By Sean Duncan

VILLA PARK - It hasn’t been the easiest of seasons for Bartlett. Losing 21 games can wear on a team, you know.

The playoffs … one-and-done, right? Not so fast.

After winning a play-in game, the 14^th-seeded Hawks shocked third-seeded Willowbrook 11-4 on its home field in the Class 4A Willowbrook Regional semifinals Wednesday. Following a long weather delay, Bartlett (12-21) came out swinging and didn’t stop until it had ended Willowbrook’s (25-11) season.

The Hawks scored three runs in the top of the first – two coming on an opposite-field home run by left-handed hitting senior first baseman Greg Partyka – and they never looked back.

“I knew we were capable of coming out and beating good teams like Willowbrook,” said Partyka, a Bradley University recruit who tallied his ninth homer of the season. “After that long delay on the bus, we came out and stayed focused. It was nice to jump on them early.”

After pounding out five hits in the first inning, Bartlett added three more runs in the third inning. The Hawks led off the inning with two walks and a single by Mark Morse before junior shortstop David Mutter delivered a bases-clearing double down the left-field line, giving the Hawks a 6-0 advantage. Bartlett extended the lead to 9-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth.

In all, five Hawks enjoyed multi-hit games. Senior third baseman Mike Mancuso went 3-for-5, Mutter drove in four runs and Partyka had three RBI.  Morse also had three hits, including a run-scoring double in the fourth, and junior outfielder Ryan Yore added two hits.

“We came off the bus swinging the bats,” said Bartlett coach Russ Lorenz. “Don’t know what it was, but it was nice to come out hitting like that. … I knew we were capable of this. We have talent. Consistency has been our issue this year.”

Senior right-hander Mike Tomsovic wiggled out of second-and-third jams with less than two outs in each of the first and second innings before he settled in. Tomsovic (3-4), who also had two hits and an RBI at the plate, allowed three runs and four hits in five innings.

“Getting those runs early certainly helped Mike settle down,” said Lorenz.

Junior right-hander Cory Motz pitched the final two innings in relief, allowing one hit and one run. Motz retired the seventh in order to send the Hawks to the regional final against the winner of Thursday’s Lake Park-Wheaton-Warrenville South game

Losing pitcher Brett Buchanan (4-3) had two of Willowbrook’s five hits, including a two-run triple in the fifth inning.

“When they got the home run (in the first inning), the momentum was over there,” said Willowbrook coach Steve Gilliam. “They were feeling confident after that.”