Baseball: Bradley-Bourbonnais’ Tyler Snorek no-hits Plainfield South in 4A regional quarterfinal

PLAINFIELD – It definitely wasn’t the way retiring Plainfield South coach Phil Bodine wanted to go out.

No coach wants to see his team get no-hit in the postseason, but that is what happened Monday when Bradley-Bourbonnais senior right-hander Tyler Snorek allowed only two baserunners to the eighth-seeded Cougars in the No. 9 Boilermakers’ 9-0 win in the Class 4A Bradley-Bourbonnais Regional quarterfinal.

Snorek used the combination of a fastball and curve to great effect, needing only 82 pitches in seven innings (51 for strikes) and firing seven strikeouts. The hardest hit ball by the Cougars (18-12) was a line drive to third base off the bat of David McCauley to end the bottom of the first.

Snorek walked the first batter he faced, Adrian Perez, and allowed a lead-off walk to Cody Hogan in the fourth. Both runners eventually reached second base but got no further.

“It’s not the way I would like to go out, that’s for sure,” said Bodine, who finished his 16th season as the Cougars’ coach. “But we had a good season. There are a lot of young kids on this team that got good experience and they will have a good year next year.”

The Cougars seemed to have the early momentum when starting pitcher Pablo Herrera worked out of a second-and-third, no-out jam in the top of the first by striking out the next two batters and inducing a grounder in front of the plate that catcher Ivann Herrera (no relation) fielded and threw to first. Pablo Herrera held the Boilermakers (12-17) scoreless in the second and third innings, as well.

Bradley-Bourbonnais, which plays second-seeded Minooka on Wednesday, got Snorek the only run he needed in the top of the fourth. With two outs, Caleb McBurnie (4 for 4) tripled to right center field and courtesy runner Jace Boudreau scored on a single by Andrew Schweigert, the younger brother of head coach Brad Schweigert. The Boilers made it 2-0 in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Cody Freitas that scored Thomas Offill (3 for 5, RBI).

The Boilermakers broke the game open in the sixth. Spencer Boudreau singled to lead off the inning, followed by a single by McBurnie. After Schweigert did not get a bunt down, the bunt was called off and he hit a 1-2 pitch over the fence in right-center for a three-run homer and a 5-0 lead.

They tacked on four more runs in the top of the seventh, with Schweigert delivering another 3-run homer to finish the game 3 for 4 with seven RBIs. McBurnie and Schweigert, the Nos. 7 and 8 hitters, were a combined 7 for 8.

“The bottom of their order killed us,” Bodine said. “We didn’t expect that. We knew we had to watch out for their 3 and 4 hitters, and we did a good job against them, but the bottom of the order got to us.

“Pablo threw well, and getting out of that first inning was a big lift for us. We just didn’t capitalize. That’s the way she goes sometimes.”

Snorek noted that he had never thrown a no-hitter, even in Little League.

“That’s my first one,” he said. “I knew I had one going the whole way. It feels great. Now we get to go back and play on our home field. Caleb McBurnie and Andrew Schweigert were huge for us today.

“I just threw a fastball and curveball today, and I was getting them over for strikes. I also have a knuckleball, but I didn’t throw it today. The conference we play in [SouthWest Suburban] has real good teams and prepares us well. We’re not done yet.”