No matter the sport, Buffalo Grove senior John Carpinelli seems to have the defensive side of things well in hand.
He set a Bison football record back in the fall with 154 tackles as a safety, and he has continued his defensive prowess on the baseball diamond.
His defensive proclivities were evident much earlier in his baseball days.
“I was 8 years old when I was playing shortstop, and there was a ball hit up the middle,” Carpinelli recalled. “I dove up the middle and threw from my knees at second base and got the runner out.”
That kind of defense has continued today. In a 6-3 victory against Elk Grove on April 19, the 6-foot-4 shortstop made two plays in particular that turned heads.
With Buffalo Grove nursing a 1-0 lead, Elk Grove had a baserunner charging to the plate on a two-out double to the left-field fence. Senior left fielder Chase Marsh threw the relay to Carpinelli in short left field, and Carpinelli displayed his arm strength and accuracy by firing a laser to home plate. Senior catcher Tyler Rundquist applied the tag to nail the runner.
“He made a great throw,” Buffalo Grove coach Tim Miller said. “It was a big play in the game. Take momentum away from them.
“He’s a smooth fielder, good hands and a good arm. A really heads-up player. A gamer.”
Later in the contest, Carpinelli made a running catch with his back to the infield on a fly ball to short center. That potentially prevented another run from scoring.
“It was a little tough to judge with the wind, but I just let my instincts take over,” Carpinelli said. “Defense has always been a priority to me. I just like to stay calm and loose. Every ball that’s hit to me, I take a deep breath and know that I can make the play.”
Carpinelli has one admirer in particular: Bison junior second baseman Zach Fricke, who has been waiting his turn to move to his natural position at shortstop.
“I’ve been following him the last couple of years, watching what he does,” Fricke said. “He’s got really good fundamentals. I’m hoping to take his shortstop spot next year.”
Against Elk Grove, Carpinelli reached base in the top of the first, stole second base and came around to score the first run. The Bison had RBIs from Rundquist, Marsh, junior first baseman Mac Camardo and sophomore third baseman Riley Rundquist. Junior pitcher Jack Vaselaney threw five shutout innings before being touched up for three runs in the sixth. Junior TJ Constertina came on to finish the game.
Carpinelli began playing baseball with his brother Nick as a sub in T-ball. That’s quite an accomplishment because Nick Carpinelli is four years older. After that it was Little League, where John Carpinelli began playing shortstop. He plays travel ball with Prospect Training Academy out of Oak Creek, Wis.
Miller said Carpinelli does a little of everything for the team, which includes pitching as both a spot starter and reliever. He was brought up late in the season his freshman year and saw some action in the playoffs.
“I was able to get a few at-bats in the playoffs,” Carpinelli said. “I got to see some older kids play, which helped me get my confidence up.”
Since then, he’s been the Bison’s starting shortstop.
Carpinelli said he’s excited about the fall, where he will be playing Division II baseball at Indianapolis.
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“I really like playing baseball,” Carpinelli said. “It’s just a completely different game compared to all other sports.”
Mark Perlman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press