Softball: Joliet West, Joliet Central suspended due to incoming storm

JOLIET – Before the storms came and put a damper on the game, Joliet West and Joliet Central renewed their rivalry Wednesday.

Joliet West broke out the bats early, scoring six runs in the top of the first and it added seven more in the second. When the game was delayed because of inclement weather, the Tigers owned a 14-0 lead in the third and had runners on second and third with two outs.

Play will resume May 15 at Joliet West when the two teams meet for their second Southwest Prairie Conference game.

The Tigers continued their recent hot hitting and staked starting pitcher Brooke Schwall to a 6-0 lead. Of course, the West cleanup hitter helped her own cause in the top of the first with an RBI single and a run scored.

“Our bats have been hot lately. We have kept things simple at the plate.”

—  Heather Suca, Joliet West softball coach

In the second, she led off with a single and scored, then delivered a two-run double on a liner off the left-field fence. Schwall was 3 for 3 with three RBIs, while teammate Mya Millsaps was 2 for 3 with a double and two RBIs.

“Our bats have been hot lately,” West coach Heather Suca said. “We have kept things simple at the plate. We just want to put the ball in play.

“The whole lineup did a great job of putting the ball in play, and we got a lot of kids to come off the bench and contribute today, which was good to see.”

The Tigers wasted no time getting the offense going, as Hope Hughes led off the game with a walk and Shelby Fraser followed with a single. An out later, Schwall singled to right to score Hughes and went to second on the throw home. Millsaps then singled to left to score both Fraser and Schwall. Paige Pasteris followed with an RBI single to score Millsaps. After Mackenzie Farkas reached on a fielder’s choice, Madison Jadron delivered a sacrifice fly to score Pasteris.

Central, however, threatened in its half of the first. Natalie Reyes led off with a walk before Haydn Voss singled. Central then pulled off a double steal to put runners on second and third with no outs, but Schwall struck out the next three batters to escape the inning unscathed.

“I just started throwing more strikes,” Schwall said. “I have struggled a little bit with my pitching this year, so it was nice to get some runs early. I was able to relax a lot more with a big lead.

“I love to hit, though. That’s my favorite part of the game. Today, there was a lot of self-talk, telling myself to wait on the pitches. I see the ball pretty well coming out of the pitcher’s hand, so I have a good idea what’s coming. Everyone did a great job today.”

Suca was happy to see Schwall work her way out of the first-inning jam.

“Brooke hasn’t pitched a lot for us this year, but we are going to need her,” Suca said. “It was good to see her get out of that first inning the way she did.”

In the top of the second, Schwall led off with a single and went to third on a double to left by Millsaps. An out later, Farkas slammed a two-run double. A single by Jadron and a walk by Alaina Grohar loaded the bases, and a walk to Hughes brought home a run.

Fraser drove in a run with a groundout and an error on a ball hit by Avery Houlihan scored another. Schwall followed with a double to left to score two more for a 13-0 lead.

“We play with a lot of energy,” Millsaps said. “It keeps us together. We like to have a lot of fun in the dugout.

“We knew we just had to play together as a team, and go out there and have fun.”

After a leadoff walk to Maydelih Larios, Schwall struck out the next three Steelmen.

Despite the score, Central coach Jon Rashid saw improvement in his team.

“We moved some girls around to different positions,” he said. “We played much better on defense today, and we played better in our last game against Plainfield Central. We still had some errors, but we are limiting them.

“That’s a positive sign. We aren’t a finished product, and we still have some girls that are finding their spots, but we are getting better at making the routine plays.”