Baseball

By Steve Raymond

The News Report

Unfortunately, there just wasn’t much to cheer about Friday morning.

The Effingham Hearts made an amazing run through the postseason, reeling off five straight victories and accumulating regional, sectional and super sectional championship plaques along the way.

But that streak came to an end Friday morning when the Hearts were dealt a 9-1 setback to Grayslake Central in a semifinal game of the Class 3A State Baseball Tournament, played at Duly Health & Care Field in Joliet.

The Rams, who were making their first state tourney appearance since 2014, jumped ahead early and then extended that lead, eventually owning a nine-run cushion.

The Hearts didn’t get their first hit or only run until the sixth inning.

“This was a learning experience,” said EHS coach Curran McNeely. “For our kids, it opened their eyes a little to the style of baseball they’re going to find at this level. Small things get amplified, especially when you play as good of a team as we did today.”

Small things like hit batters and walks. In addition to banging out nine hits, Grayslake Central received 10 additional baserunners – six via walks plus four hit batters.

And that started immediately.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

The last time Effingham High School’s baseball team played in the state tournament the game was just a bit different.

There were no turf fields and all the uniforms were wool.

There were no pitch counts, courtesy runners, batting helmets or aluminum bats.

That was in 1942.

Thanks to the 2023 Effingham Hearts, that 81-year state tournament drought is now over.

That was accomplished Monday night when this “refuse to die” team posted a 4-0 victory over Champaign Central to capture the Decatur Super Sectional and earn a berth in the Class 3A State Baseball Tournament.

The Hearts, now 22-15, will face Grayslake Central (33-7) at 10 a.m. Friday at Duly Health & Care Field in Joliet.

Not bad for a team that many figured would be “one and done” when the postseason opened. But this group responded with four straight wins to go along with regional and sectional championship plaques.

Monday night’s win makes it five in a row with even more hardware for the school’s trophy case.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

Josh McDevitt admitted he wasn’t sharp.

“It was just one of those days nothing was working for me,” he said. “My curve was off the plate and my fastball was going all over the place.”

Yes, that is true.

But make no mistake about it. He was still pretty darn good.

Effingham’s senior righthander allowed only one hit and two unearned runs. And his teammates provided plenty of support, including a seven-run eruption in the opening inning.

And when McDevitt recorded the final out on a ground ball, the Hearts had secured a 9-2 victory over Troy Triad in an opening-round game of the Centralia Class 3A Sectional.

“He didn’t have his best stuff, but he has a great demeanor on the mound,” EHS coach Curran McNeely said. “He struggled a little bit, but he kept battling. He’s a great kid.”

These two teams met on April 25. It was just the fourth game of the season for the Hearts, who were shutout 4-0 and limited to just four hits. McDevitt didn’t fare well, giving seven hits and four runs, while throwing 91 pitches.

“Josh wasn’t sharp yet and we didn’t hit the ball at all,” McNeely recalled.

Wednesday night was a different story.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

When the postseason pairings were released for Class 3A baseball, it’s safe to say few – if anybody – expected Effingham to be facing Champaign Central in the super sectional for a chance to make a trip to the state tournament.

Most so-called experts predicted it would be Mahomet-Seymour or Chatham Glenwood battling either Mascoutah or Troy Triad.

But – as the old sports saying goes – “That’s why you play the games.”

So, when that first pitch of the Decatur Super Sectional is thrown Monday night, it will be the Effingham Hearts and Champaign Central Maroons squaring off. The game is slated for 6 p.m. at the Workman Family Baseball Field, located on the Millikin University campus in Decatur.

The winner will advance to the Class 3A State Tournament, which will be held Friday and Saturday at the Duly Health & Care Field in Joliet.

The Maroons, winners of eight straight games, captured the Lincoln Sectional with a 4-2 win over Rochester.

The Hearts, winners of five in a row, used a big fifth inning to pull ahead and then rolled to a 6-3 victory over Mt. Vernon to claim the Centralia Sectional title.

“This postseason has been a testament to our kids,” said EHS coach Curran McNeely, who is completing his third season at the helm. “They really bought into our process. We had an up and down regular season, but they continued to work hard and improve on the routine things that help you win ballgames. We’re playing with a lot of confidence right now.”

That confidence got shaken a bit Saturday morning. After building a 2-0 lead, Mt. Vernon scored the tying runs in the bottom of the fourth, taking advantage of one hit, a walk and two errors.

But the Hearts responded immediately.

The Effingham Hearts are playing their best baseball at exactly the right time.

The Hearts put together a pair of good games to start the postseason, both resulting in victories. One was a walk-off thriller and the second was much more comfortable.

But with the 8-1 win over Marion on Saturday, Effingham – the No. 3 seed -- claimed the championship of the Class 3A Olney Regional.

The Hearts will now advance to the Centralia Sectional. They will play Troy Triad at 6:30 p.m. at Sprehe Field in Centralia.

The game with Marion was close until the fifth inning when the Hearts combined three hits, four walks, one balk and one hit batter to score six times and blow the game open.

Spencer Fox got a lead-off single to start the fifth-inning uprising. He went to third on a base hit by John Harper and scored on a balk. Camden Raddatz and Quest Hull then walked to load the bases and Myles Maxedon delivered a two-run single.

Colton Webb was hit by a pitch to load the bases again and Evan Waymoth and Fox both walked to force in runs. The final run of the inning scored on a passed ball.