Last spring, a young Brother Rice squad hit and hustled its way to a fourth-place Class AA state finish, a surprising achievement for a team that relied on a freshman shortstop, a sophomore to head the pitching staff and played without a senior in the starting lineup.
And the Crusaders are back — all of them — with hitters one through nine from an offense that tallied 310 runs, along with their top four pitchers.
With so much returning experience from last year’s 30-12 squad, senior second baseman Mike McQuillan, a four-year starter, said he knows expectations are high, with or without the label of the Sun-Times’ preseason No. 1 team.
“Everybody knows we’ve got a huge target on our backs,” said McQuillan, an Iowa recruit. “I don’t think any of last season went to our heads; we’ve all worked hard in the offseason. But we’re expecting to be the best team in the state. All we can do is just play hard, because that’s what we do.”
1 | Brother Rice: McQuillan (.425 average, 10 doubles, 45 runs) sets the table for the Crusaders, and is followed by Lewis recruits third baseman Cameron Anello (.407, 16 doubles) and outfielder Ryan Wischhover (.372, 36 RBI), senior outfielder Doug Schumacher (.396, 10 HRs, 40 RBI) and 6-6 senior left-handed hitting first baseman Tom Hickey (seven HRs).
Sophomore shortstop Kevin Koziol, who is the Prep Baseball Report’s No. 1-ranked sophomore, junior outfielder Bob Schuch, junior outfielder Kevin Koehler and junior catcher Ricky Palmer add further offensive firepower.
Although the Crusaders don’t possess dominant power arms, junior lefty Pat Gannon (8-2), Koziol (6-0, four saves), Wischhover (13 wins in two seasons) and senior Sean O’Reilly (1-1) give coach Tim Lyons plenty of depth.
“I think we’re really strong offensively and defensively,” Wischhover said. “With the defense behind us, I think we can relax more.”
But it won’t be easy. The Crusaders, who compete in the Chicago Catholic Blue, will have to go through No. 2 St. Rita, No. 7 Mount Carmel, No. 10 Providence and No. 19 Fenwick in conference play.
2 | St. Rita: On paper, coach Mike Zunica calls this year’s squad “the best team I’ve ever coached.” That’s a bold statement considering the Mustangs advanced to the state quarterfinals for the second time in four years. Louisville-bound pitcher Tony Zych (9-4; .405 average) is one of seven starters back. The Mustangs have arguably the state’s best junior class, led by slick-fielding shortstop Justin Kopale (.368), first baseman Angelo Burrage (19 extra-base hits) and pitcher Scott Marinier (4-0, 2.85 ERA). Outfielder Mark Payton is one of the top sophomores in the state, and seniors Diego Martinez and Jason Kafka also return.
3 | St. Charles North: With four pitchers who throw in the mid-to-upper 80s, the North Stars are loaded with top-level arms. Senior pitcher Danny Jimenez (John A. Logan JC) is one of the state’s hardest throwers, and he is joined by junior Zach Hirsch (8-0, 0.93 ERA), Brian de la Torriente (Northern Iowa) and Sam Weinberg (Western Michigan). Illinois State recruit Jake Thornton (.467, 32 stolen bases) is the offensive catalyst.
4 | Sandburg: The Eagles won 27 consecutive games to capture the summer state championship, so don’t be surprised if they add some more hardware this spring. Summer tournament MVP Greg Billo (St. Joseph’s, Ind.), pitchers Will Keuper (Harvard) and Alex Zarate (Heartland CC) provide excellent pitching depth. Senior catcher Jim Pipolo and senior first baseman Steve Kaffel are big run producers.
5 | Neuqua Valley: With its three top pitchers returning, the defending Class AA state champions have the talent to repeat. Pitcher Ian Krol (9-1, 1.13 ERA), the Prep Baseball Report’s No. 1-ranked junior, and pitchers Mike McKinley (7-0, 1.31 ERA), a junior, and senior Geoff Rowan (eight wins, eight HRs) give coach Robin Renner experience. The graduation of Rob Elliott leaves a hole in the lineup. Look for junior outfielder Jordan Williamson to pick up the slack.
6 | Prairie Ridge: First-year coach Dave Haskins inherits a well-rounded team that features five Division I signees. Pitcher T.J. Swank (Coastal Carolina) is one of the toughest pitchers in the state, and he will be joined in the starting rotation by 6-5 Michael Heesch (Nebraska) and senior Sam Zagone. Kansas State-bound outfielder Nick Martini (.435, .783 slugging percentage), is arguably the state’s best hitter. Slick-fielding shortstop Bobby Martin (Ohio), catcher David Mitroff (Liberty), junior catcher Nolan Jacoby and pitcher Don Baran also return.
7 | Mount Carmel: The Caravan graduated three Division I pitchers, yet coach Brian Hurry has enough quality arms to compete with anyone. Pitchers Jonah Klees (Harvard) and junior Kevin Johnson (4-1, 1.59 ERA) are a stellar tandem, in addition to senior Chris Heaney and junior Mike Sterling. Catcher Matt Mirabal (Illinois State) has a cannon behind the plate.
8 | Lake Zurich: The Bears advanced to the summer state tournament’s Elite Eight behind the strength of Penn State recruit Joey DeBernardis (.400, 10 HRs, 39 RBI), junior pitcher Tanner Witt, senior infielder Peter Romanello and a host of other returning talent.
9 | Carmel: Southern Illinois recruit Jordan Sivertsen (eight HRs, 44 RBI, 40 runs, .802 slugging), one of the state’s best two-way threats, pitcher Bobby Lyne (9-2, 1.78 ERA), outfielder Joey Pudlo (St. Joseph’s) and second baseman John Zeffery (.448 average) lead the Corsairs.
10 | Providence: The Celtics feature six returning pitchers, including four quality left-handers, and five returning starters. Left-handers Casey Webber (Western Michigan) and Phil Trowbridge (St. Joseph’s, Ind.) lead the staff while senior outfielder Greg Bennett (.410, 30 RBI) spearheads the offense.
11 | Oak Park: The Huskies return nearly their entire supersectional team from 2007. Coach Chris Ledbetter welcomes back three frontline starters, including three-year left-handed ace Drew Golz (9-1, 1.77 ERA) and senior Kyle Glancy (4-0). Top-level junior shortstop Anthony Maldonado (.318, 39 RBI) and junior infielder Sam Picchiotti (five HRs, 26 RBI) are both coming off breakout sophomore campaigns.
12 | Stevenson: Paul Mazzuca takes over for long-time coach Bob Mackey, and he inherits a stellar pitching staff that includes hard-throwing juniors Scott Firth, Brad Sorkin and Matt Robin to go with St. Louis recruit Andrew Meister. Infielder Matt Goll leads the offense.
13 | Schaumburg: Offensively, few teams are as potent as the Saxons. Coach Paul Groot returns seven starters, led by Purdue-bound catcher Dominick D’Agata (school-record 17 doubles), Eastern Illinois recruit George Kalousek (seven HRs, eight doubles, 34 RBI; 6-2 record), junior twins Mike (seven HRs, .434) and Matt Mistrata (five HRs, .395), senior center fielder Steve Mahler, and junior shortstop Dave Compitello (.460, 14 stolen bases).
14 | Lockport: Pitcher Steve Sabatino (5-3, 2.24 ERA), a Notre Dame recruit, anchors the rotation. Infielder Mike Frigo (Western Michigan) returns, along with junior outfielder Jon Cisna, catcher Josh Stanton (Central Iowa), senior outfielder Matt Benton and junior pitcher Brandon Duplessis.
15 | Lyons: The 2007 Sun-Times Athlete of the Year Casey McMurray is now playing at Illinois, but the Lions still have plenty of talent. Coach George Ushela returns four starters and terrific all-around depth, led by senior catcher Ed Viliunas (.348, eight HRs), senior pitcher Brian Lorenz, pitcher C.J. Esposito and senior shortstop Ryan McMillin.
16 | Joliet Catholic: Don’t expect another sub-.500 season from the Hilltoppers with six starters back. In fact, JCA is one of the heavy favorites to bring home a state title in watered-down Class 3A. Arizona State recruit John Ruettiger (.423, 10 doubles, 28 RBI) leads the way, along with senior pitcher Steve Kazak (St. Francis) and junior pitcher A.J. Plese.
17 | New Trier: The state runners-up graduated a stellar class. But coach Mike Napoleon, who is four wins shy of 600, has a potentially explosive offense with senior first baseman Will Neal (seven HRs, 10 doubles, 40 RBI), Illinois State recruit Mark Menaker, first baseman Justin Wells (Franklin & Marshall) and senior pitcher Dillon Napoleon (Heartland CC). Napoleon, senior J.B. Blanchard and Bucknell recruit Jack Boehm lead the pitching staff.
18 | Hinsdale South: The Hornets advanced to the summer Elite Eight after enduring a sub-par spring. Shortstop Carl Fiebig (Villanova) returns as the team’s offensive catalyst, along with junior pitcher Connor Duckhorn, outfielder Gary Mayberry. Pitchers Joe Begel and Ryan Zenger also return.
19 | Fenwick: The Friars opened a lot of eyes when they finished second at the summer state tournament. Shortstop Reid Rooney (.385, eight doubles, Central Michigan recruit) headlines six returning starters. Junior Mike Falsetti is one of the state’s top defensive catchers, and junior Cam Verbeke and senior Joe Sweeney join Rooney to give the Friars three solid frontline pitchers.
20 | Benet: The Redwings graduated several key contributors, but Illinois recruit Bryan Roberts (7-3, 1.91 ERA) can carry a heavy load on the mound and at the plate. The Redwings feature a strong junior class, led by outfielder Pat Gelwicks, shortstop Alex Staehely, infielder Mike Chmielewski, pitcher John Boyle and junior catcher Matt O’Rourke.
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