By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
When the postseason pairings were released for Class 3A baseball, it’s safe to say few – if anybody – expected Effingham to be facing Champaign Central in the super sectional for a chance to make a trip to the state tournament.
Most so-called experts predicted it would be Mahomet-Seymour or Chatham Glenwood battling either Mascoutah or Troy Triad.
But – as the old sports saying goes – “That’s why you play the games.”
So, when that first pitch of the Decatur Super Sectional is thrown Monday night, it will be the Effingham Hearts and Champaign Central Maroons squaring off. The game is slated for 6 p.m. at the Workman Family Baseball Field, located on the Millikin University campus in Decatur.
The winner will advance to the Class 3A State Tournament, which will be held Friday and Saturday at the Duly Health & Care Field in Joliet.
The Maroons, winners of eight straight games, captured the Lincoln Sectional with a 4-2 win over Rochester.
The Hearts, winners of five in a row, used a big fifth inning to pull ahead and then rolled to a 6-3 victory over Mt. Vernon to claim the Centralia Sectional title.
“This postseason has been a testament to our kids,” said EHS coach Curran McNeely, who is completing his third season at the helm. “They really bought into our process. We had an up and down regular season, but they continued to work hard and improve on the routine things that help you win ballgames. We’re playing with a lot of confidence right now.”
That confidence got shaken a bit Saturday morning. After building a 2-0 lead, Mt. Vernon scored the tying runs in the bottom of the fourth, taking advantage of one hit, a walk and two errors.
But the Hearts responded immediately.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Josh McDevitt admitted he wasn’t sharp.
“It was just one of those days nothing was working for me,” he said. “My curve was off the plate and my fastball was going all over the place.”
Yes, that is true.
But make no mistake about it. He was still pretty darn good.
Effingham’s senior righthander allowed only one hit and two unearned runs. And his teammates provided plenty of support, including a seven-run eruption in the opening inning.
And when McDevitt recorded the final out on a ground ball, the Hearts had secured a 9-2 victory over Troy Triad in an opening-round game of the Centralia Class 3A Sectional.
“He didn’t have his best stuff, but he has a great demeanor on the mound,” EHS coach Curran McNeely said. “He struggled a little bit, but he kept battling. He’s a great kid.”
These two teams met on April 25. It was just the fourth game of the season for the Hearts, who were shutout 4-0 and limited to just four hits. McDevitt didn’t fare well, giving seven hits and four runs, while throwing 91 pitches.
“Josh wasn’t sharp yet and we didn’t hit the ball at all,” McNeely recalled.
Wednesday night was a different story.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
When the game was over, there were totally different discussions going on in the two dugouts.
One coach was talking about a big two-out rally.
The other coach was lamenting over too many walks.
And both were valid points.
The Effingham Hearts took advantage of five walks in the fourth inning, including two with the bases loaded, and a key hit by John Harper to cap a six-run rally – all scoring with two outs -- and lead EHS to an 8-1 victory over St. Anthony in the opening game of the annual City Series, played Wednesday night at Paul Smith Field.
Heading to the bottom of the fourth, the Hearts trailed 1-0. To that point, they had just two hits off St. Anthony starter Brock Jansen.
Quest Hull led off with a walk, but was thrown out trying to steal second. After Myles Maxedon flied out, however, EHS had seven straight batters reach base.
Camden Raddatz walked and went to third on a base hit by Colton Webb. Evan Waymoth then lined a base hit up the middle to knot the score. After Kaden Nichols walked to load the bases, both Spencer Fox and Kaden Koberlein also walked, forcing in a pair of runs.
Harper then delivered the biggest hit of the game, lining an 0-2 pitch off reliever Aiden Lauritzen into centerfield that drove in a pair of runs. And when the ball was misplayed in the outfield, it allowed Koberlein to race around the bases and score the sixth run of the inning.
The Effingham Hearts are playing their best baseball at exactly the right time.
The Hearts put together a pair of good games to start the postseason, both resulting in victories. One was a walk-off thriller and the second was much more comfortable.
But with the 8-1 win over Marion on Saturday, Effingham – the No. 3 seed -- claimed the championship of the Class 3A Olney Regional.
The Hearts will now advance to the Centralia Sectional. They will play Troy Triad at 6:30 p.m. at Sprehe Field in Centralia.
The game with Marion was close until the fifth inning when the Hearts combined three hits, four walks, one balk and one hit batter to score six times and blow the game open.
Spencer Fox got a lead-off single to start the fifth-inning uprising. He went to third on a base hit by John Harper and scored on a balk. Camden Raddatz and Quest Hull then walked to load the bases and Myles Maxedon delivered a two-run single.
Colton Webb was hit by a pitch to load the bases again and Evan Waymoth and Fox both walked to force in runs. The final run of the inning scored on a passed ball.
The Mascoutah Indians showed how strong pitching and “small ball” can be successful.
Zane Timon turned in a six-hit, 92-pitch, complete game effort Wednesday afternoon and the Indians used a pair of bunts and four stolen bases to take control, en route to a 10-1 win over Effingham in a semifinal game of the Class 3A Troy (Triad) Sectional.
The game was scoreless through the first three innings. But in the fourth, Mascoutah got two walks and a bloop single by Wyatt Beer to load the bases with one out. Back-to-back squeeze bunts by Timon and Aidan Marti put the Indians on top 2-0.
Brendan Brock’s ground ball was then misplayed, allowing two more runs to cross the plate. Brock stole second and third and scored on a double steal to cap the five-run inning.
The Hearts tried to get back in the game in the bottom of the frame. Kaiden Nichols drew a lead-off walk and went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Spencer Fox. John Harper then grounded a base hit up the middle and Nichols raced home to get EHS on the board.
When Timon threw wildly to first on an attempted pick-off, Harper made it all the way to third base. But the next two hitters were retired, preventing the Hearts from getting even closer.
Mascoutah got an RBI single from Beer in the fifth and then broke it open with a three-run sixth. Beer and Lance Funk had run-scoring singles and the third run scored on a throwing error.
The Hearts had runners in scoring position in the fifth and seventh. Myles Maxedon had a two-out triple in the fifth, but was stranded. EHS then loaded the bases with one out in the seventh, but a double play ended the game.
Timon scattered six hits, while walking two and striking out four. The Indians played errorless baseball behind him.
Josh McDevitt pitched the first four innings for Effingham and took the loss. He allowed just two hits and five runs, but three of those were unearned. He walked four and struck out three. Quest Hull and Nichols combined to pitch the final three innings.
The Indians, winners of 12 straight games, improved to 29-6. They will face Troy (Triad) for the sectional championship at 11 a.m. Saturday morning.
The Hearts closed out their season with a 17-13 record.
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