Baseball notebook: ‘That’s kind of the dream’ Kaneland catcher Sebastian Cabeza savors being part of no-hitter

Sebastian Cabeza has already had the honor of catching one no-hitter this season.

He added his second with pitcher Tyler Conklin on Monday, Kaneland’s 5-0 victory over Rochelle at Northwestern Medicine Field.

“It’s awesome. That’s kind of the dream what we’re looking for out of our pitcher every outing. It’s not something that you get every time, but it’s something that you really want,” Cabeza said.

“To catch a no-hitter, especially [Monday] at [Northwestern Medicine Field] it was really nice on our senior night for him to throw that and me to catch it.”

Cabeza and Conklin have been friends since they were young kids. Their catcher-pitcher relationship has blossomed over the last four years.

“We have a pretty good relationship and I think that translates pretty well on the baseball field,” Cabeza said.

“Look at those two right there,” Kaneland coach Brian Aversa said, motioning toward Conklin and Cabeza after Kaneland’s 5-0 victory over Rochelle on May 24. “It’s irreplaceable. Those guys bring so much leadership. You know what [Conklin] brings on the mound, that’s a given.

“But the leadership, the camaraderie, the brotherhood … these guys have really, without a real time to bond as a team … this was the night that was all going to come together and culminate. It couldn’t have been more perfect.”

Cabeza, a Blackhawk Community College commit, has slugged a career-high three home runs so far this season.

“I take a lot of pride, in the offseason especially, training hard…just for these types of moments,” Cabeza said. “I really take pride in being a good defensive catcher as well as being an elite hitter.”

“For the past three years, I only had two [home runs], so I’ve topped that already,” Cabeza said. “I got to keep my eyes on the big goal this year: Trying to get a state championship. I’m not done yet. I’m going to keep striving for more.”

St. Charles North

St. Charles North right-handed pitcher Eric Lee already utilizes a near-side arm pitching release, but when he goes even lower, he’s likely even tougher to hit.

“When I go really low, I actually started that a couple weeks ago,” Lee said after his complete game 11-2 victory over Batavia on Tuesday. “It’s actually been working lately.”

Lee experimented with it in practice for fun and his coaches noticed he could do it accurately.

“I’m always 3/4 there, but sometimes he calls [go even lower],” Lee said.

With the victory, Lee improved to 5-0 on the season. Including Tuesday, Lee has thrown 38.1 innings and has sparkled with 38 strikeouts to just eight walks. Lee has also only allowed 10 earned runs thus far.

“Eric Lee was phenomenal today,” North Stars coach Todd Genke said on Tuesday. “Everybody talks about DeMarco and [Zach] Kempe on the mound, but Eric Lee has really had a sensational season for us. He just goes out there and competes. He knows his job and he’s doing some things out there that are pretty impressive.”

A look at the ahead Class 4A sectional

Four of the top five seeds in one of the Class 4A sectional sites are DuKane Conference teams.

Lake Park is first, St. Charles North, who clinched at least a share of the Conference on Tuesday, is second. Geneva is third and St. Charles East is fourth.

In regional B, St. Charles North will face the Larkin/Wheaton-Warrenville South winner on June 3. The winner of that game will face the winner of Conant /Wheaton North for the regional final.

In regional C, Addison Trail will face Geneva June 4. The winner of that game will play either South Elgin or West Chicago in the regional final.

In regional D, St. Charles East hosts Glenbard North on June 3. The winner of that game will face either Streamwood and Bartlett in the regional final.