After some inconsistency earlier in the season, the Varsity Baseball Team has found some rhythm. Following defeats to Lake Zurich, the Scouts have beaten Grayslake Central, Lake Forest Academy, and completed a sweep against Stevenson, winning four of their last five games.
It all started on Thursday where the Scouts got an early 6-0 lead on Grayslake Central after the first inning, and extended the lead to 7-0 after the second. Grayslake Central responded with two runs of their own in the third, but that was all they would score. The Scouts had hot bats with four players getting multiple hits. Bink Hartline went 2-3 with a walk, Stephen Cole went 2-4, Charlie Graham went 3-4 with an RBI and a double, and Ryan Valentincic went 3-3. In addition, Luke Pasquesi had a three-run home run. On the mound, Callum Morrison started and pitched four innings, only giving up two runs. Scroggins closed for the Scouts and pitched two innings recording three strikeouts. The final score was 12-2, and was a sign that the Scouts would be able to turn things around.
On Saturday, the Scouts went down the road from West Campus to play against Lake Forest Academy. The game started slow as the Scouts were only winning 3-0 after three innings. But a big fourth inning for the Scouts, where they scored six runs, helped them gain an even bigger lead. The game finished 13-3 and the Scouts had a very impressive 15 hits. Cole and Pasquesi each had multiple hits, with Cole going 2-3 and Pasquesi going 3-3 with 3 RBIs. Pasquesi, along with Luke Callahan and Charlie Melin, all hit doubles on Saturday. Patrick Walsh started for the Scouts. Walsh pitched five innings, tallying two strikeouts and had one walk. He allowed three runs, only one of them being an earned run. In relief, Avery Kizawa pitched one inning and had a strikeout. It was a nice win for the Scouts, and they had some momentum heading into their big conference series the upcoming Monday against Stevenson.
On Monday, the Scouts played their first game of a two-game series against Stevenson. Nate Brezak started for the Scouts, pitching four innings and striking out seven. He allowed three runs on three hits, an overall great outing for Brezak. At the end of four innings, the score was 4-1 in favor of the Scouts. In the fifth, Stevenson hit a three-run home run to tie the game 4-4. However, the Scouts punched right back with four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. In the sixth inning, Stevenson responded with two runs and the Scouts got shut out. Going into the top of the seventh, the score was 8-6 for the Scouts and Stevenson’s offense was heating up. Hudson Scroggins came in and closed, striking out all three batters in the top of the seventh and clinching the win for the Scouts. It was a very strong game for the Scouts in all aspects. The team compiled 13 hits, Scouts’ pitchers struck out 12 batters, and the team only had one error. Cole, Pasquesi, Valentincic, Charlie Quick, and Dylan Cran all recorded multiple hits, with Cole, Pasquesi, and Cran all hitting doubles. It was a big win for the Scouts marking three wins in a row.
On Tuesday, the Scouts faced Stevenson again, this time on the road. Callum Morrison started and pitched five innings. He had a great day on the mound, only allowing two runs and striking out six batters. Charlie Melin came in as a relief pitcher and pitched two innings and had three strikeouts. On offense, Cole was the highlight for the Scouts as he went 3-4 with an RBI. Valentincic added a double as well. This was a very tight matchup as Stevenson outhit the Scouts 8 to 7. Stevenson led the game 1-0 at the end of the second inning, but the Scouts responded with two runs in the third, making it a 2-1 game. Both teams added a run in the fourth to keep it a one run game. The game went scoreless the rest of the night, finishing with a score of 3-2 win. The Scouts held off for the win and completed the sweep over Stevenson. This was a big deal as it was the Scouts’ first conference sweep, and their fourth win in a row.
In this recent stretch of games, the Scouts have developed a lot of momentum. Head Coach Michael Nilles praised his team’s patience in earning their success.
“Our guys are starting to believe that we can win games against good teams, and that newfound confidence is going to carry us the rest of the way. I give the team a lot of credit for not giving up when things weren’t going our way. It shows they have a lot of heart,” Nilles said.
The Scouts finished up the week with a home matchup against Lakes where they lost 7-2. Pasquesi started on the mound for the Scouts, allowing three runs and two walks over four innings. The Scouts were outhit 13-5 in the contest. What was a cold night for the Scouts, the bats never really got going to keep up with Lakes’ consistent scoring.
However, looking ahead, the Scouts have a two-game series against Waukegan next week, along with a game against Glenbrook South on Saturday. This is a fantastic opportunity for the Scouts to stay hot and rack up some more wins heading into playoffs.
Senior Charlie Graham credits the team’s recent success to their team chemistry and camaraderie.
“We’ve been hanging out a lot more and getting closer with each other. We’ve also been putting in extra work on the weekends to stay loose for the upcoming weeks. I think that’s been a big part of our recent success,” said Graham.
The Scouts have definitely turned things around and have been an exciting team to watch recently. They are currently fifth in the NSC, and hope to move up the standings.
This has been a big turnaround for the Scouts and it will be interesting to see if they can stay hot.
