4A Burbank Sectional Semifinal: Mount Carmel Cruises Past St. Laurence

BURBANK, IL, - The No. 1 seeded St. Laurence Vikings (30-7) hosted the No. 4 seeded Mount Carmel Caravan (26-10) in the Burbank Sectional Semifinal game Wednesday afternoon. The matchup saw two of the top CCL Blue conference teams as Mount Carmel put together a team-effort 10-run 5th inning to top the Vikings 18-5 in a five inning affair.

In the 10-run 5th, the Caravan sent all nine of their hitters to the plate and brought all nine in to touch home. Ed Howard (Oklahoma commit), Jake Kapers (Valparaiso commit) and Alek Thomas (TCU commit) all picked up multi RBI hits in the frame as well as seeing Joey Egan (Loras commit) come around to score twice. Egan also picked up one of his four RBIs on the day.

The crooked number was plenty run support for Mount Carmel as Christian Lucio (Eastern Kentucky commit)was sent out in the bottom of the 5th to pick up the complete game victory on the mound for the Caravan. This was Lucios' first time facing the Vikings on the mound and the righty finished with a line: 5IP, 8H, 5R, 2ER, 4K, 3BB.

After Mount Carmel put up two runs in the first inning, St. Laurence answered quickly with three of their own capped off by a two-run blast deep to left by senior Zach Verta (Calumet St. Joe’s commit). This would be the only lead of the game the Vikings would see as the Caravan received a second inning three run-blast off the bat of Egan, which did not stay in the park long.

Both teams traded a run in third inning. Lucio sent a no doubt solo blast to right field, while Matt McCormick (West Virginia commit) drove in Jake Vera on a double that hit the bottom of the right/center field wall. Vera reached on one of his two singles on the day.

Alek Thomas, one of the top draft prospects in the state, did what he has been doing all season long in the fourth frame by launching a solo shot to the opposite field that seemed to never come down. Anthony Herron (Missouri State commit) would also rope a RBI double scoring Diego Munoz (Western Illinois commit) in the inning.

The Vikings would see their final run of the game touch home in the bottom of the fourth as McCormick sacrificed in Alex Gasbarro who reached on a flare to right field.

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