Round of 16

Bracket play started out with a dominating performance for fifth seeded Team Illinois on Saturday night as they took down 12th seeded Team Arizona 7-0 thanks to an outstanding start by right-hander Cody Busch (Joliet Catholic, 2029).

Busch got the ball for IL in the round of 16 and was dominant. The right-hander was in control from the first pitch to the last. Busch tossed a seven inning complete game shutout on 73 pitches, allowing just one hit, one walk, and eight strikeouts.

The scoring early pattern continued for Team Illinois as the team took a 2-0 lead after the first inning. Busch led off the game with a walk, Paulie Hobbs (Marist, 2029) was hit by a pitch, and Leo Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2029) lined a ball over the third baseman's head for a double, scoring Hobbs and Busch.

In the third inning, Jake Pisano (Providence Catholic, 2029) and Cody Busch reached on a walk, Pisano later scored on a wild pitch, making it a 3-0 lead. Hobbs stepped up to the plate and singled to left, bringing in Busch to extend the lead to four.

The Illinois squad broke it open in the bottom of the fifth, scoring their final three runs. A leadoff walk by Jacob Kaspar (Brother Rice, 2029) got the rally started, Andrew Jones (Marist, 2029) laced a single to center, a passed ball brought in Kaspar. Todd Dulaney Jr. (Nazareth Academy, 2029) singled and advanced to second on an error by the shortstop, setting up second and third for Hobbs. A sacrifice fly to center hit by Hobbs scored the seventh run of the game for IL.

Busch shut down Arizona in order for the next two innings, securing the win for Illinois, sending them to a quarterfinal matchup against fourth seeded Mississippi on Sunday morning.

Quarterfinals

Lower seemed Team Illinois was battle tested in the first game on Sunday and held on to a six run lead to defeat Team Mississippi 6-5 and advanced to the semifinals on Sunday afternoon.

Team Illinois got the scoring started in the second inning as Leo Kelly (Loyola Academy, 2029) was hit by a pitch, stole second, and was driven in by Charlie Kohman (Downers Grove North, 2029) on a single to center. Mason Koth (Jacobs, 2029) stepped up to the plate and doubled to center, scoring Kohman and taking a 2-0 lead early.

One more run was tallied on in the third inning as Andrew Jones (Marist, 2029) was hit by a pitch to leadoff the inning, stole second, and reached third on a passed ball. Cody Busch (Joliet Catholic, 2029) had excellent situational hitting, grounding out to shortstop to bring in the third run of the game for Illinois.

Paulie Hobbs (Marist, 2029) got the rally started in the fourth inning with a line drive single to right, Hobbs stole second, and Tyler Lanzi (Providence Catholic, 2029) singled up the middle, scoring Hobbs. Dempsey Steinmetz (Marist, 2029) doubled to left, scoring Lanzi, taking a 5-0 lead. Mason Carlson (Joliet Catholic, 2029) singled, bringing in Steinmetz and scoring the last run of the game for Illinois, extending the lead to 6-0.

Starting pitcher, Paulie Hobbs had a quality start for Team Illinois, in three innings of work, Hobbs allowed two earned runs on two hits, five walks, and three strikeouts, recording the win and helping the team advance.

Team Mississippi started to drive in runs late in the game but the rally wasn't enough. Team Illinois won 6-5 and advanced to the semifinal round against ninth seeded Tennessee.

Semifinals

An early four run lead wasn't enough for Team Illinois as Team Tennessee came crawling back, defeating Illinois 8-5 and advancing to the Championship on Sunday afternoon.

The Illinois squad got out to an early lead in the first inning, Cody Busch (Joliet Catholic, 2029) got the inning started with a single up the middle, Todd Dulaney Jr. (Nazareth Academy, 2029) laid down a bunt that advanced Busch, and Paulie Hobbs (Marist, 2029) stepped up and laced a triple to right scoring Busch and giving IL a 1-0 lead.

The second inning got started with a Tyler Lanzi (Providence Catholic, 2029) single, Lanzi stole second, and the catcher threw the ball into center, advancing Lanzi to third. Charlie Kohman (Downers Grove North, 2029) drove in Lanzi with an RBI groundout to extend the lead to 2-1.

Illinois added three more runs in the bottom of the third inning. Andrew Jones (Marist, 2029) was hit by a pitch, Jacob Kaspar (Brother Rice, 2029) walked, and Busch singled, bringing in both runners. Jake Pisano (Providence Catholic, 2029) also walked, and was later brought in on a passed ball.

Tennessee started to get runners and had some hard hit balls that brought in four runs to take a one run lead in the top of the fifth and added two more runs in the sixth to take a 8-5 lead. Illinois couldn’t bring in any more runs and fell to the eventual champion Tennessee 8-5 in the semifinal round.

Team Illinois had a great run in the tournament, making it further than any Illinois JFG team has ever made it. Many players made a name for themselves and broke out as names to follow as they enter their high school career.

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