As a sophomore starter last season on a team that took third place in the state in Class 3A, Luke Stulga experienced some humbling moments for St. Laurence.
Now, though, the junior outfielder is on fire at the plate and full of belief.
“This year, I’m coming out here with a lot more confidence with a year of varsity under my belt,” Stulga said. “I know I’ve put in the work.
“I’ve just really been sticking with my approach, trying to hit the ball to the opposite side of the field. It’s really been working for me.”
Stulga has hit four home runs in his last three games, including two in the first two innings Monday as the host Vikings stayed perfect in rolling to a 15-2 five-inning win over Evergreen Park.
On a cold day, with snow falling throughout the game, Stulga had no issues hitting the ball through the heavy air.
“I wasn’t expecting the ball to be flying like that, but if you hit it good, you hit it good,” he said. “It’s still going to get out of here, even on a day like this.”
Max Montgomery added two doubles and three RBIs for St. Laurence (17-0), while Angelo Luna had a triple and two RBIs and Jake Merda scored three runs.
DJ Helwig threw all five innings for the win, allowing two earned runs on three hits while striking out eight.
Leo Lesauskis, Crispin Soto and Andrew Murphy each had a hit for Evergreen Park (6-10).
Stulga, who hit .258 with two home runs in 2021, is hitting near .500 this season.
“Being a sophomore and playing up last year, he went through some struggles, more so with consistency,” St. Laurence coach Pete Lotus
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said. “But the best thing about Luke is he’s always hit the best pitching. He’s never overmatched.“Last year, he struggled a bit with his confidence. Now, when he doesn’t have a great game or a great swing, it doesn’t really affect him the way it did last year. He goes on to his next at-bat and has a good approach.”
Stulga ripped a two-run homer to right-center in the first inning, then crushed a long three-run homer to straightaway center as part of a five-run second.
“The confidence started early in the season,” Stulga said. “I’ve been hitting almost every game. Once I got that first home run, it kind of just locked me in. I was like, ‘I’m in a pretty good spot right now. I’ve just got to keep doing what I’m doing.'”
St. Laurence, which has outscored its opponents 201-32, has won 10 times by 10 runs or more.
“It’s a great feeling,” Stulga said. “When you’ve putting up big runs in so many games, you just come out expecting to do that. You’re not being cocky from the last games. You’re just confident.
“We’re using that to our advantage with this 17-game winning streak.”
Helwig gave up a pair of runs in the second inning on two soft hits, a sacrifice bunt, a wild pitch and a run-scoring groundout.
He was dominant from there, allowing just one hit the rest of the way.
“Whenever that happens and the other team scores, I get angry and step up it from there,” Helwig said. “I throw harder and better.”
Helwig also has the additional comfort of knowing he has a high-powered offense behind him.
The Vikings scored multiple runs in every inning.
“It makes it a lot easier because I’m not as nervous or worried about being perfect,” Helwig said. “I can just throw pitches down the middle sometimes when I’m in a tough count.
“I know our offense has got my back.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.