CIRCLING THE BASES

Glenbrook South’s John Miskella threw six shutout innings in team’s 9-1 win over Vernon Hills. PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE PFOERTNER

Mike Angel of the Titans sets up in the batter’s box during his team’s 9-1 win over Vernon Hills. He had two hits in the contest. PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE PFOERTNER
They had an Angel in the outfield.
And an ace on the mound.
Glenbrook South evened its record to 1-1 in the Central Suburban League by taking down visiting Vernon Hills 9-1 on April 12.
Junior Mike Angel made the defensive play of the game, when he turned a diving catch in short left field into a double play in the top of the fifth inning.
With his web gem, Angel robbed Tony Brown — son of ex-Chicago Bears defensive end Alex Brown — of his third hit of the game. Part two of his play was throwing a strike to GBS second baseman Mike Snow to double off a Vernon Hills runner for the third out of the inning.
And — as baseball goes — just guess who led off the bottom of the fifth?
Yup.
Mike Angel.
He kept his good day going by lining a sharp single to center field. Two innings earlier, he pulled a pitch to right field for a run-scoring single.
“He’s been playing really well of late,” said Glenbrook South head coach Steve Stanicek, who has been platooning Angel in left field with Andrew Hensing.
GBS’s other player of the game was No. 21: John Miskella. The senior right-hander pitched six shutout innings, giving up three hits and three walks while striking out eight.
“Miskella has been a strike-throwing machine,” Stanicek said. “He’s been our most consistent guy on the mound. And what he did today is what he’s been doing all year.”
Things didn’t start out well for Miskella. On the first offering of the game, Brown drilled a pitch over Angel’s head for a ringing double. He wound up working out of the jam by recording two strikeouts.
“He settled in after that first pitch,” said Stanicek. “He was money the rest of the way.”
GBS (5-7) tallied its nine runs on eight hits. Snow matched Angel’s two-hit total while also scoring two runs and stealing a base.
Senior first baseman Simon Farber had several quality at-bats, including a sacrifice fly in the first inning to bring in Jack Anderson (1-for-3), an opposite-field single in the third and a walk in the sixth.
Brandon Matias (1-3), Jacob Snyder (1-2), Conor Nash (1-3) Nick Mathien and Brian O’Connor also had RBIs.
New Trier 3, Maine West 0
— Starter John Robinson and two relievers, Joe Fox and Spencer Beacom, teamed on a two-hit shutout in New Trier’s 3-0 home victory over Maine West on April 12.
The Trevians (8-1) were led offensively by Anthony Calarco, who had a single, double and two RBIs.
Kyle Caponi, Evan Hummel, Cam Redding and Payton Burch had NT’s other hits.
Hummel doubled with one out in the third and came home on Calarco’s two-bagger.
In the first inning, Caponi singled, moved to second on a sacrifice by Hummel and scored on a single by Calarco.
Robinson, an all-state hockey player, earned the win with four strong innings (2 hits, 4 Ks, 1 walk). Fox had two strikeouts in two innings, while Beacom, who will pitch at the University of Chicago, threw 17 pitches to strike out the side in the seventh.
Glenbrook North 9, Niles North 5
— Glenbrook North improved to 2-0 in the Central Suburban League with a 9-5 victory over host Niles North on April 12.
Jack Garibaldi, Ben Kieffer and Ben Boeke had big hits in the game. Garibaldi doubled home Evan Barnes (1-for-3) and David Rubin (2 walks) in the fifth inning to give GBN a 7-4 advantage.
Kieffer and Boeke came up with run-scoring doubles in the seventh.
GBN, which is 9-2 overall, tallied five runs in the third inning, highlighted by run-scoring singles by Barnes and George Korompilas.
Garibaldi worked five innings to get the win. Ben Harkey got the save (2 IP, 1 hit, 0 runs, 4 Ks).
Stevenson 8, Lake Forest 1
— Lake Forest managed just three hits — a double by Caleb Durbin and singles by Andrew Gough and Shane Lynch — in its 8-1 setback to host Stevenson on April 12.
The Scouts are 2-6 on the season.
Maine South 2, Highland Park 0
— Host Maine South tallied two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to claim a 2-0 victory over Highland Park in Central Suburban League action on April 12.
The Giants (7-6-1) were limited to two hits. Noah Shutan had a single in the third inning. Tyler Gussis added a single in the fourth inning.
Jack Greenwald pitched well in a losing cause, allowing five hits and two earned runs in 5.2 innings. He fanned two and walked one.
St. Francis 12, Loyola Academy 5
— St. Francis had its offense going on April 12, when it topped visiting Loyola Academy 12-5.
St. Francis finished the game with 14 hits.
The Ramblers (7-2-1) scored five runs on six hits. Sean McLaughlan and Dan Hrvojevic had two hits and one RBI apiece. Jared Lombardi came up with a run-scoring double, while Jack Moran had a two-run single in the fourth inning.
•••
Lake Forest 1, Warren 0
— Peter Turelli was terrific.
The junior right-hander tossed a no-hitter in Lake Forest’s 1-0 victory over visiting Warren on April 11.
Turelli allowed just two walks over seven innings with five strikeouts.
Lake Forest’s Caleb Durbin had a perfect day at the plate. The senior leadoff hitter went 3-for-3 and scored the game’s lone run, when he came around on a double by Drew Golde in the first inning.
Highland Park 11, Grayslake North 5
— Paced by Noah Shutan (2 hits, 2 RBIs), Jack Greenwald (2 hits), Danny Saslow (2 hits, 2 runs, 2 RBIs) and John Sakos (2 RBIs), Highland Park topped visiting Grayslake North 11-5 on April 11.
Shutan, Greenwald and Saslow had doubles.
HP’s winning pitcher was Tyler Gussis (4.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 hits, 3 Ks). Shutan picked up the save (1.2 IP, 1 hits, 3 Ks).
New Trier 7, St. Rita 1
— The No. 8 hitter did some damage.
New Trier’s Matt Roth was one of the offensive stars in NT’s 7-1 victory over visiting St. Rita on April 11. He smacked a three-run homer in the third inning and then added a run-scoring single in the sixth inning to finish the game 2-for-2 with four RBIs.
Duke Olges and Henry Pelinski had two hits each, while Kyle Caponi and Alex Calarco helped out with run-scoring doubles. Griffin Ryan came off the bench and added an RBI single.
Drew Gorski was a standout on the mound. He allowed only one hit in six-plus innings with five strikeouts and three walks.
Loyola Academy 5, Jacobs 5
— LA rallied for three runs in the bottom of the seventh and ended up tying visiting Jacobs 5-5 on April 11.
Will Jackson’s RBI ground ball, which brought in Aidan Dunham, sent the game into extra innings. The comeback also featured a run-scoring single by Matthew Raymond and a bases-loaded walk by Henry Haracz.
Jonathan Mejia had two of LA’s six hits.
Carmel 9, Glenbrook South 4
— Visiting Carmel broke up a tight game by coming up with a four-run fifth inning to beat host Glenbrook South 9-4 on April 11.
GBS scored four runs on four hits: Mike Snow (double), Simon Farber, Mike Angel and Nick Mathein. Angel also scored two runs.
•••
New Trier 9, Highland Park 7
— This game featured some big swings.
New Trier’s Anthony Calarco hit two home runs and drove six runs as NT topped visiting Highland Park 9-7 on April 10.
The game got interesting in the top of the seventh, when HP’s John Sakos hit a grand slam to spark a six-run outburst. Jack Kramer and Jack Greenwald also had run-scoring singles in the frame.
Calarco also did the job on the hill. He allowed a hit but got the final two outs in the seventh inning on strikeouts.
The winning pitcher was starter Pete Burnside (6 IP, 1 ER, 4 hits, 7 Ks, 1 BB).
The Calarcos had four of NT’s seven hits. Alex Carlarco had a single and a double. NT’s other hits belonged to Kyle Caponi (run-scoring single), Cam Redding (single) and Duke Olges (single).
In addition to Sakos, the top hitters for HP included Kramer (2 hits, 2 RBIs), Greenwald (2 hits), Noah Shutan (2 hits) and Noah Spitz (2 hits). Tyler Gussis (single), Luke Semrad (single) and Michael Rooney (double) had the team’s other hits.
Highland Park entered this game after going 4-1 in its spring trip in Orlando, Florida.
Loyola Academy 10, St. Joseph 4
— LA tallied runs in five of six frames to earn a 10-4 decision over host St. Joseph on April 10.
The Ramblers were led by Henry Haracz (2 hits, 1 RBI), Colin Summerhill (2 hits), Sean McLaughlan (1 hit, 1 RBI) and Matthew Raymond (1 hit, 1 RBI).
Joe McKermitt and Sean McKeough combined on a two-hitter. They fanned nine St. Joe hitters.
Glenbrook North 5, Niles West 4
— Glenbrook North opened the Central Suburban League season in winning fashion, when it edged host Niles West 5-4 on April 10.
The offense was paced by Chris Karasinski (single, RBI double), George Korompilas (single, double), Evan Barnes (double), David Rubin (RBI single) and Chris Heywood (single, 2 runs).
Heywood had the team’s base-running highlight, when he stole home in GBN’s 3-run second inning.
Barnes started and earned the win (5.1 IP, 5 hits, 2 ER, 2 Ks, 4 walks). The save went to Ben Harkey, who allowed only one hit in 1.2 innings.
Warren 5, Lake Forest 4
— Lake Forest battled until the end before dropping a 5-4 decision to host Warren on April 10.
The Scouts cut the deficit to one run by scoring twice in the top of the seventh on a two-out, two-run double Andrew Gough.
LF also scored two runs in the fourth inning a sacrifice flies by Matt Hill and Breck Nowik.
Peter Turelli had two hits and a walk for the Scouts. Drew Golde and Caleb Durbin had the other hits.
Connor Morrison had a strong relief appearance for LF, working 2.2 innings and recording four strikeouts. He allowed no runs and one hit.
Deerfield 15, Glenbrook South 4
— It was a tough outing for the host team.
Glenbrook South was held to three hits in its 15-4 setback to visiting Deerfield on April 10.
Mike Angel and Jack Anderson came up with run-producing doubles in the second inning for the Titans. Angel finished the game with two RBIs.
•••
Buffalo Grove 10, Glenbrook North 8
— Glenbrook North put up five runs in the top of the seventh but it was quite enough as the team dropped a 10-8 decision to host Buffalo Grove on April 7.
GBN’s seventh-inning comeback featured a two-run single by Ben Boeke and a run-scoring single by Evan Barnes.
Barnes ended up with two hits in the contest as did Chris Karasinski (single, run-scoring double). Daniel Spencer had a double.
•••
New Trier 6, Buffalo Grove 4
— Take advantage.
That’s what New Trier did against host Buffalo Grove on April 5.
The Trevians, which went 3-0 on their spring trip, pushed across with three runs — all unearned — in the fifth inning to win the game 6-4.
Strong relief pitching by John Robinson (2 innings, 0 hits, 3 Ks, 1 walk) locked up the win for New Trier.
The Trevians had six hits in the contest with Kyle Caponi (2 hits, 2 runs, 1 RBI), Anthony Calarco (2 hits, 1 run, 1 RBI) and Cam Redding (RBI double) leading the way.
Stevenson 8, Lake Forest 2
— Lake Forest, which went 1-3 on its spring trip, opened North Suburban Conference play by falling to visiting Stevenson 8-2 on April 5.
JR Naughton had two hits for the Scouts. Caleb Durbin had the other hit, while Drew Golde had an RBI.
The Scouts committed five errors in the contest. All eight of Stevenson’s runs were unearned.
Fremd 3, Glenbrook North 1
— Despite solid pitching performances from Evan Barnes and Ben Harkey, Glenbrook North came up short against visiting Fremd 3-1 in a nonconference game on April 5.
Barnes allowed five hits and two earned runs as GBN’s starter. He had five strikeouts and issued only one walk in 4.1 innings.
Harkey pitched 2-plus innings of scoreless baseball. He gave up three hits and one walk while fanning three.
GBN, which went 4-0 on its spring trip, had six hits — one each by Chris Karasinski, George Korompilas, Daniel Spencer, Jake Kieffer, Chris Heywood and Ben Boeke.
•••
Loyola Academy 6, Lane Tech 2
— Matthew Raymond and Will Jackson had two hits apiece as Loyola Academy topped host Lane Tech 6-2 on April 2.
Jackson had an RBI double in the top of the seventh. Earlier in the inning, Jason Vrbancic singled home a run.
LA also had a two-run sixth inning. Jackson singled in a run, while Trey Torain hit a sacrifice fly to plate Jake Novak, who had doubled.
The Ramblers received solid pitching from Ben Wagner (3.1 innings, 3 hits, 2 earned runs, 5 strikeouts) and Patrick Neenah (3.2 IP, 2 hits, 0 runs, 4 Ks).
Fremd 8, Glenbrook South 7
— Fremd rallied with three runs in the bottom of the sixth to pull out an 8-7 win over visiting Glenbrook South on April 2.
GBS’s seven-hit attack was led by Simon Farber (2-for-3, 2 doubles, 2 runs), Mike Snow (2-for-3, double, 1 run, 1 RBI), Brandon Matias (1-for-2, 1 run, 1 RBI), Conor Nash (1-for-3, 1 run, 1 RBI) and Nick Mathein (1-for-3, double, 1 RBI).
GBS went 2-4 in its spring trip to Kentucky.
•••
Maine South 2, Loyola Academy 1
— Loyola Academy managed just one hit in its 2-1 loss to host Maine South on March 28.
That lone hit by Colin Summerhill gave LA a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Summerhill’s single brought in Jason Vrbancic, who reached on a walk.
Maine South pushed across two runs on five hits against five different LA hurlers.
•••
Loyola Academy 3, De La Salle 0
— Starter Ben Wagner and reliever Colin Gillespie combined on a five-hitter as host Loyola Academy defeated De La Salle 3-0 on March 27.
That duo fanned 10 hitters over seven frames with only one walk.
LA had only two hits — a single and a double by Matthew Raymond. Trey Torain drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
•••
Loyola Academy 4, Fenwick 1
— Jake Novak smacked a two-run homer in the top of the sixth inning to spark Loyola Academy to a 4-1 victory over host Fenwick on March 26.
LA added two more runs in the top of the seventh on a run-scoring single by Jonathan Mejia and a sac fly by Henry Haracz.
Haracz was the winning pitcher: 6 innings, 1 earned run, 6 hits, 7 Ks, 2 walks. Novak pitched the seventh and allowed no hits.
Highland Park 11, Zion-Benton 2
— Tyler Gussis had three hits in three at-bats to lead Highland Park to an easy 11-2 victory over host Zion-Benton on March 26.
Gussis knocked in two runs as did Jack Kramer and Michael Rooney.
Zion-Benton also couldn’t get John Sakos out. He went 2-for-2, including a double and a triple, with two runs scored.
Noah Shutan (1-for-3, 2 runs, 1 RBI), Noah Spitz (1-for-1, 3 runs) and Jack Greenwald (1-for-3, 1 RBI) also had productive outings.
TJ Gimbel was the winning pitcher (4 IP, 4 hits, 2 ER, 3 Ks).
•••
Glenbrook North 10, Holy Trinity 0
— Jake Kieffer went 3-for-3 with two RBIs as Glenbrook North raced past visiting Holy Trinity 10-0 on March 23.
Chris Heywood also drove in two runs, while Chris Karasinski had two hits and one RBI.
Heywood (4 innings) and Ben Harkey (1 inning) combined on a one-hitter.
Glenbrook South 13, Hersey 6
— Glenbrook South tallied runs in six of seven frames and went on to beat host Hersey 13-6 on March 23.
Jack Anderson, who will play at Northern Illinois, finished the game with three hits, including a double. He also scored three runs and drove in two.
The other leading hitters for GBS included Conor Nash (2-for-4, 2 runs, 1 RBI), Ryan O’Hara (2-for-5, 2 runs, 1 RBI), Brandon Matias (2 RBIs) and Dan Hawes (2 RBIs).
•••
Glenbrook North 12, Ridgewood 3
— George Korompilas had a career game.
Led by Korompilas (3 hits, 7 RBIs), Glenbrook North banged out 15 hits and wound up topping host Ridgewood 12-3 on March 22.
GBN’s other hitting leaders were Jack Garibaldi (2 hits, 2 RBIs), Evan Barnes (2 hits, 2 RBIs), Jake Kieffer (2 hits), Ben Kieffer (2 hits) and Daniel Spencer (2 hits).
GBN’s five-run fourth inning featured a run-scoring triple by Spencer, a two-run single by Korompilas and a two-run homer by Garibaldi.
Koromopilas had a three-run double in the seventh.
Barnes worked six innings to get the win (2 ER, 6 hits, 9 Ks).
Glenbrook South 13, Rolling Meadows 1
— Glenbrook South pushed across 10 runs in the bottom of the second on its way to easy 13-1 victory over visiting Rolling Meadows on March 22.
The team was led by Jacob Newman (3-for-3, 2 runs, 3 RBIs), Mike Snow (2-for-3, 2 runs, 1 RBI), Jack Anderson (2-for-2, 2 RBIs) and Nick Mathein (2 RBIs).
Ryan Morrison and Dan Carlson did the mound work for GBS, allowing only two hits over five innings.
Loyola Academy 10, Taft 0
— Loyola Academy scored 10 runs on 10 hits to take down visiting Taft on March 22.
Four Ramblers — Will Jackson, Matthew Raymond, Jason Vrbancic and Dan Hrvojevic — had two hits piece. Vrbancic drove in two runs, while Hrvojevic and Jake Novak had doubles.
Joe McKermitt (4 IP, 3 hits, 5 Ks) and Colin Gillespie (2 IP, 0 hits) combined on the shutout.
Notre Dame 4, New Trier 0
— New Trier managed just three hits in its 4-0 setback to visiting Notre Dame on March 22.
Alex Calarco had two of the hits. Anthony Calarco and Cam Redding also had singles.
Stevenson 12, Highland Park 0
— Tyler Gussis and Jack Greenwald got the lone hits for Highland Park in its 12-0 loss at Stevenson on March 22.
The Patriots tallied 11 of their 12 runs in the bottom of the fourth.
•••
New Trier 8, Lane Tech 4
— Cam Redding started the season red hot.
The senior, who will play college baseball at St. Louis University, came up with two home runs and six RBIs in New Trier’s season-opening 8-4 win over host Lane Tech on March 20.
Redding hit a three-run homer with one out in the third inning. He then followed up that feat in the fourth inning, bringing in Kyle Caponi (3-for-3, 3 runs, 1 RBI) and Anthony Calarco (1-for-3).
Nathan Shapiro also drove in a run, while Griffin Ryan and Brian Kerwin had the other hits.
•••
Loyola Academy 13, Niles North 1
— Led by Henry Haracz (2 hits), Jake Novak (2 hits, 2 RBIs), Trey Torain (2 hits, 2 RBIs) and Jonathan Mejia (2 hits), Loyola Academy breezed by visiting Niles North 13-1 on March 19.
Ben Wagner went the distance (5 innings) to pick up the win. He allowed only two hits. He had four strikeouts and zero walks.
Stevenson 7, Glenbrook South 2
— Stevenson put a damper on Glenbrook South’s season opener, when the host Patriots exploded for six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. GBS lost the game 7-2.
GBS had just three hits in the game: a double by Nick Mathein and singles by Simon Farber and Jacob Newman.
•••
Loyola Academy 5, St. Patrick 0
— Henry Haracz and Joe McKermitt teamed up on a two-hitter as Loyola Academy opened the 2018 campaign with a 5-0 victory over host St. Patrick on March 18.
Haracz had six Ks and two walks in his four innings. McKermitt fanned two in three innings.
Jason Vrbancic, who missed most of last year with an injury, highlighted a five-run first inning with a two-run home run.
The inning also featured a run-scoring double by Matthew Raymond and two-run single by Sean McLaughlan.
•••
Glenbrook North 8, St. Rita 1
— Host Glenbrook North put up five runs in the first inning and coasted to an 8-1 victory over St. Rita on March 17.
Chris Karasinski had two hits for the Spartans. Jack Garibaldi and Ben Boeke drove in two runs each.
Garibaldi was the winning pitcher with relief help from Evan Barnes and Chris Heywood.
Hinsdale South 2, Highland Park 1
— Highland Park managed only three hits in its 2-1 loss to visiting Hinsdale South on March 17.
The visitors pushed across a run in the top of the seventh to gain the win.
John Sakos had two hits, while Noah Spitz went 1-for-2 with an RBI.
Jeremy Frankel pitched five strong innings for the Giants. He allowed only one hit and one earned run with five strikeouts.
•••
Highland Park 4, Barrington 4
— Both teams scored four runs on seven hits as Highland Park played host Barrington to a 4-4 tie on March 16.
Noah Shutan and Jack Greenwald had two hits apiece for the Giants.
HP’s Jack Kramer, Michael Rooney and John Sakos drove in runs.
•••
Highland Park 6, Hersey 4
— Strong offensive outings by Noah Shutan (2-for-3, 2 runs), Jack Greenwald (1-for-3, 2 runs, 1 RBI), Tyler Gussis (2-for-4, 2 RBI), Jack Kramer (1-for-3, 2 RBIs) and John Sakos (2-for-3) lifted Highland Park to a 6-4 victory over visiting Hersey on March 15.
TJ Gimbel got the win. He had four Ks in 4-plus innings.
Glenbrook North 10, Von Steuben 0
— GBN opened the 2018 campaign with a 10-0 victory over visiting Von Steuben on April 15.
Chris Heywood (2-for-2, 2 RBIs) led the offense.
Josh Fern, Ben Harkey and Josh Kazan teamed up on a five-inning one-hitter.
•••
Palatine 4, Highland Park 0
— Highland Park opened the season by falling 4-0 to host Palatine on March 14.
Noah Shutan, Jack Greenwald, Joey Reinberg and Noah Spitz had HP’s hits.