Six-run sixth inning sends Wilmington back to sectional finals

BEECHER – After not scoring until the seventh inning of last weekend’s 1-0 regional championship win and plating only one run through five innings of Thursday’s IHSA Class 2A Beecher Sectional semifinal against Chicago Christian at Sippel Memorial Field, members of the Wilmington baseball team waited for someone to ignite the mammoth rally they had in them.

Ryan Kettman wound up being that person.

After making a tremendous play on the mound to kickstart an inning-ending 1-6-3 double play in the bottom of the fifth, Kettman delivered a towering three-run home run as part of Wilmington’s six-run sixth inning that allowed the Class 2A defending third-place squad a 7-2 victory and a return to the round of 16.

“We knew somebody was going to eventually come through and we’d get going, we just needed it to happen,” Kettman said. “We got the double play to get out of the bottom of the fifth, came to the top of the sixth with a ton of energy and we kept it going.”

The Wildcats (23-8) fell behind early after Christian Flutman led off the bottom of the first with a walk, took second on a Rafe Slager groundout, third on a stolen base and scored on Matt Rashan’s groundout.

Kettman’s first-inning single was the lone Wilmington hit until the fourth, when Dierks Geiss led off with a walk and came around to tie the game on Declan Moran’s single.

As Flutman mostly kept the Wildcats off the bases until the fourth, Wilmington starter Kyle Farrell didn’t allow a hit, but was relieved by Kettman with one out in the fourth after issuing his third and fourth walks of the game. After Kettman got a pop out and strikeout to end the fourth and Lucas Rink was stranded on first in the top of the fifth, the Knights drew their fourth leadoff walk of the game when Isaac Heerdt took a free pass to kick off the bottom of the frame.

But after striking out RJ Alexander Harris, Kettman knocked down a screamer from Nate Vis and quickly threw to Rink at second, whose quick trigger nabbed Vis at first and put every ounce of momentum into the Wilmington dugout.

“I think that ignited us,” Wildcats coach Mike Bushnell said. “I thought that play was pretty huge.”

Zach Ohlund singled, and Farrell doubled to open the sixth, both coming around on Cooper Holman’s double. Flutman quickly struck out a pair of Wildcats, but Shawn James kept the inning alive with a walk. Holman and James scored on Rink’s infield single and a subsequent errant throw, and with a 1-1 count, Kettman sat on a Flutman fastball and sent it into the tennis courts beyond the right-field fence.

The middle of Wilmington’s left-handed trio at the top of the lineup, Kettman said that by the time the lineup rolled through for a third time, the Wildcats were able to make the necessary adjustments.

“[Flutman] was throwing a great game, but every time one of our lefties came up, he threw changeups to us, but wouldn’t throw curveballs or sliders,” Kettman said. “I was just waiting [for the] fastball and adjusting [for the] changeup. He threw me a fastball, and I just got it, middle of the barrel.”

Kettman and Rink each finished the day with two hits, two RBIs and a run. Kettman was the winning pitcher after allowing a hit over 2⅔ innings and an unearned run in the seventh before Rink recorded the final three outs.

The Wildcats will return to Beecher at 11 a.m. Saturday to take on Bishop McNamara for the sectional title. The teams met at McNamara on opening day way back on March 17, a 3-0 McNamara victory.

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Wilmington's Ryan Kettman, center, leaps in celebration of his two-run homer with teammate Declan Moran (15) as the Wildcats secured a 7-2 victory over Chicago Christian in the IHSA Class 2A Beecher Sectional semifinal on Thursday, May 29, 2025. (Tiffany Blanchette)