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Diamond roundup: Winners and losers in postseason

Ottawa Marquette defeated Newman 12-2 on Monday, May 30, 2022 to earn a chance at the state tournament.

Here’s a look at the winners and losers in postseason baseball and softball play over the Memorial Day weekend:

• Ottawa Marquette blasted Sterling Newman 12-1 in Monday’s Class 1A Rockford baseball super sectional. The Crusaders (31-3) will face Mt. Sterling Brown County (23-5) at 10 a.m. Friday in the state semifinals at Dozer Park in Peoria.

In Saturday’s sectional finals, Marquette clipped Putnam County 4-1 at Elgin while the Comets defeated Stockton-Warren 12-5 at Lena-Winslow.

• The Dixon baseball team won its third straight Class 3A regional title on Saturday afternoon, defeating Rockford Boylan 2-0 behind senior Gage Burdick’s two-hitter.

The Dukes (23-2) will play Maple Park Kaneland (23-7) in Wednesday’s sectional semifinals at Sycamore.

SOFTBALL

• Senior Elizabeth Palumbo singled up the middle with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning Saturday afternoon to send the Sterling softball team to a 7-6 victory over Dixon in the Class 3A Sterling Regional final. It was Sterling’s 10 straight regional title.

Sterling (15-6) will face Maple Park Kaneland (22-7) in Tuesday’s sectional semifinals at Sycamore.

• No. 1 ranked Rockridge returns to the state softball tournament in Peoria after defeating Richmond-Burton 1-0 in the Class 2A East Peoria Supersectional on Monday. Rockridge sophomore Kendra Lewis improved to 23-0 this season in the circle and notched her 40th career victory.

The defending state champion Rockets (33-0) ride a 63-game win streak to state for the fourth straight year and fifth time in six years.

• LaSalle-Peru fell to Rock Island 3-1 in the finals of the Class 3A Dunlap softball regional. L-P finished 25-5.

• Biggsville West Central, which knocked out St. Bede 2-1 in Friday’s sectional softball finals at Williamsfield, lost 6-5 to Forreston in the Class 1A Sterling Supersectional on Monday.

• Little Ten Conference softball champ Newark edged Heyworth 1-0 to win the Class 1A Bloomington Supersectional. The Norsemen (31-3-1), which makes its first appearance at state, will play Glasford Illini Bluffs (15-2) at 10 a.m. Friday in the state tournament at the Louisville slugger Complex in Peoria.

Newark, lost to Princeton 5-0 in the Tigresses’ season opener, beat Streator Woodland 6-3 in 10 innings to win the Dwight Sectional finals on Saturday.


Kevin Hieronymus

Kevin Hieronymus

Kevin has been sports editor of the BCR since 1986 and is Sports Editor of Putnam County Record. Was previously sports editor of the St. Louis Daily News and a regular contributor for the St. Louis Cardinals Magazine. He is a member of the IBCA and Illinois Valley Hall of Fames. He is one of 4 sportswriters from his tiny hometown Atlanta, IL