Playing for the junior varsity team last year, Braden Tolzien could only watch and cheer as Libertyville won the Class 4A state championship.
Tolzien has a much different vantage point this season. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound senior first baseman not only starts but also bats cleanup for the Wildcats, who have returned to the state semifinals.
“I knew this was my year to make an impact and show everyone what I could do, and to be able to do it at the level that I’m doing it at is an incredible feeling,” Tolzien said. “I’m honored to have this role.”
It’s a new role in more ways than one for Tolzien, a Heartland Community College commit.
“I had never really batted cleanup before, so it took some getting used to at first,” he said. “But as the year went on, I’ve gotten really comfortable there.”
So comfortable that Tolzien is batting .368 with two home runs, two triples, seven doubles and 30 RBIs for the Wildcats (29-10-1), who will play Mount Carmel (30-10) in a state semifinal at Slammers Stadium in Joliet at 7 p.m. Friday.
“He kept on getting better and better, and now he’s our four hitter getting big hits in big situations,” Libertyville coach Matt Thompson said. “We watched him hitting this year from day one and noticed that it was different from last year. The ball was jumping off his bat.”
That was on display during the Wildcats’ 2-1 win over Lane Tech in the Schaumburg Supersectional on Tuesday. Tolzien went 2-for-2 with two RBI doubles and a walk.
“This is easily the biggest game I’ve ever played in,” he said afterward. “It’s incredible. I can’t believe it actually happened again for the team. To be in the dugout this time and to make an impact is just unbelievable.”
A left-handed hitter, Tolzien fouled off multiple pitches to the same general vicinity against Lane Tech right-hander Ronan Owens during his long first at-bat before he drove the ball to deep right field.
“I just knew he had to come give me a fastball at some point, so I was ready when he did,” Tolzien said.
Two innings later, Tolzien coaxed a walk on eight pitches. Then he drilled another double down the line in right off left-hander Cruz Warren to drive in the winning run.
“I saw it great tonight,” Tolzien said. “I had a good BP round beforehand, so I felt good about it, and it carried through into the game.”
Tolzien was tough with two strikes in each at-bat.
“The biggest thing about him is his two-strike approach,” Thompson said. “He’s been our best two-strike hitter all year, and you saw that tonight. He just keeps fighting up there.
“He saw a ton of pitches in that first at-bat, and that walk he ended up with was too bad because I think he was going to put one in the gap again.”
Although Tolzien bats in a run-producing spot in the order, he recognizes that his approach has to change with two strikes.
“It’s always been a major thing I’ve worked on,” he said. “I’ve always tried to take away a fastball, widen my stance and not strike out — just put the ball in play. I’m just looking for a pitch to basically put into center.”
That effort goes back to last year, when Tolzien committed to doing the work he thought was necessary to get into the lineup.
“I really took the weight room seriously this year,” he said. “I knew that if I wanted to be on the field this year, that’s what I would have to do, to not just hit singles but to be able to hit extra-base hits. Right after JV ended, I was already in the weight room to get ready for this.”
Libertyville junior second baseman Madden Cotts, who was Tolzien’s teammate on the junior varsity team last year, can attest to Tolzien’s effort.
“He wasn’t half the hitter last year that he is now, and it was all about the work he did in the offseason,” Cotts said. “Every time I went in to work, he was always there doing something. He took a big step from last year to this year, and he’s been a big weapon for the team.”
Better late than never, Tolzien has learned.
“It’s never over,” he said. “I always had confidence that I’d be able to do it at some point. It just took an extra year to get there.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter.
