The Willowbrook baseball team’s winning streak swelled to 22 games after the Warriors won four games last week. Willowbrook moved to 15-0 in West Suburban Gold Conference play by sweeping last week’s three-game series against Proviso East. One day after completing the sweep against the Pirates, the Warriors posted a 10-6 win in Saturday’s non-conference battle with Downers Grove North in Villa Park.
Senior Jory Crocker (No. 4) slides safely into third base for a triple during Saturday's win over Downers Grove North.
Photo by Chris Fox
Willowbrook’s overall season record stood at 23-4 after Saturday’s Senior Day victory over the Trojans.
“We do a lot of things really well,” said Willowbrook coach Vic Wisner while speaking about the Warriors’ lengthy winning streak after Saturday’s triumph. “We score a lot of runs. We’ve been playing really good defense. We have good pitching, and we run the bases well.”
The Warriors have already clinched the West Suburban Gold Conference title. They can complete a perfect 18-0 conference campaign by sweeping this week’s three-game series against Morton. Willowbrook will play a non-conference game at Lyons Township this Saturday, May 16.
The Warriors opened their series against Proviso East with a 10-1 road victory on May 4. One day later, Willowbrook beat the Pirates 12-2 in Villa Park. The Warriors finished the series sweep with a 19-1 win at Proviso East on Friday, May 8.
Seniors Alek Ramey and Jake Bonino hit home runs for Willowbrook in the series opener against Proviso East. Ramey and senior Jory Crocker hit two home runs each in the series finale. Bonino and junior Alex Rodriguez added one homer each in their team’s dominant 19-1 four-inning victory over the Pirates.
The Warriors and Downers Grove North were tied at 1-1 after three innings of Saturday’s contest. Willowbrook scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 5-1 lead. The Trojans cut the lead to 5-3 when they scored two runs in the top of the fifth inning. Willowbrook responded with another four-run burst in the bottom of the fifth inning to push its lead to 9-3.
Seniors Noah Edison and Bobby Biggs pitched one inning each for the Warriors in Saturday’s victory. After Edison started the game on the mound, Biggs pitched the second inning. Junior Mikey Garner pitched the next four innings and picked up the victory. Garner allowed no earned runs, four hits and one walk. He recorded four strikeouts. Crocker pitched the seventh inning and gave up four hits. The Trojans scored three unearned runs in the top of the seventh inning. Willowbrook committed four errors and didn’t allow any earned runs in Saturday’s victory.
Senior Alex Dew went 2-for-3 and drove in two runs for the Warriors in their win over the Trojans. Dew scored two runs. Crocker went 2-for-3 and scored two runs. Senior Max Wilkison went 1-for-2 with two RBIs. Senior Charlie Roelle also went 1-for-2 with a pair of RBIs.
Willowbrook has not lost since it dropped a 7-1 decision at Montini on March 25. The Warriors, who fell to 1-4 with their loss to the Broncos, picked up three straight wins during their spring break trip to Tennessee to even their record at 4-4.
“They care about each other, and I think that’s another thing that goes unmentioned,” said Wisner while explaining the Warriors’ success. “The closeness and the fun was there before the streak.”
