. “One of our first goals was to win the Lake Division and then win the North Suburban title. We didn’t expect to have a game like this but we have really been hitting the ball well all year. In the past, the Stevenson mantra has been great pitching and defense. This year we added a powerful offense to the mix. That will be our approach on Thursday against a quality Lakes team and pitcher.”

 

For Warren, the Blue Devils suffer their fourth straight loss and must regroup before next week’s Class 4A state tournament. The Blue Devils could meet Stevenson again in the Class 4A Barrington Sectional final on June 5.

 

“I really liked the way we responded to giving up the early run,” said Stevenson head coach Paul Mazzuca. “It wasn’t one of Tyler’s better performances but he battled on the mound today. We really put the barrel of the bat on the ball today. The Cutler home run and Jeff Ferstein’s hit were huge for us in the first inning. We are very proud to represent the Lake Division in Thursday’s championship game.”