Joliet Central Rallies Late to Secure 6-2 Victory Over Crete-Monee

The Joliet Central varsity baseball team used a late-game offensive surge to defeat non-conference host Crete-Monee 6-2 on Saturday afternoon. After battling through a tightly contested first four innings, the visitors broke the game open with five combined runs in the fifth and sixth frames to pull away for the victory.

Crete-Monee struck first in the opening inning, manufacturing a run to take an early 1-0 lead. The hosts relied on aggressive baserunning throughout the contest, swiping an impressive 10 bases on the day to keep the pressure on the Joliet Central defense.

The visitors quickly responded in the top of the second inning, plating a single run to tie the game at 1-1. The score remained deadlocked until the top of the fifth, when the Joliet Central bats came to life against Crete-Monee starting pitcher Dylan Dee.

Joliet Central erupted for a three-run rally in the fifth inning to take a 4-1 advantage, marking their first lead of the game. They followed up in the top of the sixth with two more insurance runs, stretching their lead to a commanding 6-1.

Senior Gilberto Garcia paced the Joliet Central offense with a perfect 2-for-2 day at the plate, ripping two doubles and driving in a run. He also earned the victory on the mound with a stellar extended relief appearance. Garcia tossed 4.2 innings, allowing zero earned runs on just one hit while striking out six and navigating around five walks.

Senior Tyler Long also provided a massive spark for the visitors, finishing 2-for-3 with two doubles and two runs scored. Vincent Perkins was highly productive as well, driving in a run with a double during his perfect 2-for-2 afternoon.

Despite the loss, Crete-Monee received a strong offensive showing from sophomore Wyatt Love, who went 2-for-4. Junior Bryce Milburn reached base in all three of his plate appearances, drawing a walk and adding two of Crete-Monee’s 10 stolen bases. The hosts managed to scratch across a final run in the bottom of the seventh, but it was not enough to overcome Joliet Central’s late-inning surge.

Game Summary

Score by Quarters

(Note: Innings played)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|—|—|—|—|—|—|—|—|—|—|—|
| Joliet Central | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 10 | 4 |
| Crete-Monee | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
(Note: Crete-Monee committed 1 fielding error per the box score, despite the 0 in the line score)

Scoring Drives

• 1st Inning: Crete-Monee strikes first, pushing a run across in the bottom half to take a 1-0 lead.

• 2nd Inning: Joliet Central answers with a single run in the top half to tie the game at 1-1.

• 5th Inning: Joliet Central breaks the tie with a three-run rally, taking a 4-1 advantage.

• 6th Inning: Joliet Central tacks on two insurance runs to extend their lead to 6-1.

• 7th Inning: Crete-Monee plates a final run in the bottom of the seventh, but falls 6-2.

Individual Statistics

BATTING:

• Joliet Central: Gilberto Garcia 2-4, 2 2B, 1 RBI; Tyler Long 2-3, 2 2B, 2 R; Robert Pena 2-3, 1 R; Vincent Perkins 2-2, 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R; Saul Luna 1-2, 2B, 1 R; Xavier Lenoir 1-3.

• Crete-Monee: Wyatt Love 2-4; Bryce Milburn 0-0, 2 R, 1 BB; AJ Monegan 0-3, 1 BB; Carter Graham 0-1, 1 BB; Chris Schubbe 0-2, 1 BB; Keegan Quaderer 0-3, 1 BB.

BASERUNNING:

• Joliet Central: Saul Luna 1 SB.

• Crete-Monee: Carter Graham 2 SB; Chris Schubbe 2 SB; Bryce Milburn 2 SB; Jack Deutsche 2 SB; AJ Monegan 1 SB; Robert Flores 1 SB.

PITCHING:

• Joliet Central: Gilberto Garcia (W) 4.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 5 BB, 6 K; Tyler Long 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.

• Crete-Monee: Dylan Dee (L) 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 K; Tyler Burnett 1.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K; Gavin Jemilo 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K.