Palos Heights Sets Tone With Five-Run First Inning, Defeats Alton 8-4 In Opening Round Game Of Illinois State Junior Legion Baseball Tournament  

DANVILLE - Palos Heights set the tone early by scoring five runs in the bottom of the first inning and went on to win over Alton Post 126 8-4 in a first-round game of the Illinois State junior American Legion baseball tournament Thursday evening in Danville.

The loss relegated the junior Legionnaires to the losers bracket of the double-elimination tournament for the second straight time, having lost their opening game of the Fifth Division tournament last week to Jerseyville.

Alton did play well in the game despite giving up five runs in the opening frame.

Take away the first inning, and we win 4-3, but you can't do that," said Alton manager Doug Booten. "They played well and took advantage of some mistakes we made in the first inning. And they had some balls that just kind of fell in and had some seeing-eye hits. That's baseball, and that's why we play it."

The junior Legionnaires stayed in the game and kept fighting. but couldn't overcome the Palos Heights first inning.

"The kids had some good fight, and we kept clawing back into it," Booten said. "We had some other opportunities, but we just didn't get the timely hitting."

After Palos Heights took their 5-0 lead after the first, the suburban Chicago team scored twice more in the home half of the fourth to up their lead to 7-0, but Alton came back with two runs in the top of the fifth, with both teams trading runs in the sixth to give Palos Heights an 8-3 lead. The junior Legionnaires scored once in the top of the seventh, but could not get any closer as Palos Heights took the 8-4 win.

Alex Siatos had a hit and had Alton's only RBI in the game, while Ashton Schepers, Tyler Robinson, Logan Bogard and Max Holmes had the other hits in the game.

Schepers started on the mound and pitched four innings, allowing seven runs on six hits while walking three and striking out two. Lucas Moore threw the final two innings, allowing a run without a hit, walking no one and fanning none.

The loss puts Alton into the losers bracket, where they'll play an elimination game Friday against either Wheaton, Mattoon or Trenton Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. The winner of that game will play one, and possibly two, elimination games on Saturday, with the finals set for Sunday. Playing in elimination games is nothing new, as the junior Legionnaires fought their way back in the losers bracket to reach the finals of the division tournament before losing to Trenton, and the senior team fought its way through the losers bracket of its division tournament before being eliminated in the bracket final.

"It's do-or-die, and I've said that a lot this summer, unfortunately," Booten said with a laugh. "But both teams seem to play very well with their backs against the wall. We'll just go out there and try it again tomorrow."

Booten is very proud of his team and their accomplishments this season and is also very proud of being one of the teams involved in the state tournament.

"I'm proud of this group," Booten said. "We're one of six teams left playing, and I'm really proud of them."

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