Alan Holtz let us know that the Brooks Middle School baseball team will play in the Illinois Elementary School Association Class 3A state finals on Friday. According to Holtz, this is the first time in school history that Brooks has advanced to state.
The Bulldogs (15-3) will play Normal Parkside (14-4) on Friday at 12:15 p.m. at the Eastside Centre in Peoria. If Brooks advances to the semifinals, the Bulldogs would play the winner of Teutopolis (19-1) and Danville North Ridge (15-3) in the semifinals on Saturday at 10 a.m.
Here is how Holtz described the action from last weekend's sectional and previous tournament victories at the regional tournament.
The Brooks Middle School (15-3) varsity baseball team rose to the occasion on Saturday by out dueling the Homer Mustangs 2-1 in the thrilling extra innings game. Both teams were locked in an epic struggle as neither team was able to score a second run during the standard 6 innings. Brad Elmore and Steve Waldrop pitched a combined no-hitter. The Mustangs only scored on an unearned run during the 5th inning. Elmore helped himself by smashing a solo homerun during the top of the 6th that sent the crowd into a tizzy. Later Elmore knocked in the go ahead RBI with a double to right field, scoring Mario Samuel in the top of the 8th. The Bulldogs made it to the sectional game by narrowly defeating Jane Addams Middle School of Bolingbrook 4-2 in the second round of the regional playoff and by defeating Lisle Middle School in the regional championship 9-0. Elmore pitched a complete game shut out in that game, while Scott Foltz and Chandler Pikarski each hit a long ball.
