Joliet West sinks Joliet Central in cross-town matchup 15-3

JOLIET – It’s no secret: The baseball teams for Joliet West and Joliet Central have had a rough go this season. After a 4-3 start, the Steelmen lost 11 in a row entering Tuesday’s game at Joliet West. The Tigers, meanwhile, started 2-10, but won three of four entering Tuesday’s game.

In a crosstown rivalry game anything can happen, of course. In this case, however, both of those trends continued.

Joliet West compiled 12 hits with Zachary Chignoli and Nate Consalvo leading the way. Joliet Central, meanwhile, could not get the offense going, as the Tigers won their fourth game in the past five, 15-3. It was the 12th straight loss for the Steelmen.

Joliet West (6-11) talked last week about feeling better about where they were at. They handed Minooka just their second loss of the season Monday before holding off Bolingbrook. A loss to Sandburg on Saturday was followed by a 16-1 drubbing of Joliet Central on Monday at the Steelmen’s house.

They were back at home Tuesday, but facing the same team with the same kind of result as Monday.

“We put the ball in play, and it was a good day to hit,” coach John Kraczewski said. “The temperatures changed a little. We’ve been grinding at-bats, and it was just one of those days.”

Chignoli was sensational, finishing 3 for 4 with five RBIs and two runs scored. Consalvo joined in with with three RBIs and three runs scored. Maddux Chiquito was solid on the mound, allowing three earned runs with two strike outs and no walks.

Daniel Lukancic had three RBIs and three runs scored for the Tigers.

“We were attacking the fastball early in the count,” Chignoli said. “That’s all you’ve got to do to get runners in. ... The coaches and the win versus Minooka have really turned our morale around, and we’re riding the bus right now.”

The result was never truly in question. The Tigers scored three runs in three consecutive at-bats to take an early lead. The Steelmen wouldn’t allow themselves to get blanked, however. David Calderon smashed an RBI double to score Daniel Quiros to cut the deficit to 3-1.

It was short-lived. The Tigers put five runs on the board in the bottom of the second and did the same in the fourth, while holding the Steelmen scoreless in the third and fourth. The Tigers added two runs in the fourth inning to give them 15 on the day.

Credit the Steelmen for refusing to roll over. Quiros scored on a bases-loaded walk in the fifth. Ryan Cooling’s RBI groundout scored Liam Ganzer, but that was as close as Central would come.

While it’s been a rough year for Joliet Central, winning a conference rivalry in such convincing fashion for the second day in a row will still be a boost to Joliet West’s confidence.

“We just keep grinding,” Karczewski said. “The morale is still good. It’s not the same group of guys as last year so we have to take a different approach with a different group of guys. These guys come to work every day, and I think we’re starting to figure it out.”

As for Joliet Central (4-15), it was another rough outing. During the current 12-game losing steak, the Steelmen’s closest game was a 7-5 defeat to Richards on April 5th. Tuesday was the seventh time in that stretch that they were defeated via the 10-run rule.

“We’ve got to be more competitive on the mound,” coach Miguel Silva said. “We’ve got to attack the zone and put ourselves in better counts so that our defense can go make plays. That will put our offense, which has had a better approach of late, in a better position.”

Joliet West plays four days in a row this week as they had Oswego East on the road Wednesday. Joliet Central will be at home against Joliet West on Thursday. The Steelmen will be looking to snap their winless streak then.