It certainly didn’t take Nic Imhoff long to get immersed into Benet’s baseball culture and the way things are run.
“Benet’s program is really good about making goals and just sticking to them,” he said. “I’ve played on teams before where they don’t really have goals. They just kind of play to win, I guess, would be their goal.
“But we’ve just sat down a couple times and come up with goals, see where we’re at as far as completing our goals or holding ourselves accountable to those.”
Imhoff, a transplant from Appleton, Wis., has hit the ground running in his one and only year at Benet.
The senior left-hander has been thrust into the closer’s role for the Redwings (23-11), posting a 0.55 ERA with four saves in 25 2/3 innings.
Imhoff has been the biggest revelation for a bullpen Benet coach Scott Lawler has called “lights out.” The Redwings have gone 11-for-11 in converting save opportunities en route to winning a third straight regional championship.
In search of its firs sectional title since 1989, the host Redwings play Glenbard South at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Class 3A Benet Sectional semifinals. The winner advances to take on Nazareth or Montini at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Continued production from Imhoff, Jake Young, Tony Adams and Zach Strons will be crucial.
“I’d say the mix of our pitchers,” Young said of the biggest reasons for the bullpen’s collective success. “We always have a guy who’s ready for the situation.
“No one is ever panicked to go on the mound. They’re always ready and calm and they always pitch their best, even in a tough situation. They always get the job done.”
Adams, a junior right-hander, has a 0.88 ERA in 16 innings. He believes the relief pitchers for the Redwings have such a positive vibe because they throw the first pitch for a strike.
“I think me, along with (junior) Gio Ahern and (junior) Quinn Moriarty, have been just delivering strikes and just trying to get it across the plate,” he said. “That’s been most of our success.
“I don’t know the numbers exactly, but first-pitch-strikes percentages and just percentages overall have been what coach has been looking for and have been a big part of our success so far.”
Imhoff, who played at Appleton North, was used to wriggling out of tight situations. He has used his previous closing experience in Wisconsin as a plus in getting his message across.
A motion that has been described as unorthodox and a capable curveball hasn’t hurt, either.
“He’s got a little bit of a funky motion with his leg kick,” Young said. “But other than that, there’s some decent speed on his fastball. He’s got a really nice curveball that he works into the mix, too.”
In his six years at Benet, Lawler has put his footprints all over the program, resutling in four 20-win seasons. His players are focused on repaying that trust and belief with a sectional title.
“It’d be huge for us,” Young said. “It’s a great opportunity for us to get (to the state finals). I feel like it would be great for the program and even for coach Lawler, showing he’s a coach who can do it.”
Blake Baumgartner is a freelance writer for the Naperville Sun.
