Class 4A baseball semifinals
A Quick Look
Prairie Ridge (24-16) vs. Providence (26-14)
When: 3 p.m. Friday
Where: Joliet’s Silver Cross Field
For Prairie Ridge: The Wolves have won 14 of their past 16 games to get here. DH-1B Marcus Sargeant (.319, one homer, 27 RBIs), LF Kyle Buresch (.296, one, 27) and P-1B Austin Covers (.275, one, 24) are the Wolves’ biggest offensive threats. … Covers (3-0, 0.63 ERA, 40 strikeouts in 33 1/2 innings) and Ben Cilano (5-0, 0.65, 57 strikeouts in 53 2/3 innings) have been the top starters. Jack Myers closed every postseason game until Monday’s Rockford Aviators Supersectional.
For Providence: The Celtics came from behind to beat Edwardsville, 6-5, in the University of Illinois Supersectional. Dylan Rosa (.403 average, 10 homer, 52 RBIs) and Phil Kunsa (.359, 11, 42) are the big run producers. … Jake Godfrey, a 6-foot-3 right-hander headed to LSU, is 6-6 with a 3.02 ERA and 90 strikeouts in 65 innings. Brett Villasenor (7-1, 2.22) and Rosa (3-2, 2.60) are their other top pitchers.
Chicago St. Rita (36-4) vs. South Elgin (24-10-1)
When: 5 p.m. Friday
Where: Joliet’s Silver Cross Field
For St. Rita: Jake Shepski (.405, five homers, 48 RBIs), Nick Goldsmith (.413, nine, 46) and Tyler Halas (.355, two, 36) are the Mustangs’ big hitters. … Mike Costanzo (10-2, 1.64 ERA), Shepski (7-1, 1.35), C.J. Santoyo (7-1, 2.98) and Halas (6-0, 1.79) have been St. Rita’s top pitchers. … St. Rita was in the final four in 2010 when it edged Huntley, 7-6, in a semifinal game then lost to Naperville Central, 10-4, for the championship.
For South Elgin: The Storm raised their team batting average about 90 points over the past month. Justin Bryski (.394, two homers, 18 RBIs), Ryan Nutof (.320, four, 21) and Antonio Danesi (.322, zero, 21) are the offensive leaders. … Nutof, who signed to pitch at Michigan, is 8-0 with a 0.39 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 71 innings. Tyler Brown (5-3, 2.35) and Max Keough (5-1, 1.66) are the other top pitchers.
– Joe Stevenson
joestevenson@shawmedia.com
