St. Charles East answers Wheaton North rally with five-run sixth in 7-4 victory
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WHE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| ST. | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 7 |
St. Charles East regained control with a five-run sixth inning Saturday and beat Wheaton North 7-4 at home, turning a tense one-run game into a three-run win. The decisive stretch came after the Falcons briefly moved in front on a two-run home run in the top of the fifth, only to see the Saints answer immediately and then break the game open an inning later.
The Saints struck first in the bottom of the first. Dylan McCabe singled with one out and James Feigleson followed with a walk. After McCabe was picked off, Gavin Fuscone doubled to bring home Feigleson for a 1-0 lead. From there, both starting pitchers settled in and traded scoreless innings until Wheaton North broke through in the fifth. Even in that inning, St. Charles East limited the damage. With the infield playing in, second baseman Andrew Evans threw out a runner at the plate for the second out, a defensive play that kept the Falcons from adding to their lead.
Wheaton North still went ahead 2-1 on the two-run homer in the top of the fifth, but the Saints answered in the bottom half. Kyle LaRose lined a one-out triple down the left-field line and scored one batter later when McCabe lifted a sacrifice fly to left, tying the game and swinging momentum back to St. Charles East.
The Saints did their biggest damage in the sixth. Fuscone opened the inning with his second double of the day, and Nate Moline followed with a bunt single before stealing second to put two runners in scoring position. Niko Vahmistrovs then hit a one-out sacrifice fly to center, scoring Fuscone and moving Moline to third. Mason Daros added an infield single to drive in Moline. After pinch-hitter Tyler Phillips reached on an infield error, LaRose ripped a two-out double down the right-field line to score courtesy runner Sean Groselak and Phillips. Two batters later, Feigleson singled to left to bring home LaRose and extend the lead to 7-2.
St. Charles East also came up with another key defensive play in the sixth. After Wheaton North led off with a double and tried to bunt the runner to third, LaRose got the batter to pop the bunt up, and first baseman McCabe made a sliding catch for the first out. The Falcons were held scoreless in the inning, a sequence that preserved the Saints' momentum before the late push in the seventh.
Moline started and worked 4 1/3 innings, allowing three hits and two earned runs while walking three and striking out six. LaRose finished the final 2 2/3 innings, giving up four hits and two earned runs with one walk and four strikeouts. At the plate, LaRose went 2 for 4 with a double, a triple, two RBIs and two runs scored. Fuscone also finished 2 for 4 with two doubles, giving him 11 on the season, plus an RBI and a run scored. Daros was 2 for 3 with an RBI, while Feigleson, Vahmistrovs and McCabe each drove in a run as the Saints closed out the 7-4 win.
The Saints' win improved their record to 14-4 overall and 6-1 in the Dukane Conference.
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