Baseball: Providence upends two-time defending champion Edwardsville in semifinals

JOLIET – The Providence baseball team believes in protecting its legacy.

And some of that was threatened by its Class 4A Baseball State Tournament semifinal opponent Edwardsville on Friday afternoon at Duly Health and Care Field.

Edwardsville was gunning for its third consecutive state title, a feat that only Providence has managed before during its run of titles from 2013-2015. The Tigers also were aiming for their sixth overall title, something no other team has achieved. Edwardsville’s five titles are a record it currently shares with Joliet Catholic and Providence.

Providence not only stopped Edwardsville’s quest for a three-peat, but kept its hopes alive to be the first school to win six titles, upending Edwardsville 2-1 to secure its spot in the state championship.

Providence will play York or Conantfor the title about 7 p.m. Saturday. Edwardsville will play in the third-place game at 4 p.m.

The game turned out to be exactly what you would expect from two programs with such a pedigree.

Edwardsville pushed across its only run in the fifth inning and did so without a base hit, tying the game 1-1. The Tigers didn’t manage to get any hits by that point against Providence starter Cooper Eggert, who finally relented and gave up a leadoff single to Kolton Wright.

A fielding error allowed Wright to go all the way to third base with no outs. But Eggert struck out Edwardsville No. 3 hitter, Lucas Huebner. An intentional walk to Chase Alwardt loaded the bases, but Eggert walked a high wire and got the last two outs of the inning, stranding Wright at third.

“I kind of treated this like any other game that I would have done throughout the season,” Eggert said. “I really got into a groove and I just started throwing. I know I have the defense behind me and they were going to make plays no matter what.”

Then there still was the issue of pushing across the decisive run.

Providence’s Eddie Olszta, who doubled in the second, started things off right in the top of the seventh with a clean single. Blake Jenner sacrificed him to second, and Sammy Atkinson connected for a single that pushed Olszta over to third.

Then in stepped Providence’s No. 9 hitter, Mitch Voltz, who promptly lashed a sizzling ground ball to the first baseman. He scooped it up and got to the bag for the second out, but the ball was too deep to try to make a play on Olszta who scored the go-ahead run.

“I just knew as a hitter with one out and Enzo [Infelise] behind me, find a way to get on or hit the ball hard in play,” Voltz said. “I was looking for a pitch up to drive to the outfield, but he left it pretty middle in, and I was able to pull it. He made a good play, and I was just happy to see that run come across.”

It was just another example of the contributions that Providence has received up and down its lineup. The decisive run was generated entirely from the efforts of the Celtics’ No. 6 through No. 9 hitters.

“It’s been like that pretty much all year,” Providence coach Mark Smith said. “Earlier in the year, I thought the top of the lineup carried us a little bit. In the postseason, I don’t think we’ve swung the bats extremely well, but that’s because the pitching is a heck of a lot better. Sammy had been struggling for a while and him getting that big hit was big, and Eddie after making two tough plays in the field, to come up and start the seventh inning.

“That’s a testament to those guys that you can’t take those things to your at-bats. You let it go and now you help the team another way.”

Eggert still needed to maneuver his way through the Edwardsville lineup in the seventh inning and did so, retiring the Tigers in order to complete his one-hitter. He admitted, however, that he was running on adrenaline and fumes during the final frame.

“I couldn’t feel anything,” Eggert said with a laugh. “But that last out when everybody stood up, that was awesome.”

The only run in the first five innings of the game was scoring on a bit of a fluke.

Providence’s Jackson Smith reached on a fielder’s choice grounder to bring up Nate O’Donnell. Smith swiped second base to put himself in scoring position.

O’Donnell then seemed to have lofted a somewhat routine fly ball to right field. Edwardsville right fielder Mace Karnes, however, lost the high fly ball in the sun, and it harmlessly dropped in front of him and skipped away, allowing Smith to come into score while O’Donnell legged out a triple.