Preseason Power 25 Countdown: No. 11 Marian Catholic

NEWCOMER TO WATCH

Alec Gonzalez. A recent off-season transfer, Gonzalez may be new to the 2019 Spartans, but he is no stranger to the Illinois Prep Baseball scene. Standing at a well put-together 6-foot-1, 188-pounds, the two-way talent committed to Tennessee in March of last year and has been a top-25 mainstay in our quite potent IL 2020 rankings since 2017.

The dynamic athlete has noticeably been working on his athleticism, lowering his 60 time by half a second to an impressive 6.84 in a mere eleven months. He wields an advanced bat repeatedly driving the ball to the middle/opposite field with quick twitch in his hands. A confident defender with sure hands and body control, he can easily stick on the left side of the diamond for the Spartans and can prove worth on the mound sporting a fastball in the mid to upper-80’s.

Alec Gonzalez (2.10.19)

X-FACTOR

The heart and sole for the Marian Catholic Spartans, senior backstop Angelo Cantelo. Coming off a junior year in which the strong, durable built 6-foot, 205-pound Lewis commit claimed an ESC All-Conference selection and Co-Defensive Player of the Year award, Cantelo will continue to build camaraderie with a youthful spartans staff. He caught every last pitch last year while sporting a .407 average with 27 RBIs in the 3-4 hole all season long. That type of consistent production doesn’t come around often and the three year varsity letter winner will play a crucial role this spring heading into what should be a special senior season.

OUTLOOK

When the 2019 season starts, Coach DeCarlo will not only have varsity experience oozing out of the dugout, but perhaps the most athletic grouping of all around athletes within the borders of Illinois. With the aforementioned Cantelo, RHP/CIF Michael Bohlen (Northern Kentucky commit), OF Pierce Jones (Northern Illinois), LHP/1B Chandler Kerr (Concordia commit) and LHP Jordan Smevoll (Webster commit) have been three year varsity starters in their own capacity. These five seniors, along with two-year letter winner Cameron Bufford (Grambling State commit), will lead a mixed bag of athletes ranging from all grad classes come game one.

Bohlen, a stout 6-foot-5, 180-pounds, was relied upon as the DH near the middle of the order whenever he wasn’t toeing the rubber in meaningful games. He swings an aggressive bat with present bat strength and should see the same role this season. Jones set the table as the leadoff man for the Spartans all season long with rhythm in his swing and extension through the hitting zone. A sub-7 runner in the 60, Jones has created a no-fly zone in CF easily tracking balls down with ease in the gaps.

Kerr played a handful of game at first base and saw meaningful starts on the bump last year for the Spartans and should again in his final go-round. The southpaw sports an easy delivery with a low-80’s heater with signs of untapped velocity left in the tank. Another left-hander, Smevoll is a consistent strike thrower, changes timing to keep hitter off-balance and has an overall feel for the dirt circle.

Bufford was a huge contributor last season regularly hitting in the 3-hole ahead of Cantelo and playing an above average second base and/or hot corner for the Spartans as a Junior. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound athlete swings a compact, controlled bat and has room to physically grow with ultra upside on all sides of the ball.

Junior INF/RHP Aidan Stewart and Sophomores OF Eddie King (Louisville commit) and RHP Tyler Fullman (Video below) all had success on varsity as underclassmen last spring. Stewart, a 6-foot-4, 185-pound hybrid athlete, hit all over the lineup card while playing a smooth shortstop and should have competition at the prime position with the addition of transfer Alec Gonzalez. Both Stewart and Gonzalez have upside on the mound as well.

King earned quite a bit of playing time last year as a left fielder and a 2-hole hitter while he was getting a feel for the high school scene just as much as his still developing, 6-foot-2, 190-pound build. Fullman, the No. 6 ranked prospect in a special IL 2021 class, shall see plenty of innings in his second varsity season. He possesses an easy, repeatable delivery and arm action, a mid-80s fastball with arm side run and wealth of potential and velocity still in the tank. These two budding stars will be fun to watch throughout their prep careers.

Four additional Juniors looking to make an initial impact on varsity are UTIL Dominick Angellotti, RHP/INF Ethan Alexander, C/INF Trevor Thurston and OF Adam Huekels. Angelotti made a huge splash for himself at our recent Preseason All-State showing consistent hard contact to his pull-side gap. Alexander has flashed feel for three pitches in the past, all in the zone and will look to get innings on the mound this spring.

BOTTOM LINE

Coach DeCarlo has a varying crop of athletes that all showed promise in some facet of the game last spring. It is a good ‘problem’ to have when there are players stashed on your bench who could potentially crack the everyday lineup on other teams in the conference. That being said, consistency will be key for the talented Spartans squad. They will need to mesh quickly and buy into their roles if they want to make it past the regional semi-finals where they were bounced out in 2018.

Marian Catholic opens the season at the PBR Metro East Kickoff Classic in a weeks time and we will be right there to see how this grouping of players comes out the gates in 2019.

VIDEO SPOTLIGHT

Tyler Fullman (4.20.18)