The Effingham Hearts were two outs away from their 2022 spring season being over.
But in the words of New York Yankees great Yogi Berra – “It ain’t over till it’s over.”
The Hearts put together a seventh-inning rally to keep their season alive.
Evan Waymoth got the game-tying RBI single and Gauge Massey drew a bases-loaded walk to give Effingham a walk-off 3-2 victory Saturday over Mattoon in the championship game of the Class 3A Centralia Regional.
The Hearts now advance to the Troy (Triad) Sectional. They will face Mascoutah at 4 p.m. Wednesday. The Indians, who sport a 27-6 mark, defeated Highland to win the Highland Regional.
Through five innings, the pitching of Jackson Helms had the No. 9 seed Green Wave looking for a second straight upset after knocking off top-seeded Marion in their post-season opener. Helms had a 1-hit shutout going and a 2-0 lead.
Evan Waymoth started the EHS sixth with a lead-off walk. Kaiden Nichols laid down a sacrifice bunt, and with two outs, John Harper came through with an RBI double to trim the lead.
After Quest Hull grounded out to start the bottom of the seventh, Joe Matteson walked and Camden Raddatz was hit by a pitch. Then with two outs, Waymoth delivered a base hit that brought home Matteson with the tying run.
After Nichols drew a walk to load the bases, Mattoon brought in Madden Johnson to relieve Helms. With the count at 2-2, Johnson threw two straight pitches outside the strike zone allowing Massey to walk and Raddatz to score the game-winning and regional-clinching run.
Josh McDevitt pitched the final three innings to get the win. He allowed only one baserunner, that coming on a walk, and struck out four. Brayden Pals was the starter and went the first four innings. He allowed four hits and two runs, while walking one and striking out three.
The Green Wave scored both of their runs in the fourth. After a one-walk walk, Andrew Wetzel had a run-scoring double and Kaden Junge then delivered an RBI single.
The Hearts, who have now won three straight, are 17-12 on the season.
Troy (Triad) and Mt. Vernon also won their regionals and will join Effingham and Mascoutah in the sectional. Those two teams will play at 2 p.m. Wednesday. The sectional championship is set for 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 4.
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.
Luke Darling smacked a two-run homer in the first inning and that proved to be enough offensive support, as the Highland Bulldogs posted a 6-1 win Tuesday afternoon in Effingham.
The Hearts scored a single tally in the bottom of the first, but that was all the runs they had. They finished with just four hits in the game.
The Bulldogs added two more runs in the third and tallied twice in the fourth.
EHS got its run when Kaiden Nichols led off with a single and Gauge Massey was hit by a pitch. Nichols eventually scored on a ground out by Quest Hull.
Brayden Pals pitched the first three innings and took the loss. He allowed five hits and four runs, while walking three and striking out three.
The Hearts dipped to 14-12. They will travel to Bethalto and face Civic Memorial on Friday.
Camden Raddatz drove in five runs – all in the final two innings – helping the Effingham Hearts rally from a six-run deficit to post a 14-7 win Friday afternoon at Bethalto Civic Memorial.
The Eagles built a 7-1 lead after five innings. But the Hearts then exploded offensively, banging out 12 hits and scoring 13 runs over the final two frames to come back and get the win.
And Raddatz had two of the big hits.
In the sixth, Quest Hull and Joe Matteson started the surge with lead-off singles and Raddatz then drove a 1-1 pitch over the leftfield fence for a three-run homer.
But the Hearts were just getting started. Gabe Eaton and Kaiden Nichols then singled, and with two outs, a Civic Memorial error allowed two runs to score. After Max Hardiek walked, Hull and Matteson both delivered RBI singles to cap the seven-run frame and put EHS on top, 8-7.
The Hearts came right back with six more tallies in the seventh. Eaton doubled, followed by an error and a base hit by Gauge Massey to load the bases. John Harper walked to force in one run, Hardiek then came through with a two-run single, Hull followed with an RBI hit and Raddatz capped the scoring with a two-run single.
Harper, Hull, Matteson and Raddatz each had three hits to lead the 17-hit attack.
Hull, the third pitcher of the day for Effingham, got credit for the win. He relieved in the fourth and pitched 1.2 innings. Nichols came on and pitched the final two innings to earn the save. He didn’t allow a baserunner and struck out two.
The Hearts improved to 15-12. They were scheduled to play a doubleheader at home today (Saturday) against Centralia.
The Hearts will then open postseason play Wednesday. They are seeded No. 4 in the Class 3A Centralia Regional. They will face Charleston, the No. 5 seed, at 6 p.m.
Pitching and defense, alone, will keep teams in a baseball game.
Throw in some timely hitting and that team becomes very difficult to beat.
The Effingham Hearts have proven that the last two nights.
After Josh McDevitt threw a two-hit shutout Wednesday, Quest Hull turned in another outstanding pitching performance Thursday.
That pitching, plus John Harper’s two-run homer and catcher Joe Matteson throwing out three runners proved to be a winning combination, helping the Hearts to a 6-2 win over St. Anthony and the championship of the annual City Series.
“This is exciting for those guys on the field,” EHS coach Curran McNeely said. “They’ve worked their tails off. This is something they’ll never forget.”
The Hearts, who were swept in last year’s series, will try to return the favor when the two teams meet in Game 3 tonight (Friday) at Paul Smith Field. Game time is 7 p.m. The City Series began in 1981.
Once again, it was the pitching that set the tone for Effingham. Hull scattered four hits and allowed just single tallies in the fifth and seventh. He walked six and struck out six in his 104-pitch performance.
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