Scouting the state baseball tournament
Class 4A
York (31-9) vs. Conant (29-7)
When: 7 p.m., Friday
Where: Duly Health & Care Field, Joliet
How they got here: Conant defeated Fremd 5-2 and Hersey 6-3 to win the Hersey regional, then Libertyville 16-4 and Stevenson 5-3 to win the Stevenson sectional, and Glenbrook North 6-1 on Monday in the Schaumburg supersectional. York beat Wheaton North 2-1 and St. Charles East 6-4 to win the York regional, then Lake Park 8-1 and St. Charles North 2-0 to win the St. Charles North sectional, and McHenry 9-5 on Monday at the Kane County Cougars super.
Coaches: Conant: Derek Fivelson (167-162-2 in 11 seasons); York: Dave Kalal (290-200-3 in 15 seasons).
On offense: Conant’s dangerous bats include Jake Parpet (.427 average, 8 HR, 30 RBI), Jacob Szpiganowicz (.388, 12 doubles), Isaiah Rhodes (.333, 12 doubles, 36 RBI), Logan Gale (.339), Josh Barnett (.321, 30 RBI), Cooper Hanson (.379) and the red-hot Matt Maize, now up to .393 with 13 doubles, 4 homers and 35 RBI. Josh Fleming leads York with a .352 average, 11 doubles and 4 homers; Drew Gami has a .304 average and Owen Chael is at .301.
On the mound: For Conant, Bryce Loeger improved to 11-0 by winning the supersectional on Monday. The Cougars also feature Franklin Kirchner with a 9-1 record, 2.05 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 58 innings. York has quite the weapon in senior Ryan Sloan. Expected to be a mid first round pick in the upcoming MLB First-Year Player Draft, Sloan has 82 strikeouts in just 40 innings with a 2-2 record and 0.18 ERA. Noah Hughes is 8-1 with a 1.32 ERA and shut out St. Charles North to win a sectional championship.
History lesson: Conant is making its first appearance at the state tournament. This is York’s fourth trip to state and second straight — the Dukes finished fourth last year. They won the title in 1993.
Advancement: The winner plays the winner of Providence (31-8) vs. two-time defending state champion Edwardsville (31-8) for the Class 4A state championship at 7 p.m. Saturday.