Jasmine DeLeon sure swung a lively bat Saturday, when you consider she was going on just two hours of sleep a 10 a.m. start after prom.
What’s her secret? It isn’t a second cup of coffee.
“It’s my teammates,” said the St. Edward senior. “They helped me get back up.”
DeLeon delivered a 3-for-4 day, driving in five runs, and Lindsay Zdroik shook off a rocky start to beat Elgin 6-3.
On three occasions, DeLeon’s turn came up with runners on, and she came through each time.
In the second inning, with a run already in and two aboard on walks, DeLeon smacked a tying single to center as St. Edward (10-8) erased a 3-0 deficit.
Two innings later, Emily Stapay’s walk and Ryann Scully’s double set the table for DeLeon’s go-ahead single up the middle.
“Bottom of the order started it off,” DeLeon acknowledged. “From there it went pretty good.”
Not done, DeLeon followed Scully’s double in the sixth with a two-out triple down the right-field line.
“She’s been hitting like crazy lately,” St. Edward coach Jaci Corn said. “She’s finally found her groove.”
Free passes were Elgin’s undoing. The Maroons (10-11) walked five and hit a batter, and four of those came around to score.
“We had three walks to the eight and nine hitters,” Elgin coach Nick Bumbales said. “That was the difference in the game.”
Eyeing a big week ahead, Bumbales pitched Sabrina Stockman to give her some work and rest ace Jennah Perryman’s arm. Elgin, a game back in the conference race, plays St. Charles North, St. Charles East, Streamwood and Batavia twice in a busy next seven days.
“Conference is most important,” Bumbales said. “We want to make sure we’re ready for those.”
Bumbales’ Maroons started well off Zdroik. A first-inning hit batter and infield single were wedged around two strikeouts, and with two gone, Destiny West doubled in a run. Stockman followed with an opposite-field triple to right, making it 3-0.
Zdroik (7-6), though, shut it down after that. The St. Edward sophomore struck out 12, allowing just three singles the rest of the way. Perryman drove one to center in the third, but it was caught at the fence.
“I focused in more, and realized what I was up against,” Zdroik said. “My catcher [Scully] realized what they had so she started changing up spots. She called a really good game.”
“We hit the ball well in the first inning, but then we chased too many pitches,” Bumbales said.
Corn was pleased to see the bottom of her batting order come through on a day she didn’t start two of her normal starters due to prom. Coincidentally, it was prom weekend for both teams.
“We normally are off on prom weekend, but because of the start to the season with the weather and everything we ended up pushing this game back,” Corn said. “We started off slow but were able to stick through it and play good defense.”
