Kits Break Through For First CSL South Win

Elliot Paul will probably never pitch a 7-inning no-hitter for Evanston’s baseball team during his career.

That’s not a knock against the junior right-hander. No one else will probably do it, either. It’s more a reflection of the state of the game now that pitch counts have entered the picture in the sport at the high school level.

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The no-hitter is becoming even more rare than the triple play. According to Illinois High School Association rules now, an absolute pitch limit of 105 for any hurler at any school in a single game makes it almost impossible to achieve that feat.

Paul tried to get there Monday in the opening game of a three-game series against Deerfield at ETHS. He tossed four no-hit innings before letting the bullpen take over as the Wildkits broke through for their first Central Suburban League South division victory this spring by a 10-6 margin at ETHS.

The two teams resume the series Tuesday at Deerfield, with the finale set back at ETHS on Thursday.

Paul evened his mound record this spring at 3-3 after notching 7 strikeouts, walking 3 and hitting a batter in his 4-inning stint. But his pitch count crept up to 87, and even a hurler at the top of his game --- like the junior was Monday --- had to be lifted.

Relievers Calvin Hayes, Tyler Long and Bryce Lortie yielded four hits in the last three innings and all of Deerfield’s runs were unearned as the Kits improved to 7-11 on the season and 1-3 in division play.

Deerfield, which won two out of three games against New Trier last week, fell to 4-9 overall.

“Pitching a no-hitter wasn’t really on my radar. I wasn’t thinking about it until I came out and someone told me I was pitching a no-hitter,” Paul said. “It would have been a cool thing to happen, in the moment. But that’s not what I was trying to do. We were up by a lot (6-0) and we have some new pitchers who don’t have many CSL innings yet and they needed the experience, too. So if I have to give up a little (in terms of innings pitched), I can take that if they get some innings and more confidence in return.”

It wasn’t the first time head coach Frank Consiglio has removed a pitcher who hasn’t yielded a hit yet, and it definitely won’t be the last time.

“I had to take Elliot out. With the pitch limit, he wouldn’t have been able to cover the last three innings anyway,” Consiglio pointed out. “The days of a coach having to make a decision are really few and far between now, because you always have to be aware of the pitch counts. It wasn’t even really a decision.

“Let’s put it this way --- Elliot didn’t pitch a no-hitter, but he had no-hit stuff. He pitched like an ace today and that’s what we expect from him. He commanded both sides of the plate very well. His fastball was live and he executed really well on his slider. It was good to see, because that’s what aces do.”

Paul, who was Evanston’s No. 1 pitcher last year as a sophomore, thought Monday’s outing was his best yet in a Wildkit uniform.

“That was the best game I’ve pitched, the best I’ve felt,” said the junior hurler. “My arm still felt pretty good in the moment after 87 pitches. But if I had continued to pitch, I’d have woke up sore tomorrow, and I wouldn’t have been able to play in the field, either.

“After I saw that my first few pitches were in the strike zone, I really felt good. Today I focused mostly on getting those first pitch strikes, like Coach Consiglio always talks about.”

Paul dominated in his sixth start of the spring after entering the matchup with an earned run average over 5.00. After tossing zeroes with two trips through the Warriors’ batting order, he exited the game and Hayes allowed the first hit of the contest against the first batter he faced, Mariano Martinez, who grounded a sharp single through the left side of the infield.

Evanston stroked 10 hits against five different Deerfield hurlers, led by Nate Willman (2-for-4, 2 runs scored) and Ryan Rappoport (2-for-3, 2 stolen bases). The hosts pushed across four runs in the first inning to give some rare breathing room to the starting pitcher (Paul) and more of a cushion for his successors.

Evanston’s four-run outburst came after two outs recorded by Deerfield starter and loser Will Swender. Tate Schroeder doubled home two runs and Garrett Hagerty and Caleb Prendergast followed with RBI singles as the winners sent nine batters to the plate in the frame.

Paul, who reached base four times in the leadoff/designated hitter spot, walked and stole second in the ETHS second, and scored on Rappoport’s double to right center. Evanston’s senior shortstop also excelled in last week’s series against Maine South and now is hitting .556 (6-for-11) in conference play.

A Willman single, two walks and Hagerty’s infield out boosted the advantage to 6-0 in the fourth. The Wildkits added four more insurance runs in the sixth thanks to two Deerfield errors, two walks, a single by Ike Hanrahan, and Paul’s run-scoring double.

“This was a big step in the right direction for us today,” Consiglio said. “That was a great win.”