By Jacob Mayer
For the first time in its history, the Sparta Jr. Legion team will head to the state tournament in Champaign Thursday through Saturday after it finished third in the Division 5 tournament this past weekend at Pinckneyville.
The team had never won a game in division tournament play coming into this season, and history held true to form Friday, as Sparta fell 6-4 to Breese in the first game of the tournament.
In the bottom of the first inning, Sparta’s starting pitcher Jordan Thompson walked two of the first three hitters, and the defense committed two errors behind him to let Breese take a 4-0 lead.
Thompson settled down for the next three innings, holding Breese to only one hit in that span.
Sparta (25-12) began to claw its way back in the game in the fourth inning when center fielder Darius Jackson reached on a single, stole second and scored on a two-out double by shortstop Nathan Hinkle to bring the score to 4-1.
In the next inning, Sparta closed the gap to just one run when first baseman Aaron Rushing and second baseman Trevor Morgan came around to score after two consecutive errors by Breese shortstop Spencer Fuehne to make it 4-3.
However, Sparta gave up a run in the fifth and sixth innings to go into the seventh down 6-3.
With the score 6-4 and runners on second and third, two outs and a 3-2 count, Jackson struck out to end the game.
Breese’s starting pitcher Luke Jackson earned the win, threw six innings and allowed only three runs, one earned, on three hits to go with nine strikeouts and a walk.
Breese head coach Bryan Tebbe said he was pleased with his pitcher’s performance.
“He did a good job working ahead (in the count) and making them put the ball in play,” he said. “I was really happy to see that. I had a lot of confidence with him.”
On Sparta’s side, Thompson threw four innings and gave up four runs, two earned, with four hits, four walks and nine strikeouts.
On offense, Sparta could muster only five hits on the day. Thompson led the charge, going 1-for-4 with an RBI and reached on an error. Jackson also went 1-for-4 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base. Hinkle, Seth Shevlin and Dalton Robert each chipped in with a hit as well.
Sparta head coach Tim Baum said the struggles on offense have plagued the team throughout the season.
“That’s been our thing all year,” he said. “We’ve had great pitching and defense, and somehow we can’t find a way to string hits together. We’re not the best hitting ballclub, but we’re attacking the baseball and putting it in play.”
Sparta returned to the field Sunday with its back to the wall to take on Alton in an elimination game for both teams.
The team put its offensive struggles behind it and came through with 13 hits to beat Alton 8-2 for its first division tournament victory.
The Sparta offense wasted no time getting runners on the bases against Alton. In the first, Morgan, Thompson and first baseman Justin Meyerhoff each scored to help Sparta jump out to a 3-0 lead.
Sparta didn’t let up, however, as it tacked on five more runs to put the game out of reach.
Meyerhoff led the offensive breakthrough with four hits, three runs scored and a run batted in. Robert stepped up with two hits and four RBI, and Shevlin also provided three hits with an RBI and a run scored.
Hinkle took care of business on the mound for Sparta with a complete game victory. Through seven innings, he gave up two runs on five hits with a walk and five strikeouts.
Baum said Hinkle’s performance was important to get the first division tournament win in team history.
“He did a fantastic job for us,” Baum said. “He did a great job not walking batters, using his defense and pitching with a purpose.”
With the win, Sparta moved on to the third-place game for a rematch against Breese with a trip to the state tournament on the line.
As was the case in the game against Alton, Sparta brought plenty of offensive power to beat Breese 13-6 and earn a spot in the state tournament.
In the top of the first, Jackson smashed a two-run home run over the fence in right center field to put Sparta up 2-0.
Sparta added runs in the second, third and fourth innings and held a 7-5 lead before busting the game open in the sixth.
Nine Sparta batters came to the plate in the inning that included a double by Jackson and base hits by Hinkle and Shevlin to make the score 12-5.
Jackson finished the game with three hits, three runs scored and five RBI. Shevlin was productive with two hits, two runs scored and two RBI.
Baum knew hitting was going to be important coming into the tournament, and he was pleased with how his team performed at the plate.
“We played really well,” he said. “Somehow on our day off we found out how to hit. They came out and were just smoking the ball.”
Overall, Baum was happy with the tournament and is looking forward to state.
“We’re excited to go up north and challenge ourselves against teams up there,” he said. “We’re going to have fun doing it, win or lose.”