Youth was served Thursday afternoon in Downers Grove. A sophomore pitcher making his first varsity start led Downers Grove South (16-13, 8-8) to its biggest victory of the year, a 5-3 decision over No. 9 Hinsdale South in the West Suburban Conference’s Gold Division.
Winning pitcher Stan Gibbs gave up seven hits and struck out seven to earn the win. Rick Abbot hit a solo homer for the Mustangs, who jumped out to a 5-1 lead after two innings.
“We had to play our best to beat them,” said Mustangs coach Phil Fox. “Luckily we controlled the pace of the game. Stan pitched brilliantly. If he was at all nervous, he didn’t show it.”
The Hornets (19-6, 12-3) had already clinched the Gold title.
Oak Park 3, Hinsdale Central 0: Sean O’Neil (6-1) struck out seven and Blake Whealy went 2 for 2 to lift No. 2 Oak Park (24-4, 15-0) in the West Suburban Silver.
Sandburg 5, Joliet 1: Tom Syc (6-1) struck out 13, Bob Tomanich went 3 for 4 with two doubles and Chuck Peters drove in three runs to spark No. 4 Sandburg (23-6, 4-3) in the SICA West.
Libertyville 9, Warren 7: Lukas McKnight hit a grand slam to lead the fifth-ranked Wildcats (24-3, 9-1) in the North Suburban.
Providence 8, Brother Rice 6: Rick Olszta had two triples and four RBIs and Mike Lorenzo went 2 for 4 with two RBIs for No. 7 Providence (22-1, 15-1) in the Catholic League South.
Mt. Carmel 4, Gordon Tech 1: Tony Driscoll hit a two-run triple in the first inning and Jim Smith (2-1) gave up three hits for No. 8 Mt. Carmel (19-5, 12-2) in the Catholic League crossover.
Barrington 9, Buffalo Grove 7: Jess Sayre went 3 for 4 with a three-run homer to lift No. 10 Barrington (23-8, 12-2) in the Mid-Suburban North.
Agricultural Science 9, Julian 4: Jason Dugan went 3 for 4 and scored four runs and Michael Smith (3-2) struck out 15 for the Cyclones (12-4, 11-3) in the Public Southwest.
Aurora Christian 14, Illinois Math & Science 0: Justin Lederer went 2 for 4 with four RBIs to propel the Eagles (17-5).
De La Salle 5, Loyola 1: Eric Keefner hit a solo homer, and Pat Flynn (5-2) struck out four to lead the Meteors (16-12, 8-8) in the Catholic League crossover.
Fenwick 9, Leo 8: Kevin Healy (3 for 3) doubled, tripled and drove in four runs as Fenwick (15-6, 13-4) clinched its fifth consecutive Catholic League North title.
Glenbard West 16, Proviso West 5: John Timm went 5 for 5 with two doubles, a homer and seven RBIs to spark the Hilltoppers (18-10, 10-6) in the West Suburban Silver.
Glenbrook South 12, Maine East 0: Bragdon Bonamasso homered and drove in two runs for the Titans (19-5, 12-1) in the Central Suburban South.
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Harlan 7, Chicago Vocational 1: Gino Arnold went 3 for 3 and Thomas Wren tossed a two-hitter and struck out 11 for Harlan (19-11, 9-4) in the Public South.
Lyons Township 12, Proviso East 1: David Mazurek drove in four runs to lead Lyons (18-7, 8-5) in the West Suburban Silver.
Maine South 1, Maine West 0: The Hawks (13-13, 6-7) prevailed in the Central Suburban North behind Brendon Smaha, who struck out seven.
Minooka 13, Plainfield 4: Rhett Stenzel, Matt Hatzl, Kevin Manthey and Mark Olson homered for Minooka (20-6, 15-3) in the Suburban Prairie Red.
Mundelein 2, Stevenson 0: Matt Pogachnik gave up four hits in the complete-game shutout for Mundelein (17-9, 4-5) in the North Suburban.
Naperville Central 3, Naperville North 1: Pat McAvoy (5-1) struck out 10 and gave up three hits, and Brett Erickson scored the winning run in the sixth inning when he was balked home by John Pratapas as the Redhawks (14-11, 8-7) prevailed in the DuPage Valley.
New Trier 8, Evanston 7: Dave Harvey had an RBI double to spark the Trevians (15-9, 9-4), who scored five runs in the third inning to hold off Evanston in the Central Suburban South.
Reavis 10, Bolingbrook 3: Don Bennage went 4 for 4 with four RBIs as Reavis (22-5, 7-0) cruised in the SICA North.
Richards 11, Argo 2: William Carter had a grand slam and drove in six runs to lead Richards (18-10, 4-3) in the SICA North.
Romeoville 10, Oak Lawn 6: Joe Fitts had a triple and a three-run homer, and Adam Vanderhei added a solo homer–his third of the week–to ignite Romeoville (13-8, 6-1) in the SICA North.
St. Rita 8, Weber 0: St. Rita (20-7, 13-3) rolled in the Catholic League crossover behind Sergio Castellanos, who went 2 for 3 and drove in four runs.
Simeon 16, Morgan Park 6: Anthony Brewer had two triples, a double and four RBIs to propel Simeon (26-7, 13-0) in the Public South.
Taft 12, Farragut 3: Dan Somenek struck out 10 and Joe Colucci doubled, homered and drove in two runs for Taft (16-3, 9-0).
Thornwood 6, Homewood-Flossmoor 5: Tom Calabrese (3 for 3) homered and drove in four runs for Thornwood (15-9, 6-1) in the SICA East.
University High 5, St. Benedict 2: Damon Wolf pitched a two-hitter and struck out seven to lift U-High (15-2).
Waubonsie Valley 11, St. Charles 1: Matt Bigham’s three-run homer and John Brock’s two doubles and three RBIs helped the Warriors (23-2, 17-1) romp in the Upstate Eight.
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