Harlem remains perched in 1st place in NIC-10 baseball

By Bob Balgemann

Reporter

MACHESNEY PARK – Harlem has begun the second half of the 2016 NIC-10 baseball season in first place with a 10-1 record.

The Huskies opened with a rematch against Belvidere North and won, 4-0. They did so behind a route pitching performance from Aaron Cusimano, who was victorious for the fourth time this season.

It only was the third league setback for the Blue Thunder, who now have lost twice to Harlem. The Huskies beat them 6-4, in the conference opener back on April 11.

North threatened in the first inning of the second meeting but catcher Cody Paholski ended that by picking a runner off third base for the third inning. That was his ninth pickoff this spring.

Harlem edged in front 2-0 in the top of the third. Jake Nimtz led off by bunting for a single, then scoring on a base hit to left by Drake Sundstrom. T.J. Chance made it 2-0 by singling in Sundstrom.

Two more runs scored in the fifth. A catcher’s interference call put Chance on base, then he and Tyler Dietz came home after a walk, passed ball, a hit and fielder’s choice.

The Huskie defense stepped up with a 5-4-3 double play that helped Cusimano escape a jam in the fourth. Third baseman Joey Parsons had seven assists that day.

Baseball games against Boylan can be entertaining and the makeup played May 3 was just that.

The host Titans moved out early, 3-0, on three hits, an error and a walk.

Suicide bunt works

Harlem scored once in the second on a suicide bunt by Cusimano. As a bonus, he was safe at first when no one was covering on the play. Head coach Doug Livingston said he thought that eased the tension a bit, as his players really wanted to win the game.

Brock Soter added to the enthusiasm when he singled in two runs to even the score.

A two-out throwing error put the Huskies fourth run on the board in the third.

Then they had a big four-run fourth inning that helped decide the outcome. A three-run homer from Chance and Sundstrom’s RBI single made it an 8-3 game.

Chance pitched the win, his second in conference action, with a six-inning performance. His first victory came against Hononegah, the other second-place team in the league.

Parsons again was stellar in relief, throwing one inning of scoreless ball.

Defensively, in the seventh inning, Nimtz made a huge diving catch of a line drive near the warning track in deep center field. Paholski also threw out another runner (No. 8 of the season) to end a Boylan scoring threat.

Earlier, Nimtz picked up his fourth win of the season as Harlem defeated Rockford Auburn, 7-3, on the road.

The Knights scored an unearned run in the first inning and two more in the seventh. It was a 1-0 game until the fourth when the Huskies scored four times to take control. They added one more run in the fifth and another two in the seventh.

Soter led the way with three hits; Sundstrom contributed a key two-run single.

Harlem showcased its speed in this game, stealing 12 bases. Defensively, it had a 1-6-3 double play to end an Auburn scoring threat. And Cusimano, while patroling center field, made a diving catch near the warning track.

The Huskies will be back in action Friday with a rematch against rival Hononegah at home, starting at 5 p.m. They won the first game, 2-1. On Monday, they will be at Jeffereson, also at 5 o’clock.

Playoff baseball is nearing, with the state regional tournament scheduled for the week of May 23.