If your team has just played its fourth conference game of the season but still has 14 to go, it might seem early to show deep concern for the conference standings.
But if you beat the area’s second-ranked team in that fourth game, as Wheaton North did when it edged host Naperville North 3-2 Friday, there is reason for optimism.
“This was probably a bigger win for us than it was a loss for Naperville North,” Wheaton North coach Jim Humay said. “It puts us back in the conference race.
“If we get beat, we have a 1-3 record. That would be a big hole to get out of. Now we’re tied with them. Everyone in the (DuPage Valley) conference has at least one loss, so we’re still in the hunt.”
Gary Kmiec scored the winning run for Wheaton North (8-8, 2-2) on Steve Zurad’s two-out single in the sixth. Luke Cassis added three hits and pitcher Joe Humay, who is headed to Iowa State in the fall, gave up one earned run and four hits while striking out five. Humay struck out Naperville’s Alec Porzel with a runner on third base to end the game.
Adam Palmer gave up six hits but no earned runs and struck out seven in defeat for Naperville (8-3, 2-2).
New Trier 15, Waukegan 2: The top-ranked Trevians (11-1, 4-1) cruised in the Central Suburban South with Tim DaRosa’s three hits and Justin Nyweide’s two hits and three RBIs.
Stevenson 11, Lake Zurich 5: Keith Colosi (two hits) drove in a pair of runs and scored two for the third-ranked Patriots (14-3).
Lockport 5, Richards 2: Matt Serafini’s two hits and three RBIs helped No. 4 Lockport (13-2) prevail.
Andrew 15, Argo 5: Fifth-ranked Andrew (16-2) cruised behind Nick Trzesniak and Todd Kozlowski. Trzesniak went 3 for 5 with four RBIs and Aaron McGwire added three hits and three RBIs. Tom Mineo (4-0) struck out eight for the victory. Argo is 11-11.
Thornwood 7, Bradley-Bourbonnais 6: Charles Barber went 3 for 4 with two RBIs and Jay Leggero (two hits) knocked in three runs for No. 6 Thornwood (12-4).
Romeoville 2, Sandburg 1: Senior Eric Mays hit a two-out double, scoring Derek Gardner and giving Romeoville (5-7) a victory over No. 8 Sandburg (11-4).
Barrington 16, Fremd 0: Kyle Flubacker led off with a homer and George Allendorf added three hits and four RBIs for Barrington (11-6, 3-2) in the Mid-Suburban North.
Brother Rice 11, University High 0: Dominic Lascola had two two-run triples and a two-run single to lead Brother Rice (12-2).
Evanston 9, Glenbrook South 5: Haji Outlaw’s grand slam in the fifth powered the Wildkits (7-7, 2-3 Central Suburban South).
Foreman 8-4, Prosser 3-2: Joey Gomez tripled twice in Game 1 and Terry Vera hit a three-run homer in Game 2 Foreman (10-4-1).
Glenbard South 10, Lemont 6: Glenbard South (9-3, 6-3) won in the Suburban Prairie White with Mark Schuwerk’s three hits and four RBIs.
Herscher 14, Momence 0: Herscher (17-0, 11-0) stayed atop the River Valley behind pitcher Matt Fehland (6-0), who gave up one hit in five innings and struck out six.
Hoffman Estates 9, Conant 3: Ed Kawalcyzk hit a three-run double during a five-run second inning for Hoffman Estates (9-4, 3-2) in the Mid-Suburban South.
Lake Forest 16, Loyola 4: Jack Rovetto went 5 for 5, drove in three runs and scored four and Rick Thornhill (three hits) knocked in five runs for the Scouts (8-4-1).
Lane Tech 15, Gordon Tech 3: Mike Bach (five RBIs) launched a grand slam to power Lane (12-3).
Morton 7, Proviso West 6: Nick Hoffman’s two-run double in the sixth gave Morton (12-6) the victory.
Niles West 5, Maine East 2: Pitcher Peter Zonis, Jason Angelilli and Pat Brown each had two hits for Niles West (12-2, 4-1 Central Suburban South).
Riverside-Brookfield 10, Evergreen Park 2: Tim Aurrichio’s four hits included two triples and a home run for the Bulldogs (7-6, 3-3) in the Suburban Prairie White. Aurrichio drove in four runs.
St. Benedict 12, Hales Franciscan 6: Orville Parker had three hits, including two triples, and five RBIs for St. Benedict (18-5, 9-0 Chicago Prep).
Schaumburg 4, Rolling Meadows 0: Paul Reuer’s two hits and two RBIs sparked the Saxons (11-2, 5-0) in the Mid-Suburban South.
Taft 11, Von Steuben 0: Jose Martinez threw a five-inning no-hitter with eight strikeouts for Taft (13-0).
Wheaton-Warrenville South 18, Naperville Central 7: The Tigers (9-5, 4-1) took advantage of 12 Naperville errors and scored 10 runs in the sixth to win in the DuPage Valley. Tim Brylka (two hits) drove in four runs and Kevin Whitkanack (three hits) had three RBIs.
