Class 4A Softball: Youngren, Dimitrijevic lead Lincoln-Way Central past Lincoln-Way West in sectional semifinal

Lincoln-Way Central’s Lisabelle Dimitrijevic delivers a pitch against Lincoln-Way West in the Class 4A Lockport Sectional semifinal on Wednesday, May 30, 2023, in Lockport.

LOCKPORT – Leading off the bottom of the fifth inning Tuesday for Lincoln-Way Central against Lincoln-Way West during the Class 4A Lockport Sectional semifinal, Alexis Youngren hit a line drive down the third-base line. The ball appeared to kick up a large cloud of white chalk dust, but the umpire ruled it a foul ball and Youngren had to go back to the batter’s box instead of standing on second with a leadoff double.

She proceeded to hit the next pitch even harder, this time off the fence in right field, and she ended up on third with a triple. Ellie McLaughlin followed with a soft liner to left that went just over the outstretched glove of leaping West shortstop Reese Rourke, and Youngren slid into home with the game’s first run en route to a 6-1 victory.

I was pretty mad after I heard the ump call it foul, I saw the chalk kick up, so I thought it was fair. The next pitch, I swung even harder and was able to get a triple

—  Alexis Youngren, Lincoln-Way Central

“I was pretty mad after I heard the ump call it foul,” Youngren said about her first bid for extra bases. “I saw the chalk kick up, so I thought it was fair. The next pitch, I swung even harder and was able to get a triple. That really gave our team a lot of energy, and we used it to get some runs.

“And with [pitcher] Bella [Dimitrijevic] throwing the way she was, we knew we only needed a couple of runs.”

That was the case, as Dimitrijevic, the Knights’ talented sophomore pitcher, retired the first 20 Lincoln-Way West batters she faced, 15 of them by strikeout. She was one out from a perfect game when West’s Molly Marquardt connected for a solo home run to spoil the perfect game, the no-hitter and the shutout – but not the win.

“I knew I had a perfect game going,” Dimitrijevic said. “If there was ever a pitch I wanted back, it’s that one. I guess it gives me something to shoot for the next game.

“Alexis’ triple really fired us us. Especially when she ended up on third and we were in the third-base dugout. The bench was going nuts. We knew we had to get her home. Plus, it’s always good to beat another Lincoln-Way school, especially in the sectional.”

The Knights (27-6) did more than that. After McLaughlin’s single, she went to second on a passed ball and scored on a double by Kendall Pearson, who went to third on the throw home. Josie Jager (3 for 4, double, 2 RBIs) followed with an RBI single, and Kayla Doerre singled. Two outs later, Sarah Kmak singled home Doerre for a 4-0 lead.

Lincoln-Way Central’s Kendall Pearson connects against Lincoln-Way West in the Class 4A Lockport Sectional semifinal on Wednesday, May 30, 2023, in Lockport.

Central, which plays for the sectional title Friday against the winner of Wednesday’s Lockport-Lincoln-Way East matchup, added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth. With one out, McLaughlin walked and Pearson followed with a single that got past the West left fielder and allowed McLaughlin to come around and score and Pearson to reach third. Pearson scored on a single by Jager.

By then, the only drama left was whether or not Dimitrijevic would complete the perfect game. She retired the first two batters on flyouts before Marquardt hit a fly ball too far for anyone to catch. Dimitrijevic finished the game with a strikeout, her 16th of the game.

Lincoln-Way West’s Molly Marquardt heads home smiling after ending Lisabelle Dimitrijevic perfect game with a 7th inning 2 out home run against Lincoln-Way Central in the Class 4A Lockport Sectional semifinal on Wednesday, May 30, 2023, in Lockport.

“Any win at this time of year is a good win, but we played well today,” Central coach Jeff Tarala said. “Alexis Youngren has really worked hard this year, trying to do better with waiting on the ball and putting it in play. Sometimes, she is just a little too quick. It was really nice to see not only shake off that call, but then to go to right field on the next pitch. She really showed a lot of toughness being able to do that.

“Kendall Pearson is not a bottom of the order hitter, even though that’s where she hits for us. She is there to drive in runs and get us back to the top of the order, and she did great at that today. And what can you say about Bella? She’s been close to a perfect game a couple times this year. She just goes out there and competes, and she is very special.”