Wilmington ended Manteno’s baseball season on June 3, winning 6-2 in the Class 2A Herscher Sectional semifinals.
The Panthers finished 24-10 after winning the fourth regional in program history, all under coach Matt Beckner and all since 2014.
Manteno jumped ahead 1-0 in the top of the first on Connor Harrod’s RBI single, but Wilmington scored three runs in the bottom of the inning to go ahead to stay.
Gio Arrigo hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth for Manteno’s second run.
Harrod led the Panthers, going 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Jake Stevens and Maddox Toepper each went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run.
Wilmington, which lost to Ottawa Marquette in the sectional final on June 6, handed the Panthers three of their losses on the season.
Soccer players honored
Beecher senior forward Grace Durante and Peotone senior forward Allie Werner have been named All-State by the Illinois Soccer Coaches Association.
Making the All-Sectional 13 team were Manteno sophomore midfielder Peyton Boros, Beecher senior midfielder Ava Gaidar and Peotone junior defender Callie Weiss. Crete-Monee junior midfielder Pauline Magnaye was an All-Sectional 14 pick.
Beecher senior defender Teagan Claus and Peotone sophomore midfielder Kaitlyn Leitelt were named All-Sectional 13 honorable mention, while Crete-Monee senior defender Jayda Owusu was All-Sectional 14 honorable mention.
Werner, Claus and Manteno’s Miranda Lingo were named to the Academic All-Sectional 13 team, while Crete-Monee’s Delilah Gonzalez was named Academic All-Sectional 14.
Honored on the Sportsmanship All-Sectional 13 team were Peotone’s Chelsea Bennett, Manteno’s Madison Borrmann and Beecher’s Mikenna Burdick. Crete’s Rhiannon Leal was a Sportsmanship All-Sectional 14 pick.
Beecher Muskies go 2-1
The Beecher Muskies suffered their first loss of the season, falling 11-10 to the Little Calumet Beavers on June 2, before finishing the week with a pair of wins.
Beecher (7-1, 2-1 Chicago Suburban League) edged the East Chicago Thunder 9-8 on June 4 and got past the Chicago Warriors 7-6 on June 7. The scheduled second game of the doubleheader against the Warriors was rained out and will be made up at a later date.
Mark Dye was 3-for-4 with four RBIs against the Warriors, including a trio of two-out RBI singles. Gabe McHugh went 2-for-4 with three runs and Thomas Offill was 2-for-4 with two runs. Jack Callejo was the winning pitcher, throwing two innings of shutout relief.
Zac Ruzich was 1-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs in the win against the Thunder.
Marty Coyle went 3-for-5 with a walk, two runs and an RBI against the Beavers.