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ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Brad Maurer
Huntley, sr., CF
Maurer was 7 for 13 with three doubles and four RBIs in the Red Raiders’ three-game sweep of Jacobs and in an 11-0 win over Grayslake North on Saturday.
Maurer had a double, single and two RBIs in Huntley’s 8-7 victory over Jacobs on Friday that completed the Fox Valley Conference sweep and kept the Raiders tied with Crystal Lake South atop the league standings heading into Wednesday's games. He also had an RBI single in the Raiders’ six-run seventh inning of that game.
Maurer had an RBI double in Huntley’s 4-1 win over Jacobs to start the series.
He had a walk-off double in the previous week to beat Dundee-Crown, 4-3.
NORTHWEST HERALD POWER RANKINGS
(Records through Tuesday)
1. Crystal Lake South (18-1): The Gators dropped to No. 2 for a week, but they're back in the top spot after McHenry lost a pair of games. South was tied with Huntley at 9-1 in the FVC heading into Wednesday's games.
2. Huntley (16-3): The Red Raiders are red hot, riding an 11-game winning streak into play Wednesday. They lost their first FVC game to Crystal Lake Central and won their next nine.
3. McHenry (12-5): The Warriors are still very much in the FVC race but suffered two nonconference losses last week to Gurnee Warren and Kishwaukee River Conference-leading Burlington Central.
4. Jacobs (13-6): The Golden Eagles had a rough week with three losses to Huntley but came back to beat Conant on Saturday. First baseman Ryan McGorian had a big week with three home runs and nine RBIs in his past three games.
5. Cary-Grove (12-7): The Trojans lost two of three to Dundee-Crown and now have four FVC losses. They still will be a tough team to face with one of the best pitching staffs around.
NOTEWORTHY
Big invitation: Cary-Grove sophomore Quinn Priester had a big week. First, he visited TCU and committed to Horned Frogs coach Jim Schlossnagle on Monday.
Priester also was selected as one of 108 players invited to Team USA Baseball’s Tournament of Stars, an event from which the USA 18U National Team will be selected this summer in Cary, North Carolina.
Hampshire coach John Sarna, who has ties with USA Baseball, contacted the Northwest Herald with the news, even before Priester and his family had heard.
“At the national level, it’s a big deal for him,” Sarna said.
Game of adjustments: Dundee-Crown junior left-hander Erik Hedmark had two starkly contrasting games last week. Crystal Lake South hit Hedmark well in a 9-2 loss Monday, but the Northern Illinois University commit bounced back with a strong performance to beat C-G, 12-3, on Saturday.
An interesting aspect of each game was the scouting report and game plan. On Monday, South felt D-C’s pitchers in the previous two games had worked outside a lot, so the Gators looked to take Hedmark the other way.
Perhaps as an adjustment to that, D-C coach Matt Mueller developed a different game plan for C-G.
“We were working inside today, not so much outside because they do a good job of hitting to the opposite field,” D-C catcher Jon Mays said. “So we were working on jamming them inside, and it worked out really well. He did a good job hitting his spots and doing what he was supposed to. Our defense behind him had his back.”
Engelking looks tough: Crystal Lake South pitcher Andrew Engelking is not overpowering with big strikeout numbers like some of his counterparts, but he has been extremely stingy with opponents this season.
Jacobs was the latest victim for Engelking, who raised his record to 5-0 with a 2-0 victory Tuesday in which he threw 77 pitches, 55 for strikes.
Golden Eagles coach Jamie Murray said Engelking reminded him of one of his former pitchers, Evan Blunk, with his efficiency.
"[Engelking] has low pitch counts; he's around the strike zones. If he misses, he's one ball off, and the next pitch he's on the other side of the plate," Murray said. "If we don't swing at it, he doesn't waste any pitches."
Strong getting stronger: Huntley senior Jeff Heinrich, the Raiders' starting third baseman, came to bat twice last week in pinch-hit situations. Heinrich, a Northwest Herald All-Area first-team selection last season, has been recovering from a hamstring strain for a couple of weeks.
The Raiders have done well without Heinrich and stand to get him back in time to see South, C-G and McHenry, three of the FVC’s best teams.
WHAT TO WATCH
Jacobs vs. Crystal Lake South
The Gators hosted Jacobs on Wednesday, then the teams return to Jacobs for Thursday’s series finale.
Huntley vs. Cary-Grove
The teams played Wednesday's game at C-G and head back to Huntley on Thursday.
Johnsburg vs. Woodstock
The two Kishwaukee River Conference foes meet Monday, Tuesday and Thursday next week in their league series. Johnsburg was 6-1 in the KRC entering Wednesday and may have the best shot at catching KRC-leading Burlington Central.