Baseball: Duffin Blast Sparks L-W East Comeback Victory Over L-W Central in Regional Semifinal

Lincoln-Way East 10, Lincoln-Way Central 8: Kevin Duffin had four hits, including a two-run homer, and drove in four runs as the Griffins rallied to defeat the Knights Thursday in a semifinal game at the Class 4A Providence Regional.

Touching All the Bases: Just when it looked like Lincoln-Way East was on the verge of falling victim to a surprise small-ball attack by rival Lincoln-Way Central, the Griffins’ offense exploded in a 10-8 victory over the Knights Thursday in semifinal play at the Class 4A Providence Regional. Kevin Duffin turned momentum—and the game—around with one swing of the bat in the bottom of the third. After Central built a 6-1 lead, he belted a two-run homer. Duffin went on to bang out four hits and headed an 11-hit attack for the Griffins. He also drove in four runs as East scored nine runs in its last four at-bats. Tommy Fuessel added two hits, including a two-run single that was the highlight of a five-run fourth-inning uprising for the Griffins…

• Photos (4)
• Videos (1)

The Sports Report

Junior Left-Hander Mikolajczak Closing the Deal for L-W Central Baseball

Lincoln-Way Central junior left-hander Matt Mikolajczak brings a nasty wrong-way look to the Knights' bullpen. He is mowing down hitters and learning a new job on the fly.

Until earlier this week, Lincoln-Way Central pitcher Matt Mikolajczak was one of the Knights’ most trusted starters. Now, he’s adding a bit more responsibility to his repertoire on the mound. He is bringing a fastball and curve to the mix as well as a wrong-way look out of the bullpen. And he is making life tough on Lincoln-Way Central opponents. Call it a 'Miko' lefty look. Or call it nasty. Mikolajczak, a junior left-hander, pitched 3.1 innings of scoreless relief in the Knights’ 5-4 10-inning victory over district rival Lincoln-Way East on Thursday afternoon in New Lenox. He retired 10 of the 11 batters he faced. He was called out of the pen for the second time in a span of two days with two outs in the top of the seventh and the …

• Photos (2)

L-W Central Baseball Family Tips Collective Cap to Tommy Schuman

On Senior Day, the Lincoln-Way Central baseball family presented a framed No. 19 jersey to the parents of late-Knight standout Tommy Schuman. All the players autographed the jersey.

The gesture was relatively small. The meaning was deep and impactful. During a pre-game ceremony prior to a 5-4 10-inning victory over district rival Lincoln-Way East on Thursday afternoon, the Lincoln-Way Central baseball family presented a framed No. 19 jersey to the parents of late-Knight standout Tommy Schuman. He died unexpectedly March 31—but remains forever a part of the Knights' coat of arms. His parents, Dan and Lynn Schuman, were on hand to accept the framed jersey and root for the Knights to carry on despite the tragic loss. "Tommy Schuman was a huge part of our program, of our school," Lincoln-Way Central coach Sean Bieterman said. "We miss him every day. He's a part of the Lincoln-Way Central baseball family. It's tough every …

• Photos (3)

Local Sports Notebook

Baseball: L-W Central's Bieterman Reaches a Milestone

Knights' baseball coach records his 200th victory.

Lincoln-Way Central baseball coach Sean Bieterman won his 200th career game as a head coach with a 2-0 victory on the road against Homewood-Flossmoor on May 19. “To get to this number of wins is a result of coaching really good kids for a long time and having good assistant coaches,” he said. The Knights finished 25-10 last season. They won a conference title and a regional championship in his first season at the helm. He compiled a 161-74 record while previously coaching at Driscoll. The team finished this spring at 14-15-1. “Sean’s track record speaks for itself. He built a highly successful program at Driscoll Catholic High School before coming to Central. In his first year at Central, he led our program to the best season in school …

• Photos (1)

Baseball: Battle of L-Way is West Side Story

Lincoln-Way West 14, Lincoln-Way Central 5. Warriors bang out 15 hits, score nine runs in fourth and cruise past Knights.

Touching All the Bases: Lincoln-Way Central received a two-run double from Greg Wymer and a bloop RBI single from Rick Amaya to tie the score at 4-4 in the third inning. While it appeared that a back-and-forth contest would ensue, the Warriors responded by sending 13 men to the plate and scoring nine runs in the top of the fourth inning to take a 13-4 lead. The Knights never responded, scoring just a single run in the final four innings. And West claimed a 14-5 victory. Patch’s MVP: On a day where his team backed him with plenty of offensive support, Lincoln-Way West starting pitcher Matt Bishop labored through an outing where he didn't have his best command. Bishop walked four men and hit two batters while surrendering five runs to pick …

• Photos (2)

Lincoln-Way Central Armed for Success

Defending conference and regional champion Knights counting on pitching and defense to take them a long way this baseball season.

Coach: Sean Bieterman Last year’s record: 25-10 overall, 9-3 Southwest Suburban Blue. The Knights won the conference championship as well as the Lincoln-Way East Regional championship. Quick hit: "Our season will be successful if our young players play well defensively," Bieterman says. "Our pitching should be strong." Infield: Kevin Mampe, a freshman, is the projected starter at third base.  Evan Branvik (senior) is a returning starter who is expected to hit in the middle of the order and provide steady defense at shortstop. Jack Krull (junior) or Austin Korbel (sophomore) are expected to battle for playing time at second base. If the nod goes to Korbel, look for Krull to start in the outfield. Kevin DeMatteo (senior) or Grant Bartell (…

• Photos (1)