Quest Hull used both his bat and his arm to help the Effingham Hearts win their postseason opener Thursday afternoon.
Hull went 3-for-4 at the plate and drove in four runs and also pitched six strong innings to lead the Hearts to a 9-2 win over Charleston in the completion of a semifinal game of the Class 3A Centralia Regional.
The game actually started Wednesday in Centralia, but was stopped due to rain in the top of the second inning. The game resumed Thursday and was played at Evergreen Hollow Park in Effingham.
The Hearts built a 7-0 lead through five innings, with four of those runs drive in by Hull.
On Wednesday, EHS took the lead with a three-run first. Kaiden Nichols walked, John Harper got his first of four hits and Max Hardiek was hit by a pitch to load the bases. The first run scored on a passed ball and Hull then delivered a two-run double.
After Charleston got a lead-off walk to start the second, the rains came and ultimately forced the game to be delayed until Thursday.
The Hearts then took control with a three-run third. Gauge Massey walked, Harper singled and both runners moved up a base on a ground out. Hull then came through with a two-run single and Camden Raddatz capped the inning with the RBI single.
Effingham scored a single tally in the fifth when Nichols walked with the bases loaded. The Trojans scored their only two runs in the sixth. An error and two singles accounted for the two unearned runs.
The Hearts wrapped up the scoring with two more runs in the bottom of the sixth. Harper singled and eventually scored on an error. Raddatz then added an RBI triple.
Josh McDevitt was the starter on Wednesday and threw 22 pitches. Hull took over the pitching duties Thursday and turned in a stellar six-inning performance. He allowed only three hits and the two unearned runs. He walked one and struck out nine, while throwing 83 pitches.
The Hearts, the No. 4 seed, improved to 16-12. They will play for the regional championship at 11 a.m. Saturday in Centralia. They will face Mattoon, the No. 9 seed, who upset top-seeded Marion in the first game Wednesday.
