Sunday, August 14, 20052005 Fireman of the Year Award |
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| The 2005 CICL Fireman of the year award goes to Bobby Mahon (Western Illinois) of the Quincy Gems.
Making 25 appearances, all in relief, the left-handed pitcher from Quincy, Illinois, and Western Illinois University, saved 8 games and earned a 5-1 won-loss record for the 2005 Tournament Champion Gems, all during the regular season. He therefore had a major role in 13 of the Gems total 28 victories in the regular season. He also made 3 appearances in the tournament. Mahon will be a senior this fall at Western Illinois. |
Sunday, August 14, 2005Players of the Year Awards |
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| Finalizing the 2005 CICL season is the announcement of the Mike Schmidt Most Valuable Player Award and the corresponding Pitcher of the Year Award. This year's winners are left-handed hitting outfielder Ryan Basham (Michigan State) of the Dubois County Bombers and left-handed starting pitcher Ryan Byrd (Louisiana State) of the Danville Dans.
Ryan Basham (Michigan State) had an outstanding summer at the plate and an errorless season in the field. He led the league in seven primary offensive categories, several by wide margins. In 46 games played, he was held hitless only 9 times. He had more than one hit 20 times, and in 10 of those games he had 3 or more hits. In 207 plate appearances, he struck out only 20 times while walking 30 times in addition to hitting safely 70 times. The seven categories where Basham led the league were the .409 batting average which was 27 points ahead of the 2nd place hitter; his .643 slugging percentage was 67 points ahead; his .500 on-base percentage was 38 points ahead; his 70 hits were 5 ahead; his 110 total bases were 11 ahead; his 18 doubles were 2 ahead and his 46 RBI were 3 ahead of the rest of the league. Basham also tied for 4th in home runs with 6; tied for 7th in runs with 34 and tied for 7th in walks with 30. In other categories, the Lowell, Indiana, native led the league against right-handed pitchers at .410 and was 3rd against lefties at .408 dispelling the myth that lefties can't hit lefties; he led the league with a .517 average in RBI opportunities, 60 points better than anyone else; and his average with runners on base was .449, just one point behind the leader. Basham, who will be a junior this fall at Michigan State, previously won the Player of the Week Award for weeks #3 and #4 as well as Player of the First Half. Ryan Byrd (Louisiana State) had a very effective summer as a starting pitcher for the regular season champion Danville Dans, helping his team finish the regular season at 34-10. A left-hander, Byrd made 8 starts and finished with 6 decisions at 5 wins, 1 loss. His 1.91 ERA led the league by almost .2 of a run, or 10% better than the second place ERA leader. Although a couple of other pitchers had slightly better won-loss records or more strikeouts, a significant reason Byrd captured the award is the fact that 27 of his 47 total innings pitched were on the road. No other pitcher with a comparable ERA, wins and innings pitched achieved their statistics on the road. Ryan previously won the Pitcher of the Second Half award and Pitcher of the Week Award for week #5 of the season. Byrd is from Denham Springs, Louisiana, and will be a sophomore this fall at Louisiana State University. |
Sunday, August 14, 20052005 CICL Post-Season All-Star Selections |
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| The Post-Season All-Stars were announced by the league today.
Click on the following link to see the selections: 2005 CICL Post-Season All-Stars |
Sunday, August 14, 2005CICL Records Tied/Broken in 2005 |
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| Several CICL records were either tied or broken in the 2005 season:
Most Times Hit By Pitcher Season: 17, Jay Molina, Quincy, 2005 Most Hit Batsmen (team) Season: 55, Quincy, (49 games), 2005 Most Times Ground Into Double Play Both Clubs - Game: 6 many times, most recent: Danville (4) vs. Dubois County, 8/9/2005 Lowest Won-Lost Percentage Season: .182, Galesburg (W-8, L-36), 2005 Complete Games in Season (pitching) Fewest: 1, Quincy, (49 games), 2005; 1, Danville (49 games), 2003; 1, Decatur (47 games), 1999 Most Chances Accepted (1st basemen) Season: 482, Pat Tumilty, Quincy, 2005 Most Putouts (1st basemen) Season: 456, Pat Tumilty, Quincy, 2005 Most Assists (3rd basemen) Season: 117, Jason White, Quincy, 2005 Most Assists (shortstops) Season: 166, Mitch Hilligoss, Quincy, 2005 Most Assists (team) Season: 577, Quincy (49 games), 2005 Check out all records in the CICL Record Book. |
Saturday, August 13, 2005Final Post Season Awards to be Announced on Sunday |
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| The post-season All-Star Team as well as the Mike Schmidt MVP and Most Valuable Pitcher Awards will be announced Sunday evening. Watch this space! |
Saturday, August 13, 2005Tournament Most Valuable Players |
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| As expected when a team wins, Quincy Gems players swept the 2005 CICL Tournament PLayer Awards.
Right-hander Chris Otten (Quincy) was an easy choice for Tourmanent Most Valuable Pitcher on the strength of 2 outstanding pitching performances leading to 2 of the team's 4 victories in the tournament. In the second game of the tournament, the "brink of elimination" game, Otten entered the game in the 3rd inning with the Gems trailing 5-0 and held the Scrappers to a single unearned run on 2 hits over the next 4 innings. The Scrappers eventually scored 4 more runs off other pitchers after Otten left the game, but his effectiveness enabled the Gems to stay in the game, ultimately allowing the team to capitalize on its last at-bat to win the game and stay alive in the tournament. As indicated below, Otten also pitched the complete game 2-hitter for the Gems in the 5-1 Championship game. His 2 appearances in the tournament totaled 13 innings pitched, 4 hits allowed, 2 runs (both unearned, an ERA of 0.00), 8 strikeouts and 4 walks. On the offensive side, the potent trio of Jay Molina (Illinois State), Pat Tumilty (Evansville) and Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) share the Tournament Most Valuable Player Award. It was Molina's grand slam with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th that tied the "brink of elimination" game against the Scrappers, and that shot was followed by the game winning homer by Tumilty. Molina was 7-17 in the tournament with 7 RBI. Tumilty was 8-15 with 4 RBI, 2 in the "brink" game and 2 more in the victories that followed. Hilligoss was 7-20 in the tournament and had a key 2-run single in tonight's title game as well as 2 RBI in the Gems' game 3 victory over East Peoria. Mitch had a total of 6 RBI and 4 runs for the tournament. |
Saturday, August 13, 2005Quincy Takes 2005 CICL Tournament Title |
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| Winning its fourth straight game of the tournament, the Quincy Gems defeated the Dubois County Bombers 5-1 tonight in Huntingburg, Indiana, to win the 2005 CICL Tournament.
On the brink of elimination Tuesday night when they trailed 10-4 in the bottom of the 9th inning to East Peoria, already down a game to the Scrappers, the Gems started a miraculous comeback that led to tonight's title win. Chris Otten (Quincy), making his 6th start of the summer for the Gems, pitched a 9 inning complete game to earn his first victory of the season. Easily his best performance of the year, the right-hander from Marissa, Illinois, shut down the Bombers offense allowing only 2 hits and an unearned run in the bottom of the 9th inning, that run scoring on a wild pitch. The Gems took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning on a sacrifice fly by Travis Sweet (Iowa) after a walk to Jay Molina (Illinois State) and a double by Pat Tumilty (Evansville). The game stayed 1-0 until the top of the 7th when the Gems broke it open scoring 4 runs to take a 5-0 lead. Three hits, 2 errors, a walk and a hit batsmen did the damage. Jason White (Iowa) had a sacrifice fly to start the scoring, followed by a Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) 2-run single and an RBI single by Pat Tumilty (Evansville). Tumilty had 3 of the Gems 5 hits in the game and an RBI; Hilligoss a hit and 2 RBI; Sweet an RBI and Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) the other Gems hit. Kyle Smith (Evansville) and Cory Bunner (SIU - Edwardsville) had the hits for the Bombers. The Tournament Title is the 3rd for the Gems since the league began hosting a post-season tournament in 1989, this being the 17th such tournament. The Gems previously won in 1996 and in 1998. Danville has won the tournament 9 times. The Bluff City Bombers won the tournament in 2004. |
Friday, August 12, 2005Gems Win Game 1 Of Finals |
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| The Quincy Gems topped the Dubois County Bombers 5-3 to win the first championship game at QU Stadium in Quincy this evening.
The Bombers led the game through six innings 2-0 with their starting pitcher, Javier Martinez (Fordham) pitching a no hitter. Ryan Basham (Michigan State) singled home the 1st run in the top of the 3rd inning, and Mike Murray (Meridian CC) scored on a wild pitch in the 5th. The Gems first base hit and run came in the bottom of the seventh after the Gems' Jay Molina (Illinois State) broke up the no-hitter, singling to right center field. A walk and a bunt single by Travis Sweet (Iowa) loaded the bases. Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) then singled in the first Gems run. Pat Tumilty (Evansville) scored on a double play ball by Dan Pietroburgo (Missouri) to tie the game at 2, and Sweet then scored on an error to give the Gems the lead 3-2. In the top of the eighth inning, the Bombers came back to tie the game at 3-3 on a squeeze bunt by Nick Smith (Grand Valley State). The Bombers had runners at the corners with just one out, but reliever Jeff Niemiec (Michigan) entered the game and retired the next 2 batters without allowing the lead run to cross the plate. In the bottom of the inning the Gems scored the winning runs on two fielding errors and a double by Jay Molina (Illinois State) and an RBI groundout by Sweet. Niemiec retired 3 batters in the 9th to finish out the game and earn the win. In the game, both teams only had one extra base hit, a double for Grant Achilles (Wake Forest) for the Bombers and Jay Molina (Illinois State) for the Gems. For the Bombers, Ryan Basham (Michigan State) went 2-4 with an RBI. Nick Smith (Grand Valley State) had the only other Bombers RBI. For the Gems, Jay Molina (Illinois State) went 2-3 with an RBI and a run scored. The only other Gems hits came from Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) and Travis Sweet (Iowa), both with an RBI. Game 2 in the championship series is tomorrow evening in Dubois County. |
Wednesday, August 10, 2005Gems Advance to Tournament Final |
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| The Quincy Gems advanced to the CICL finals with an 8-5 win over the East Peoria Scrappers in East Peoria tonight.
East Peoria jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on a RBIbdouble by Ross Kelling (Maple Woods CC) with two outs. Kelling had a two-out RBI double in every game of the three game series versus Quincy. The Gems put up a five spot in the third inning as a result of a Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) two-run single and a Ben Geelan (Iowa) three-run home run. In the eighth, Quincy added three more runs that later proved to be critical on a solo homer by Pat Tumilty (Evansville), an RBI triple from T.J. Kistner (Western Illinois) and an East Peoria passed ball. Gems starter Travis Sweet (Iowa) (4-1) pitched well, going eight innings and allowing only two earned runs. He gave up seven hits, walked four, and struck out five batters. He pitched out of several jams, as the Scrappers had runners in scoring position in every inning except the second and the sixth, and stranded 11 runners for the game. Dallas Sims (Lincoln Trail CC) (4-1), pitching on four days rest for the first time this year, gave up five runs on five hits and allowed four walks in 5.2 innings. The five runs given up by Sims was more runs than he had allowed in the entire second half of the season coming into the game. Hilligoss, Geelan, and Jay Molina (Illinois State) all had two hits for Quincy. Ross Kelling (Maple Woods CC) had three hits for East Peoria, and C.J. Webb (Ball State) and Craig Rohren (Dayton) each had two. Going into the bottom of the ninth and trailing 8-2, the Scrappers attempted to return the favor from last night in terms of a miraculous comeback, scoring three runs and bringing the tying run to the plate before a double play ball ended their hopes. The final tournament series begins Friday night in Quincy at 6:30 PM - Gems vs. Dubois County Bombers. |
Tuesday, August 9, 2005Dubois County Eliminates Danville |
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| In Huntingburg, Indiana, tonightm the Dubois County Bombers topped the Danville Dans 4-1 to eliminate the #1 seeded Dans from the CICL Tournament and advance to the championship series beginning Friday evening.
The Dans drew first blood with 2 runs in the top of the second inning on an RBI double by Garrett Gipe (Southern California) and RBI single by Jake Tranchant (Danville Area CC). But that was all the Dans could score against Bomber pitching this evening. Dubois scored a run of its own in the second as a result of 2 fielding errors. The game remained 2-1 until the bottom of the 6th inning. In the 6th, Chris Schmidt (Indiana State) singled home the tying and go-ahead runs and an RBI single later in the inning by Mike Murray (Meridian CC) closed out the scoring. Starter Cory Julian (Evansville) earned the victory, pitching 7 innings, allowing just the 2 runs on 7 hits, striking out 3. Javier Martinez (Fordham) pitched a zero in the 9th to earn his 1st save. The Bombers travel to either Quincy or East Peoria Friday night to open the championship series, and will host game 2 of that series Saturday night beginning at 6:30 PM. |
Tuesday, August 9, 2005Quincy Evens Series with East Peoria |
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| The Quincy Gems tied the best-of-three semi-final series with East Peoria tonight, winning in very dramatic fashion by a score of 11-10.
The Gems were down but they were not out, behind 10-4 going into the bottom of the ninth. The Gems loaded the bases and Scrappers pitchers walked in the first 2 runs of the inning. With 2 outs, Gems right fielder Jay Molina (Illinois State) tied the game in 1 swing with a dramatic grand slam over the left field wall. The next batter, Pat Tumilty (Evansville) then came to the plate and hit a solo home run over the right field fence to win the game. For the Scrappers in the game, Ross Kelling (Maple Woods CC) went 2-4 with 2 RBI and a double, Cory Kral (Indiana State) went 2-5 with 2 RBI and C.J. Webb (Ball State) also had 2 RBI. For the Gems, Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) went 2-3 with an RBI and a double, Jay Molina (Illinois State) went 3-4 with 5 RBI and Pat Tumilty (Evansville) went 2-4 with 2 RBI. Nathan Emrick (SIU - Carbondale) and T.J. Kistner (Western Illinois) also had RBI in the game. Jon Adams (Western Illinois) pitched the top of the 9th inning and was the winning recipient of the 7-run rally. The Gems travel to East Peoria on Wednesday night for a 6:30 final series game. The winner hosts the Dubois County Bombers, who eliminated Danville tonight by winning its second game over the Dans. |
Monday, August 8, 2005Bombers Take Opener from Danville |
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| In Danville tonight, the Dubois County Bombers scored nine runs in the fourth inning en route to a 12-6 victory over the Danville Dans in the opening game of the best-of-three semifinal series.
Ryan Basham (Michigan State) ignited the rally for the Bombers with a triple to center, while Mike Murray (Meridian CC) highlighted the inning with a two-run double. Other Dubois County hitters with run-scoring hits in the inning were Kyle Smith (Evansville), Nick Smith (Grand Valley State) and Cory Bunner (SIU - Edwardsville). The Dans had built a 4-0 lead with a three-run second highlighted by a Dusty Napoleon (Iowa) run-scoring double and a solo home run from Chuck Sindlinger (Cal State - Long Beach) in the third. Dubois County starter Kyle Jones (SIU - Edwardsville) lasted just 1 1/3 innings before being lifted because of blister problems on his throwing hand. Brant Combs (Missouri) came on for the Bombers, allowing three runs on nine hits in the final 7 2/3 innings, walking three and striking out five. Danville had opportunities in the late innings, but Dubois County's defense thrwarted those efforts, including a spectacular double play to end the eighth inning. The Bombers also helped their own cause with one insurance run in the seventh and two in the eighth. Dubois County center field Cory Bunner (SIU - Edwardsville) went 4-for-5 with three singles, a double, two runs scored and an RBI. Other top hitters for the Bombers were Kyle Smith (Evansville), 2-for-6, Ryan Basham (Michigan State), 2-for-4, Nick Smith (Grand Valley State), 2-for-6, Kasey Wahl (Evansville), 2-for-5, and Bruce Sprowl (Louisiana State), 2-for 3. Sindlinger and Jake Tranchant (Danville Area CC) were the top hitters for the Dans with three hits each, while Garrett Gipe (Southern California) had two singles. In game two of the series at League Stadium in Huntingburg, Ind., the Bombers will pitch left-hander Cory Julian (Evansville), while the Dans will counter with Grant Payton (Grand Valley State). |
Monday, August 8, 2005Scrappers Defeat Gems in Tournament Opener |
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| The East Peoria Scrappers beat the Quincy Gems 5-3 in a tight battle at the EastSide Centre in East Peoria.
Quincy jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first on a run-scoring single by Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) and a RBI groundout by Jay Molina (Illinois State). A great diving play from third baseman C.J. Webb (Ball State) and a base running blunder resulting in a rundown prevented more runs from scoring. Webb also had a sensational bare handed play on a bunt in the eighth inning.  Mike Massa East Peoria answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first on two out RBI hits from Ross Kelling (Maple Woods CC) and Ryan Curry (Bradley). Quincy took a 3-2 lead on a RBI double from Nathan Emrick (SIU - Carbondale) in the second. A Craig Rohren (Dayton) leadoff home run in the sixth tied the game at three. Later that inning, a two - out double from Mike Massa (Dayton) scored Jacob Smith (SIU - Edwardsville) with the go ahead run. It was one of three Scrapper runs scored with two out. Rohren, who was 2-4 on the night, added a RBI single in the seventh to give East Peoria an insurance run. East Peoria starter Matt Reynolds (Kishwaukee CC) battled through 5.1 innings, giving up nine hits and four walks, but allowing only 3 runs. Aaron Saving (2-2) pitched 2.2 scoreless innings for the victory. The Gems made it interesting in the ninth, putting two runners on before East Peoria closer Aaron Hines (Oakland) struck out Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) to end the game. Quincy had 11 hits, two each from Jason White (Iowa), Nathan Emrick (SIU - Carbondale), Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue), and Pat Tumilty (Evansville). The game featuring several suspense-filled innings, and pitchers were continuously pitching themselves out of jams. This was evident by only four 1-2-3 innings for the entire game, two by Quincy and two by East Peoria. The Gems also left 13 men on base, while the Scrappers left 8. |
Sunday, August 7, 20052005 Tournament Begins Monday |
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| The 2005 CICL Tournament begins play on Monday, August 8, in Danville and East Peoria, the #1 and #2 tournament seeds respectively.
Danville squares off against the #4 seed Dubois County Bombers and East Peoria hosts the #3 seed Quincy Gems. Each series is a best of three series with the higher seed hosting 2 of the 3 games, if the 3rd game is necessary. The semi-final round winners face each other next weekend in a best of three Championship Series. Here is a recap of this week's schedule: Monday, August 8: Dubois County Bombers (#4 Seed) at Danville (#1 Seed), 6:30 PM Quincy Gems (#3 Seed) at East Peoria Scrappers (#2 Seed), 6:30 PM Tuesday, August 9 Danville (#1 Seed) at Dubois County Bombers (#4 Seed), 6:30 PM East Peoria Scrappers (#2 Seed) at Quincy Gems (#3 Seed), 6:30 PM Wednesday, August 10 Dubois County Bombers (#4 Seed) at Danville (#1 Seed), 6:30 PM (if necessary) Quincy Gems (#3 Seed) at East Peoria Scrappers (#2 Seed), 6:30 PM (if necessary) Friday, August 12 Final Round Game #1 at site of Higher Seed, 6:30 PM Saturday, August 13 Final Round Game #2 at site of Lower Seed, TBA Sunday, August 14 Final Round Game #3 at site of Higher Seed, TBA (if necessary) 2005 Tournament |
Sunday, August 7, 2005Players of the Second Half |
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| The second of the summer’s two Player of the Half Awards for the 2005 CICL season is shared among three players: Brian Dinkelman (McKendree) of the Twin City Stars and two players from the Quincy Gems, Jay Molina (Illinois State) and Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue).
Dinkelman led the league in three offensive categories, slugging at .685, hits (tied) with 31 and total bases with 46. He was second in batting average at .425 (31-73), 5th in runs with 17, 4th in on-base percentage at .482, tied for 4th in homers with 3, tied for 3rd in triples with 2 and tied for 5th in doubles with 6. Brian's strong second half enabled him to finish tied for 1st in hits with 65, tied for the lead in triples with 6, 2nd in total bases with 98, 3rd for the regular season in batting at .382 (65-170), 3rd in slugging at .576, 6th in on-base percentage at .438, tied for 6th in doubles with 12 and tied for 7th in runs with 32. Dinkelman also led all league shortstops in 2005 with 149 assists. Brian Dinkelman (McKendree) is from Irvington, Illinois, and will be a senior this fall at McKendree College in Lebanon, Illinois. The Gems' Jay Molina (Illinois State) and Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) were instrumental in the team's 16-4 (tied with Danville for best record in half) second half results, helping turn the team around from a 12-12 1st half to propel the Gems into the CICL Tournament as the #3 seed. In the second half, the Gems led the league in batting at .295, led in runs with 142, led in total bases with 283, led in slugging at .415 and led in stolen bases with 33. For the half, Molina was 2nd in RBI with 21, 2nd in total bases with 46, 3rd in hits with 30, tied for 3rd in runs with 18, tied for 4th in homers with 3, 4th in slugging at .597, 6th in batting at .390 (30-77) and 8th in on-base percentage at .457. His second half raised his season avaerage to .305 and his RBI total to 34, 5th in the league for the regular season. Jay Molina (Illinois State) is from Moline, Illinois, and will be a senior this fall at Illinois State University. Hilligoss shares the award with Dinkelman and Molina be cause he led the league in runs scored with 22, led in stolen bases with 11, was 3rd in RBI with 21, tied for 4th in homers with 3, 5th in slugging at .589, 5th in on-base percentage at .477, tied for 5th in hits with 28, tied for 5th in total bases with 43, tied for 5th in doubles with 6 and 8th in batting at .384 (28-73). For the season, Hilligoss led the league in stolen bases with 20, led the league in runs scored with 39, was 3rd in RBI with 37, tied for 3rd in doubles with 14, 4th in total bases with 91, tied for 5th in homers with 5, 6th in hits with 58, 6th in average at .341 (58-170), 7th in slugging at .535 and 9th in on-base percentage at .422. Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) is from Windsor, Illinois, and will be a junior this fall at Purdue University. Hilligoss also won the Player of the Week Award for Week #7 earlier this season. The Pitcher of the Half Award for the season’s second half of play is shared between two pitchers from the 2005 regular season champions, the Danville Dans, right-hander Dan Sattler (Purdue) and left-hander Ryan Byrd (Louisiana State).  Ryan Byrd  Dan Sattler The Dans second half strength was due to its pitching staff, going 16-4 (tied with Gems for best record in the half), the Dans led the league in ERA at 1.93, more than .7 runs better than runner-up East Peoria, led in batting avaerage against at .214, allowed just one single home run and only 20 extra-base hits overall, tossed 6 shutouts and struck out 169 batters in 172.2 innings. Sattler and Byrd played major roles in that team effort. For the half Byrd led the league in wins with 4 in 4 starts, including one complete game shutout. Two other starts resulted in team shutouts. His 0.61 ERA was 2nd to Sattler, and his 29.1 innings calculates to almost 7.5 innings per start. Batters hit only .162 and struck out 20 times. Of the 17 hits Byrd allowed, only 2 were for extra bases, both doubles. Byrd finished the regular season with a 5-1 record, tied with 5 others for the most wins, 3rd in ERA at 1.91 among qualifying pitchers and 6th in opposing batting average at .202. Ryan Byrd (Louisiana State) is from Denham Springs, Louisiana, and will be sophomore this fall at Louisiana State University. Byrd previously won the Pitcher of the Week Award for Week #5 this season. Sattler led the league in the second half with a paltry 0.35 ERA in 4 starts, earning a 3-0 record over 26 innings pitched. He struck out 28 hitters, 3rd in the league for the half, and hitters averaged only .191 against his offereings. Of the 18 hits allowed, Sattler also gave up only 2 extra-base hits, a double and a triple. Two of his starts resulted in team shutouts. For the regular season, Sattler finished tied for the the best won-loss record in the league at 5-0 (with teammate Chad Crosswhite (Mississippi State)), finished 5th in ERA at 2.28 among qualifying pitchers and 5th in strikeouts with 49. Dan Sattler (Purdue) is from West Lafayette, Indiana, and will be a junior this fall at Purdue University. |
Sunday, August 7, 2005Players of the Week #8 |
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| The CICL Player of the Week Award for the 8th and final week of the season goes to infielder Tim Swanson (Benedictine) of the DuPage County Dragons.
Swanson joined the Dragons on July 29 as one of several players the team added due to injuries and other player commitments. He made his short stay in the CICL a very productive one. For the week, Swanson led the league in batting average at .563 (9-16), led in slugging at .938, led in on-base percentage at .611, led in RBI with 7, led in triples with 3, tied for 3rd in total bases with 15 and tied for 2nd in hits with 9. Swanson went to Wheaton North High School in Wheaton, Illinois, and will be a sophomore this fall at Benedictine College. The Pitcher of the Week Award for the final week goes to another relative newcomber to the league, DuPage County right-hander Brian Wyatt (Texas Tech). Wyatt joined the Dragons in mid-July and made 4 starts and 5 appearances overall. He wins the weekly award on the strength of a 7-inning complete game shutout over the Twin City Stars in the first game of a doubleheader on August 5. In that game, the Amarillo, Texas, native allowed just 3 hits and faced only 4 batters above the minimum. Wyatt will be a senior this fall at Texas Tech University. |
Saturday, August 6, 2005Dans Finish Regular Season with Win |
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| In Danville tonight, the Dans finished the 2005 regular season with a 9-0 victory over the Springfield Rifles.
It was the 34th victory of the year for Danville, which establishes a new franchise record.  Danny Worth Ryan Byrd (Louisiana State), Justin Snyder (San Diego) and Justin Cryer (Mississippi) combined for a four-hit shutout. Byrd went the first seven innings, allowing four hits and one walk, while striking out five. Danville got all the offense it would need in the second frame against Springfield starter Zach Cordier (Webber International). Danny Worth (Pepperdine), who went 2-for-4, had a run-scoring triple and he later scored on a Cory Barton (Memphis) two-out single to right. The Dans added two more runs in the sixth on an RBI double from Chuck Sindlinger (Cal State - Long Beach) and a run-scoring single from Jeff Flagg (Mississippi State). A two-run triple by Garrett Gipe (Southern California) in the seventh highlighted a three-run frame for Danville, while Worth's second triple of the night ignited a two-run eighth. Justin Snyder (San Diego), who went 0-for-3, played all nine positions in Saturday's game for the Dans. |
Saturday, August 6, 2005Dragons Defeat Pioneers 15-3 to Finish Season |
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| In Galesburg tonight, the DuPage County Bombers and Galesburg Pioneers ended their 2005 season with a 15-3 Dragons win.
The Dragons banged out 11 hits and received 8 walks and 5 errors from the Pioneers to score early and often. Tim Swanson (Benedictine) had 3 hits and 5 RBI on 2 triples and a single. Ruairi O'Connor (Florida State) had 2 hits and 2 RBI, including a double. Joe Dunigan (Oklahoma) had 2 hits as did Brian Flanagan (Indiana). George Shimko (South Suburban CC) made his only appearance of the year for the Dragons aand putched a complete game for the win. Dale Reneau (Seminole State JC) had 2 hits for the Pioneers. |
Saturday, August 6, 2005Scrappers Take Second Place |
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| The East Peoria Scrappers clinched home field advantage for the first round of the playoffs with a 12-0 win over Quincy in East Peoria this afternoon.
East Peoria erupted for nine runs in the first inning off Gems starter Jay Molina (Illinois State) (0-1), who was making his first appearance on the mound this season. RBI singles by Ross Kelling (Maple Woods CC), Ryan Curry (Bradley), and Cory Kral (Indiana State) preceded a grand slam by Justin Carr (Bradley) to give the Scrappers a comfortable lead.  Tom Layne Carr finished 4-4 with six RBI and two runs scored. He was thrown out at third trying for a triple in the seventh inning, which would have given him the cycle. The Scrappers received two hits each from Curry and Craig Rohren (Dayton). Tom Layne (Southwestern Illinois CC) (1-0) pitched 2.1 scoreless innings in relief for the win. Jay Molina (Illinois State) had two of Quincy's five hits on the afternoon. The two teams will meet again in East Peoria at 6:30 pm Monday night in first round playoff action. |
Friday, August 5, 2005Dragons Split Twin Bill With Twin City |
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| The Dupage Dragons split a doubleheader with the Twin City Stars on Friday night at the Lisle-Benedictine Sports Complex to conclude the 2005 home season. In two completely different games, the Dragons won the opener 2-0, and fell 11-8 in the second game.
Game One: Dupage 2, Twin City 0 Brian Wyatt (Texas Tech) earned his second win of the season by shutting down the Twin City Stars for the second time this season. Wyatt (2-2) pitched a seven inning complete game shutout, scattering three hits while walking none and striking out three. Wyatt’s first win of the season also came against the Twin City Stars. The Dragons got all the offense they would need in the bottom of the fourth inning. With two outs in the inning, Billy Duffy (Lewis) hit a soft-liner up the middle. An errant throw allowed Matt Evans (Benedictine) scored the game’s first run. In the sixth inning the Dragons added an insurance run. Victor Ferrante (Solano CC) singled, and came in to score on a wild pitch. Game Two: Twin City 11, Dupage 8 Twin City scored seven runs in the top of the fifth inning to overtake the Dragons and held on to earn an 11-8 victory. Twin City scored first, plating a run in the first inning when Brian Dinkelman (McKendree) led off the game with his third homer of the season. The Dragons answered in the bottom of the second when Victor Ferrante (Solano CC) hit a two-run shot, his third of the year, to give the Dragons a 2-1 lead. The Stars scored twice in the third inning on four hits to take a 3-2 lead on RBI doubles by Chris Bacigalupi (Marin CC) and Nick Sandy (Grand Valley State). In the bottom of the inning the Dragons tied the game on a balk which allowed Geoff Dietz (Northwestern) to score. The Dragons made it 5-3 with two runs in the fourth. Ferrante led off with a double and came in to score on a triple by Tim Swanson (Benedictine). Swanson then scored when Duffy lifted a sacrifice fly. Twin City sent 12 men to the plate in the fifth inning and scored seven runs against three Dragon pitchers to grab a 10-5 lead. The Dragons responded with two in the bottom of the fifth to make it 10-7, but the Stars added one more in the sixth. Justin Zarley (0-5) worked 4.1 innings and took the loss for the Dragons while Sean McElyea worked 2.2 innings in place of Gary Cahoon to notch the victory. The Dragons had 11 hits in the game, including four by Tim Swanson (Benedictine). Swanson became the first Dragon to record four hits in a game. Geoff Dietz (Northwestern) and Victor Ferrante (Solano CC) each added two hits. For the Stars, Asif Shah (Wabash Valley CC) had three hits, giving him five in the doubleheader. Ross McCoy (Wisconsin - Milwaukee), Chris Bacigalupi (Marin CC), Gary Walz (Augustana (S. Dak.)), and Nick Achberger (Carson - Newman) each had two hits. |
Friday, August 5, 2005Dans Win in 11 Innings |
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In Danville tonight, the Danville Dans rallied for a 3-2 victory in 11 innings over the East Peoria Scrappers. Garrett Gipe It's the seventh time this season that Danville has won a game in its final at-bat and this victory, the 33rd this season for the Dans, tied a franchise record for wins in a regular season. Neither team was able to push across a run in the first nine innings. East Peoria got on the board in the 10th with a two-run triple to left-center by C.J. Webb (Ball State), who was 2-for-4. Danville came back in the bottom of the 10th with two runs scoring on a Garrett Gipe (Southern California) bunt single and the subsequent errant throw. The Dans won the game in the 11th on Gipe's game-winning suicide squeeze with the bases loaded and no outs. Scrappers pitcher Dallas Sims (Lincoln Trail CC) held the Dans to just three hits over nine innings. Sims struck out 12 and walked one. Danville starter Dan Sattler (Purdue) matched Sims pitch for pitch, allowing four hits in seven innings, striking out nine and walking just one. Brandon Farmer (Chandler - Gilbert CC) (2-0) earned the win in relief. East Peoria outhit Danville 9-7 as Scrappers catcher Bill Musselman (St. Louis) had three hits, including a double. Other players with two hits for East Peoria were Webb and Ryan Curry (Bradley). Picking up two hits for the Dans were Gipe and Danny Worth (Pepperdine). |
Friday, August 5, 2005Showdown in East Peoria on Saturday |
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| With Danville defeating East Peoria tonight 3-2 in 11 innings, a second place finish and second seed in the CICL Tournament will come down to a final game Saturday afternoon between the visiting Quincy Gems and East Peoria Scrappers. Each team will enter the game with identical 28-15 records.
No matter who wins, the same two teams will square off in one of the tournament semi-final playoff series beginning Monday, August 8. Saturday's winner will get to host the opening game of the series as well as the 3rd game, if necessary, so Saturday afternoon's game is for home field advantage as well as pride. Danville hosts Dubois County in the other series opener Monday night. |
Friday, August 5, 2005Bombers End Regular Season with a Win |
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| After dropping the opener of a doubleheader to the Springfield Rifles Friday night, the Dubois County Bombers bounced back in the second game with a 6-2 vistory to end their regular season with a 27-17 record.
The Rifles took an early 1-0 lead in the second inning of game 2 on a passed ball. The Bombers tied it in the 3rd on an RBI single by Jeff Cunningham (South Alabama), and took the lead for good with 2 runs in the 4th inning on 2 more passed balls. The Rifles closed the score to 3-2 with a run in the 5th on an error, but the Bombers put the game away with 3 runs in the 6th on a bases-loaded walk by Ryan Basham (Michigan State) and a 2 run single by Jeff Cunningham (South Alabama). Starter Cole Uebelhor (Indiana/Purdue Ft. Wayne) picked up the win to go to 4-0 for the season. Blake Helm (Lincoln Land CC) and Pete Elmer (Bradley) of the Rifles each had 2 hits. Cunningham had 2 hits for the Bombers. The Rifles have one game remaining, at Danville Saturday evening. |
Friday, August 5, 2005Gems Win 8th Straight |
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| The Quincy Gems won their 8th straight game tonight by a acore of 8-2 over the Galesburg Pioneers.
The Gems scored 4 runs in the bottom of the first inning and held onto the lead from there. The win went to Travis Sweet (Iowa) (3-1). The Pioneers' Zach Stead (Miami (Ohio)) and the Gems' Jay Molina (Illinois State) had home runs on the night, both of them 2-run homers. For the Gems, Jay Molina (Illinois State) went 4-4 with 4 RBI, Nathan Emrick (SIU - Carbondale) went 2-5 with an RBI and Pat Tumilty (Evansville) went 3-4. Lance Rhodes (St. Louis) had 2 hits, one a double for the Pioneers who totaled just 3 hits off Gems pitching. |
Friday, August 5, 2005Rifles Win First Game Over Bombers |
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In the first game of a doubleheader tonight in Huntingburg, Indiana, the Springfield Rifles ended Dubois County Bombers' effort at winning the #2 tournament seed by defeating the home team 3-2. Blaine Cravens The rifles scored the tie-breaking run in the top of the 7th on an RBI double by Nick Wilz (Edgewood), driving in Travis Scott (Lincoln Land CC) who had led the inning off with a double of his own. Dock Doyle (Coastal Carolina) had 2 hits and an RBI for the Rifles, and the other RBI was by winning pitcher Blaine Cravens (Lincoln Land CC). Cravens (2-5) pitched a complete game for the Rifles, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits. One of the hits was a home run by Ryan Basham (Michigan State) and another was a double by Scott Dunwoody (Missouri), who drove in the other Bombers run with the hit. Basham's homer puts him within 2 of the league lead in his drive for the Triple Crown. The Bombers loss means they are now locked in as the #4 seed for the tournament as the best they can do is tie with the Quincy Gems, and the Gems win the tie-breaker with the Bombers based on head-to-head results. |
Friday, August 5, 2005Scrappers 6, Stars 2 |
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After a nearly three hour delay due to lightning in the East Peoria area, the Scrappers defeated the Twin City Stars 6-2 to win the three-game series. Jake Stewart East Peoria's offense got rolling early, scoring five runs in the first inning. The runs scored came on a wild pitch, a passed ball, an RBI double from Ryan Curry (Bradley), and RBI singles from Craig Rohren (Dayton) and Cory Kral (Indiana State). A Jacob Smith (SIU - Edwardsville) RBI single in the eighth scored the final run of the game. Jake Stewart (Illinois) (4-2) gave up two runs in seven innings to earn the victory. He gave up eight hits but only one for extra bases. Aaron Saving and Aaron Hines (Oakland) each threw one scoreless inning to finish the game. Twin City outhit East Peoria 9-8, but was hurt by leaving 10 men on base. A two - run home run by Blake Nelson (San Francisco) in the fourth brought the Stars to within 5-2. Brian Dinkelman (McKendree), Ross McCoy (Wisconsin - Milwaukee), and Nelson all had two hits for Twin City. Craig Rohren (Dayton) was the only Scrapper to have multiple hits with two. |
Thursday, August 4, 2005Triple Crown Possibilities |
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| With just 2 regular season games and 2-6 possible tournament games left to play, Ryan Basham (Michigan State) of the Dubois County Bombers has an outside chance of winning the CICL Triple Crown. Basham currently leads the league in batting by 18 percentage points at .417, leads in RBI by 6 with 43, but his 5 home runs trails the leaders Shane Elenz (Maple Woods CC) and Ryan Curry (Bradley) of East Peoria by 3 long ones.
In its previous 42 seasons, the CICL has had 3 Triple Crown winners. In 1965, Joe Hague of the Galesburg team batted .362, had 13 homers and drove in 39 runs. Hague went on to play in the Major Leagues for Cincinnati and St. Louis. Aluminum bats weren't yet invented in 1965. In 1984, Loren White of the Springfield Rifles batted .409, banged out 20 home runs and knocked in 50 runs to win the Triple Crown. Can you tell if the league used aluminum bats in 1984? White played professional baseball but never made it to the big leagues. The very next year, 1985, Bernie Holland of the Springfield Rifles also won the Triple Crown, batting .410, hitting 11 homers and driving in 57 runs. Yes, aluminum! Tragically, Bernie Holland lost his life in a traffic accident before getting a chance at pro ball. Check out the links below for more year-by-year batting information and the sad comparison of how baseball has become ruined by aluminum bats. Year-By-Year Batting Wood vs. Aluminum |
Thursday, August 4, 2005Dans Rebound Over Bombers |
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The Danville Dans rebounded from last night's dramatic 9th inning loss to defeat the Dubois County Bombers this evening 7-4 in Huntingburg, Indiana. Chad Crosswhite The Dans scored 4 in the top of the first inning and never trailed enabling starter Chad Crosswhite (Mississippi State) to improve his record to 5-0. Mitch Moreland (Mississippi State) picked up his 7th save, entering the game in the 9th with 2 on and 1 out, walking the 1st batter faced to load the bases but then striking out the next 2 hitters to end the game. The Dans were led by 2 runs and 2 RBI by Danny Worth (Pepperdine) on 3 hits including 2 doubles. Justin Snyder (San Diego) had 2 hits, Mitch Moreland (Mississippi State) had 2 hits and an RBI and Jake Tranchant (Danville Area CC) also had 2 hits and and RBI. Mike Murray (Meridian CC) had 2 hits for the Bombers; four players each had an RBI. The loss dropped the Bombers to a full game behind Quincy and at least one game behind East Peoria in the race for the #2 tournament seed. Dubois has 2 games remaining - a doubleheader at home against Springfield on Friday night. |
Thursday, August 4, 2005Gems Defeat Pioneers |
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| The Quincy Gems continued its march towards a high tournament seed with its 7th straight and 9th win out of the last 10 games, a 7-0 victory over the Galesburg Pioneers Thursday night.
Gems pitchers Drew Wold (Northern Iowa), Jon Adams (Western Illinois) and Ben Geelan (Iowa) limited the Pioneers to 2 hits. Wold earned the win to improve to 2-0. The Gems offense was led by 3 RBI by Jake Owens (Northwestern) on a double and a ground ball. Travis Sweet (Iowa) had 2 RBI on a double and groundout. Jay Molina (Illinois State) had 2 hits and scored twice and Dan Pietroburgo (Missouri) added 2 hits. The Gems finish the regular season with a home game against Galesburg on Friday night and a game at East Peoria Saturday night. Pending results from East Peoria tonight, the Gems are 1/2 game out of a 2nd place tie at the moment. |
Wednesday, August 3, 2005Dubois Wins in Dramatic Fashion; Danville Clinches Anyway |
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| In Huntingburg, Indiana, this evening, the Dubois County Bombers scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to defeat the Danville Dans 5-4.
Despite the loss, the Dans clinched the 2005 CICL Regular Season title because East Peoria also lost tonight. The Dans seemingly were on their way to their 32nd victory of the season taking a 4-2 lead into the bottom of the 9th with ace reliever Mitch Moreland (Mississippi State) on the hill to close the game. Dubois County had other ideas. Kasey Wahl (Evansville) got things started with a single up the middle. With one out, Grant Achilles (Wake Forest) singled to left field; Wahl advancing to second. Mike Murray (Meridian CC) stepped to the plate and tripled home the tying runs. Kyle Smith (Evansville) was then intentionally walked to set up a lefty-lefty confrontation between the league's best hitter this season and one of the league's best relievers. That hitter, Ryan Basham (Michigan State), won the battle this at-bat and the game for the Bombers. Aaron Clark (Southern Indiana) pitched the final 1.1 innings for the Bombers and earned the win to go to 2-2. Murray had 3 hts and 3 RBI, Basham 2 hits and an RBI and Wahl 2 hits and an RBI for the Bombers. Moreland and Jeff Flagg (Mississippi State) had 2 hits for the Dans. |
Wednesday, August 3, 2005Gems Defeat Pioneers in Extra Innings |
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| Final score in Quincy is Quincy 12, Galesburg 11.
It was a dramatic game setup by numerous errors by both teams. The Pioneers took a solid lead in the 6th inning, scoring 7 runs, 6 of which were unearned. The Gems battled back to tie the game at 8 runs each in the bottom of the 7th and took the lead scoring three in the bottom of the eighth. The Pioneers had other plans, coming back to score three of their own in the top of the ninth inning. The Gems couldn't produce a run in the bottom of the ninth despite four straight innings with runs scored. They finally won the game with an RBI single to left field by Travis Sweet in the 11th inning. Jeff Niemiec (Michigan) picked up the win in relief to improve to 4-3. For Galesburg, Kevin Diete (St. Josephs), Brad Johnson (Forest Park CC) and Mark Bennett (Northwestern) all had doubles with 2 RBI each. Kyle Pettengell (Northern Illinois) also had 2 RBI. The Gems Nathan Emrick (SIU - Carbondale) went 3 for 5 with 2 doubles and 1 RBI. Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) went 3-4 with 2 RBI. Pioneers starting pitcher, Andrew Silver (Rockhurst), had to leave the game in the 6th after taking a line drive by Pat Tumilty (Evansville) to the ribs. He managed to throw Tumilty out at 1st and walked off the field after being examined by the athletic trainers. He appeared to be OK. |
Wednesday, August 3, 2005Rifles Win With Big 9th Inning |
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In Springfield, a game with many twists and turns was finally concluded in the bottom of the 9th inning with a 2 out bases loaded single by Travis Scott which drove home the winning run in a 9-8 Springfield Rifles victory over DuPage County. Travis Scott Springfield scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning after giving up 4 runs in the top of the 8th and then scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th on a 2 run home run by Ryan Hypke (SIU - Carbondale). Springfield outhit DuPage 19-12 with all 9 batters for each team having at least 1 hit. Springfield reliever and winner Dorsey Strickland (Coastal Carolina), who evened his record at 1-1, struck out the last 4 DuPage hitters. DuPage scored 4 runs on 3 hits, 2 walks and an error in the 3rd inning and 4 more on 5 hits in the 8th inning. Springfield was led by Blake Helm (Lincoln Land CC) who had 4 hits and an RBI, Joey Albsmeyer (Webber International) with 3 hits, 2 runs and an RBI, Dock Doyle (Coastal Carolina) with 3 hits a run and 2 RBI, Ryan Hypke (SIU - Carbondale) with 2 hits, 2 runs and 2 RBI including a home run, Blaine Cravens (Lincoln Land CC) with 2 hits, 2 runs and an RBI and Travis Scott (Lincoln Land CC) with 2 hits and 2 RBI. DuPage County was led by Victor Ferrante (Solano CC) with 3hits, a run 1 run and 2 RBI, Ruairi O'Connor (Florida State) with 2 hits, a run and RBI and Justin Zarley (College of the Canyons CC) with a hit, 2 runs and 2 RBI. |
Wednesday, August 3, 2005Stars Top Scrappers |
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| The biggest crowd of the year turned out tonignt in Bloomington at Jack Horenberger Field for Danny Perganson Night and the Twin City Stars didn't let Danny or the fans down, staging a 4-3 come-from-behind win over East Peoria.
East Peoria scored single runs in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th to take a 3-0 lead and held that lead until the 6th inning. With 1 out, Brian Dinkelman (McKendree) walked and Ross McCoy (Wisconsin - Milwaukee) singled. With runners on first and second Chris Bacigalupi (Marin CC) doubled, scoring Dinkelman. Nick Sandy (Grand Valley State) followed suit with a single, driving in McCoy. Then, with 2 outs Julian Brown (Appalachian State) came through in the clutch with an RBI single to tie the game at 3. In the 7th the Stars took the lead for good. With 1 out Shan Sullivan (Angelo State) doubled and East Peoria intentionally walked Dinkelman. McCoy followed with an infield single to load the bases, which set up a sacrifice fly by Bacigalupi to score Sullivan with what turned out to be the game winning run. Craig Reynolds (Adrian) came on to pitch for the Stars in the 7th and picked up his 2nd win in relief by pitching 3 scoreless innings, allowing only 1 walk. Ross McCoy (Wisconsin - Milwaukee) had 3 hits for the Stars and Chris Bacigalupi (Marin CC) picked up 2 RBI. For the Scrappers, Bill Musselman (St. Louis) had 2 hits, one of which was a double, and an RBI. Jeff Darnall (SIU - Edwardsville) also had an RBI. |
Wednesday, August 3, 2005Quincy Clinches Final Playoff Spot |
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| The Quincy Gems defeated the Galesburg Pioneers 9-1 Tuesday evening to complete the roster of teams that will participate in the 2005 CICL Tournament.
Danville already has clinched the #1 seed, but the other seeds will be determined by results of the regular season's final games that will end on Saturday, August 6. Currently, East Peoria has a 2 game lead on both Dubois County and Quincy for the #2 seed. The tournament begins on Monday, August 8, at Danville and at the #2 seed. The Gems scored 1 in the 1st and 5 more in the 3rd inning to take an early 6-0 lead and coasted from there. Tim Smid (UA Fort Smith JC) (3-1) pitched 7 innings, allowing just 3 hits and no runs to earn the victory. Jon Adams (Western Illinois) and Bobby Mahon (Western Illinois) finished up. Jay Molina (Illinois State) and T.J. Kistner (Western Illinois) each had 2 RBI for the Gems. Kistner also had 3 hits and Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) and Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) each had 2 hits. Galesburg scored its only run on a home run by Kyle Pettengell (Northern Illinois). The Pioneers had only 4 hits, 2 by Pettengell and 2 by Steven Scott (Lynchburg). |
Tuesday, August 2, 2005Scrappers Defeat Stars |
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| East Peoria won 13-3 over Twin City at the EastSide Centre in East Peoria
tonight. Shane Elenz (Maple Woods CC) had an outstanding night at the plate, going 4-5 with two home runs, three RBI's, two runs scored, while falling a single shy of hitting for the cycle. Elenz was part of an East Peoria hit parade that banged out four home runs and had 14 hits for the game. C.J. Webb (Ball State)'s grand slam and Cory Kral (Indiana State)'s solo home run sparked a six run rally in the fourth for East Peoria. Jeff Darnall (SIU - Edwardsville) and Kral each had two hits for the Scrappers, who scored one in the second inning, five in the third inning and six in the fourth inning to take a commanding 12-0 lead. Aaron Lovett (Kaskaskia CC) (3-2) pitched 6.2 strong innings, allowing three runs on eight hits and striking out four to pick up the win. He was helped by a fine defensive play from second baseman Ryan Curry (Bradley) in the seventh. Leading off the inning for Twin City, Chris Turner (Southern Indiana) hit a bouncing ball up the middle. Curry went to his right, fielded the ball on the run, leaped in the air, and threw the ball to first to get the runner. Brian Dinkelman (McKendree) had three hits for the Stars, including a two - run homer. Ross McCoy (Wisconsin - Milwaukee) and Chris Bacigalupi (Marin CC) added two hits a piece. |
Tuesday, August 2, 2005Danville Clinches Top Seed |
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| The Danville Dans defeated the Dubois Cinty Bombers this evening by a final score of 3-2 to clinch the #1 CICL ournament Seed, and clinch at least a tie for the regular season title.
The Dans earn the #1 seed ahead of clinching the league title by winning the tie-breaker agains East Peoria should they end up with identical won-loss recods of 31-13, which would happen only if the Dans lose the remainder of its 4 games and the Scrappers win the remainder of its 4 games. The Dans defeated the Scrappers 4-2 in head-to-head compeition to win the tie-breaker. The Dans won tonight's game with a run in the bottom of the 9th inning on an unearned run driven in by a 2-out Nick Hardy (Meridian CC) double. Hardy fouled off three 2-2 pitches from Dubois County reliever Brent Wendholt (Vincennes CC) before driving a pitch down the right-field line. The ball bounced down the line and past Bomber right fielder Bruce Sprowl (Louisiana State) allowing Barton, who reached on an error, to score from first base. Danville reliever David Pherrin (Cal State - Fullerton) tossed four scoreless innings to earn his fourth win of the season. Pherrin got out of a second and third situation in the top of the ninth by getting CICL leading hitter Ryan Basham (Michigan State) to pop out. Basham was 1-for-5 with an RBI double in the third. Dubois County pitcher Javier Martinez (Fordham) got a no decision after allowing two runs - only one earned - in eight innings. He allowed just three hits, walked 10 batters and struck out seven. Danville shortstop Danny Worth (Pepperdine) was the only player for the Dans with multiple hits with two singles. Kasey Wahl (Evansville) and Sprowl both had two singles for Dubois County. |
Tuesday, August 2, 2005Dragons Sweep Rifles in Twin Bill |
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| The Dupage Dragons swept a doubleheader from the Springfield Rifles in CICL play at the Lisle-Benedictine Sports Complex on Tuesday night. The Dragons got solid pitching performances in both games to win 12-3 and 3-2. The victories snapped a seven game losing streak and brought the Dragons back to .500 on the season.
Game One: Dupage 12, Springfield 3 The Dragons plated six runs in the first inning and that was more than enough for starting pitcher Dustin Birosak (Fullerton CC). Birosak (1-0) went the distance in his first start as a Dragon. He pitched the full seven innings and allowed just five hits while walking one and striking out seven. He gave up three runs to the Rifles in the fifth inning, but all of them were unearned. In the first inning the Dragons plated six runs off of Springfield starter Tyler Buhlig (Lincoln Land CC) (0-2). Geoff Dietz (Northwestern) led off the inning with a single and moved to third when Eddie Smith (Notre Dame) doubled. Dietz scored on an RBI ground out by Ruairi O'Connor (Florida State). Joe Dunigan (Oklahoma) then singled to move runners to the corners when Victor Ferrante (Solano CC) lifted a deep fly to left that was misplayed. Miles Morgan (Texas Tech) drove a double down the left field line to make the score 3-0, and Billy Duffy (Lewis) followed with a double that drove in two runs. Kevin Kaminski (Harper CC) drove in his first run as a Dragon with a ground out. In the third the Dragons plated four more against Buhlig. Kaminski drove in two with a single to right. Dietz connected on the first of two doubles to put runners at second and third. Eddie Smith then drove in a run with a ground out and Dietz scored on a wild pitch. The other Dragon runs came in the fourth on Dunigan’s fifth homer, and in the sixth after a Dietz double, Smith drove him in with a single to left field. Geoff Dietz had three hits to lead the Dragon hit parade which totaled 14 hits. Eddie Smith, Joe Dunigan, Miles Morgan, and Tommy Rawski (Lewis) each had two hits. Rawski, a pitcher, started in right field. Ryan Kendrick (Webber International) had two hits for the Rifles and Blaine Cravens (Lincoln Land CC) drove in two runs with a single. Game Two: Dupage 3, Springfield 2 The Dragons plated three runs over the final two frames to make a winner of Miles Morgan (Texas Tech) in his final start of the summer. The win was the fifth of the season in the final at bat for the Dragons. Trailing 2-0, the Dragons got consecutive hits to start the sixth against Eric Lambert (Indiana/Purdue Ft. Wayne). Kevin Kaminski (Harper CC) singled and Geoff Dietz (Northwestern) followed with his fifth hit of the twin-bill. Ruairi O'Connor (Florida State) delivered an RBI single to center with runners at second and third and one out. Dietz scored the tying run when Joe Dunigan (Oklahoma) lifted a fly ball to the deepest part of the park. With the game tied in the bottom of the seventh Miles Morgan (Texas Tech) helped his own cause by leading off with a sharp single off of Springfield reliever Pete Elmer (Bradley) (0-2). Billy Duffy (Lewis) laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Morgan to scoring position. Tim Swanson (Benedictine) recorded his first hit of the year to put runners on the corners with one out. Against a drawn in infield Kevin Kaminski (Harper CC) laid down a perfect safety squeeze to score Morgan with the winning run. Morgan pitched a complete game, his third of the summer, to earn his fifth win which ties him for the CICL lead. It was his first win since before the All-Star break. In seven innings, Morgan struck out 11 and walked none, his second consecutive start with ten or more strikeouts. He allowed just two runs, only one earned, on four hits. Geoff Dietz (Northwestern) was the only Dragon to record multiple hits, registering two of the team’s seven. Blaine Cravens (Lincoln Land CC) had two of the four hits for the Rifles. Lambert got a no decision, working six innings and allowing two runs on five hits with five strikeouts. |
Tuesday, August 2, 2005Papelbon Makes MLB Debut |
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| Jon Papelbon, a Danville Dan in 2001, made his big league debut for the Boston Red Sox on Sunday, July 31, against the Minnesota Twins, starting and going 5.1 innings. The right-hander gave up 3 runs, 2 earned, but had no decision.
In 2001, the native of Baton Rouge was 2-1 with a 2.51 ERA in 10 appearances, 9 in relief. Papelbon pitched just 14.1 innings striking out 21 of the 61 batters he faced. He pitched in Danville after his freshman year at Mississippi State University. Papelbon becomes the 156th CICL alumni to make the major leagues in the 42 year history of the CICL. |
Monday, August 1, 2005Players of the Week #7 |
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The CICL Player of the Week Award for the 7th week of the season goes to infielder Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) of the Quincy Gems. Matt Whitmore Playing in 4 games during the week, the native of Windsor, Illinois, led the league is several offensive categories in helping the Gems go 5-1. His league-leading statistics included batting average at .611 (11-18), slugging percentage at 1.111, on-base percentage at .667, runs scored with 9, total bases with 20, and tying for the league lead with 2 home runs and 5 stolen bases. He was also second in triples with 3, 3rd in RBI with 8 and tied for 3rd in hits with 11. Mitch raised his season batting average to .344, 7th in the league. Hilligoss will be junior this fall at Purdue. The CICL Pitcher of the Week Award is shared this week between Eric Theisen (Illinois State) of the Twin City Stars and Matt Whitmore (Illinois) of the East Peoria Scrappers. Theisen pitched 8 innings of shutout baseball in the Stars' July 29 2-0 shutout win over Galesburg. The right-hander from Adrian, Michigan, struck out 12 Pioneers in his 8 innings of work, scattering 6 hits, all singles. Eric will be a junior this fall at Illinois State University. Whitmore pitched a 7 inning complete game shutout over the Galesburg Pioneers in the first game of a doubleheader on July 28, allowing 4 hits and striking out 13 batters. Also a right-hander, Matt is from Prospect, Indiana, and will be a senior this fall at the University of Illinois. Click on 2005 Awards to see all 2005 weekly player awards. |
Monday, August 1, 2005Gems Defeat Rifles |
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| In Springfield, Quincy pounded out 17 hits and scored in 6 different innings on the way to a 12-2 win over Springfield.
Quincy starter and winner, Nathan Beuster (Culver - Stockton), picked up his first decision of the season while going 5 innings and giving up 2 runs. Springfield starter and loser, Zach Cordier (Webber International), fell to 1-1 while going 5 innings and giving up 4 runs. Quincy was led by Mitch Hilligoss (Purdue) who was 5-5 with 3 runs scored and 4 RBI. His hits included a home run, 2 doubles and 2 singles and a walk. Nathan Emrick (SIU - Carbondale) was 3-5 with 2 runs and 2 RBI. His hits included a triple, double and single. Other players with multiple hit games were Jay Molina (Illinois State) 2-5 and 2 RBI, Pat Tumilty (Evansville) 2-6 including a home run, Anthony Albano (Florida Atlantic) 2-4 and Ben Geelan (Iowa) 2-4. Leadoff hitter Jason White (Iowa) drew 4 walks and scored 3 runs. Springfield was led by Blaine Cravens (Lincoln Land CC) who was 3-4 and Ryan Hypke (SIU - Carbondale) who was 2/5. |
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