Baseball: DeKalb freshman Jackson Kees throws 4-inning no-hitter in first varsity start

DeKALB – Jackson Kees made his first varsity start one to remember.

The DeKalb freshman threw a no-hitter and stuck out 10 as the Barbs beat Rockford Jefferson, 15-0, in four innings Wednesday.

“I felt I pitched pretty good today,” Kees said. “I felt good, but there’s definitely a lot of things I could clean up. It felt great.”

[ Photos: DeKalb baseball hosts Jefferson ]

Kees was perfect through three innings, including an extended break from pitching between the first and second when DeKalb scored eight runs in their half of the first, sending 13 batters to the plate.

A pair of hit batsmen in the fourth was all that kept Kees from a perfect game.

“Kid pitched phenomenal,” DeKalb coach Jeffrey Latimer said. “Freshman, first high school start, goes out and throws a four-inning no-hitter, two hit batters away from a perfect game. We worked with the fastball a lot, he was able to locate. Good speed, good velocity. Did a fantastic job.”

DeKalb (2-2) was fresh off a 3-2 home loss to Boylan on Tuesday but came out hot against the J-Hawks (0-1).

The Barbs got only three hits in the eight-run first inning, benefiting from five Jefferson errors. Leadoff hitter Nate Nunez scored twice in the inning.

DeKalb got three hits in each of the four innings. Josh Klemm capped a 3-for-3 day with a two-run triple in the fourth as the Barbs scored three in the inning to force the 15-run rule.

“It was a nice win,” Latimer said. “The weather conditions are probably not prime to be out here, but it was a great win for the guys. They came back after a tough loss [Tuesday] and responded well, did well.”

Alex Prince had the Barbs’ only other multi-hit effort, going 2 for 3 with two runs and an RBI. Eight of the nine DeKalb starters had a hit.

Latimer said he felt the Barbs hit too many pop-ups trying to take advantage of the wind, but in the end felt offensively the team did fine.

“At the end of the day, we did hit a few balls hard, and we did take what they gave us,” Latimer said. “We were able to put up some runs.”

The Barbs are scheduled to play Friday at Rockford Auburn and a doubleheader Saturday at Stillman Valley, although there’s precipitation in the forecast the next two days that could wreak havoc on already wet fields.

And even with only four games under their belts, Kees said he likes how the team looks so far.

“I think the team is coming together really well,” Kees said. “We like playing for each other as a team. It’s a really fun group of guys.