PBR Daily Roundup

April 26

By Drake Skleba

 

Big 12

Danville (12-5; 3-1) ripped Champaign Central 11-1 in five innings on Tuesday. Viking sophomore C Chuckie Robinson, ranked fifth in the Class of 2013, led the Viking assault on the Maroons. Robinson hammered his fourth and fifth home runs of 2011, and finished with three hits and four RBI. Viking junior Drew Guthrie had two hits and two RBI and DACC recruit Cody Burton chipped in with two hits. Viking junior Zack Thomas (5-1) fired a two-hitter with six Ks, for the Vikings.

 

Normal (10-7; 3-1) blew past Decatur Eisenhower 11-1 in five innings on Tuesday. Ironman junior Tyler Bixby fired a one-hitter at the Panthers. Fellow junior Adam Gerard led the Ironman offensive attack with three hits and three RBI. Senior Kyle Rutledge chipped in with a pair of hits.

 

Central State 8

No. 13 Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin (13-1; 9-0) crushed Springfield S.E. 16-0 in five-innings behind a four-hitter from Cyclone senior RHP Clint Sestak (4-0). Cyclone junior RF Alex Sapanski had a perfect 3-for-3 day and plated three runs for SHG. Chatham Glenwood series hero, junior CF Carter Pranger, doubled home another run for SHG.

 

Interstate 8 North

Lisle (14-5; 4-2) slipped past Westmont 3-2 behind an 11-strikeout, two-hitter by senior Ryan Burlison (3-1). Junior Nick Olson led the Lion attack with three hits, including a double and drove home two Lion runs. Burlison added a pair of hits for Lisle. On Friday, the Lions will host Interstate-8 South leader Herscher (15-2; 5-1), at 4:30. The PBR?s Drake Skleba will be in Lisle for all of the action.

 

N. Illinois Big 12- East

Kaneland?s (10-3; 7-0) Porsche Player of the Week senior RHP Bobby Thorson appears to want to be our first repeat winner, as he opened up this week in amazing fashion on Tuesday at Yorkville. Embattled in a scoreless tie, Thorson (3-1) broke up the scoreless tie with his fourth home run of 2011 to give the Knights a 1-0 lead. The Knights would tack on another run and Thorson would slam the door on Yorkville (11-6; 3-3) in the bottom of the seventh to complete his two-hit masterpiece. With the shutout, Thorson has allowed only one earned run in 36 innings pitched for a miniscule 0.19 ERA. Thorson has now fanned 45 enemy batsmen in those 36 innings pitched.

 

On Monday, May 2, weather permitting of course, the PBR?s Drake Skleba will be in Maple Park, for the Knights NIB-12 East showdown with second place Sycamore (11-2; 4-2).

 

Northeastern Athletic

Westminster Christian (15-5; 9-0) swept Rockford Christian Life in a pair of scheduled five-inning games on Tuesday 17-5 and 5-3. In game one, Warrior senior 1B Andrew Mason was 4-for-4 with five RBI. Senior 1B Frank Oliver (4-for-4, 3RBI) and junior Kevin Elder (3-for-3; 3RBI) each drove in three for the red-hot Warriors who have now won nine straight. In game two, Oliver continued his assault on the Eagles pitching staff with two more hits and an RBI and Mason hit safely once and drove in two more Warrior runs.

 

Sangamo

Auburn (16-4; 4-0) stayed atop the Sangamo Conference standings with a 7-5 thrilling victory in eight innings over White-Hall North Greene. Winning pitcher junior Colby Butler (5-2) sent the home-standing Auburn fans home happy when he launched a two-run blast in the home half of the eighth, to give the Trojans the victory.

 

Sophomore Austin Muench led the Trojan attack with a perfect 3-for-3 day with a homer, his sixth of the season, and two triples and three ribbies. Muench?s blast tied the game in the bottom of the seventh at 5. Auburn and No.11 Pleasant Plains (18-1; 2-0) sit atop the Sangamo standings. The Trojans and the Cardinals will meet in Plains on May 11 at 4:30.

 

Southwestern

No. 12 O? Fallon (17-3; 7-1) defeated Granite City 4-3 in eight innings, when Panther senior 1B Cody Seeberger launched his eighth home run of 2011 into the O? Fallon sky, leading off the bottom of the eighth. Seeberger?s blast broke up a 3-3 tie and sent the Panther contingent gathered at Blazier Field home very happy. Seeberger hit his seventh homer earlier in the game.

 

Senior C Austin Bossart (1-for-4, RBI) and junior Sam Hopkins (2-for-3, RBI) plated the other two Panther runs. Sophomore Ethan Wilde (2-0) fired 1 2/3 innings of hitless relief to pick up the win on the mound for the Panthers.

 

& t;span style="font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt">Edwardsville (14-4; 6-2) hit five solo homers to defeat Belleville East 5-4. Tiger sophomore Drew Curtis hit his second and third of 2011 and fellow sophomore Blake Graham hit his second round-tripper of the year. Junior Derek Page went deep for the fourth time and senior C Ty Hasty hit his second. Tiger 6-foot-3 junior Sam Stolte (4-1) scattered nine hits and allowed two runs in his five innings of work to pick up the win. Senior Zach Sedlacek nailed down the save for the Tigers.

 

Collinsville (14-6; 6-2) stayed in the hunt with 10-8 slugfest win over Alton on Tuesday. Kahok senior C Connor Viviano hammered a grand-slam homer, his first dinger of the year. Kahok juniors Conner Judge (4-for-5, 2B, 4RBI) and Keith Henderson (3-for-4, 2B, 3RBI) led the Kahok attack.

 

Upstate 8 River

Geneva (10-3; 8-1) outslugged Elgin Larkin 16-14. Viking sophomore Mitch Endirakitis launched a three-run bomb in the seventh to win it for Geneva, as the Vikings moved into a second place tie in the River, with No. 7 Streamwood (14-1; 8-1). Geneva?s Chris Hipchen, who hit a school-record 13 homers in 2010, went deep for the Vikings.

 

Upstate 8 Valley

South Elgin (10-3; 6-3) slipped past Waubonsie Valley 4-3 in Aurora on Tuesday. Storm senior Kenny Lowden won it for SE when he drove home fellow senior Dillon Gardner with the game-winner in the top of the seventh. Storm sophomore Chris Bingham (1-0) fired a six-hitter at the Warriors.

Nonconference

No.15 Galesburg (15-3) saw the Silver Streaks 12-game winning streak come to a crashing halt as Metamora (5-9) stunned the Streaks 5-4 on Tuesday. Metamora went deep three times to stun the highly-ranked Silver Streaks. Redbirds, Joey Malaschack, Andy Christensen and Adam Bower all homered for Metamora. Silver Streak Brock Bush homered for the Silver Streaks.