DURKIN’S DANDY DAY
Senior strikes out 9, picks off a pair and drives in a run as Sandburg tops Stagg
Sandburg’s Danny Durkin did not pitch a complete game.
But senior right-hander played an all-around complete game.
He struck out nine in 6 ⅓ innings Friday afternoon. He also made two pickoffs, reached base three times, drove in a run and made a putout at the plate after a wild pitch.
All of that added up on the positive side of the ledger for the Eagles during a 5-1 victory over district rival Stagg in a SouthWest Suburban Conference crossover in Palos Hills.
Because Sandburg’s field is under construction, this was considered a home game for the Eagles (5-6), even though they were guests on the scoreboard.
Still, Durkin said this was his best start of the season following difficult outings against Marist and LincolnWay Central.
“Lincoln-Way Central has a really good team,” Durkin said. “I pitched pretty well, but I made a couple of mistakes and they made me pay for them. Against Marist, I didn’t have my command.”
That wasn’t an issue Friday as he kept Stagg (4-9) scoreless for six innings before the Chargers tagged him for three hits and a run in the seventh.
He gave up a hit in each of the first two innings but picked off both runners.
“I usually go over once or twice to see,” he said. “A couple of their guys were moving toward second base every time I threw over, so I thought I would try in a spot in the count where you wouldn’t expect it.
“It ended up working out. I think I had just one
other pickoff so far this year.”
This season could be the last for Durkin, who’s headed to Notre Dame to study finance. He hopes to be a walk-on for the baseball team.
“They are really good the year, so we’ll see what happens,” Durkin said.
Durkin, who attended football games with his family growing up, said Notre Dame was his dream school.
Jimmy Burke finished up for the Eagles, inducing a game-ending double play.
Sandburg scratched out five hits. Justin Egan, who bats ninth, scored two runs. Egan, Matt Morsovillo and Jeremy Johnson also drove in runs.
Kyle Peterson reached base three times, walking once and getting hit by a pitch twice. He estimated he has been hit by a pitch seven times this season.
“I honestly don’t know why,” he said. “I might be a little bit on the plate but not too much. This is the first year this is happening to me.”
Earlier in the week, Sandburg eked out a 5-4 win over Andrew, another district rival. The Eagles scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh, with Johnson driving in the winner.
Otherwise, it has been tough sledding for Sandburg, a traditional powerhouse.
“The problem has been timely hitting, to be honest,” Peterson said. “If we clean that up and make a few less errors, we can be in a game against any team.”
Austin Stone and Mark Wolak each had two hits for Stagg. Joe Zaccone drove in the lone run.
George Evangelopoulos, a Milwaukee School of Engineering recruit, left the game after one inning with arm discomfort. A week earlier, he pitched 7⅓ scoreless innings in a 1-0 win over Lockport.
“We’ve had issues throwing strikes,” Stagg coach Matt O’Neill said. “The games we throw strikes, we’ve been in. George coming out of the game with an injury hurts.
“Our guys are going to continue to work and coach (Mike) Darrah is as good as it gets with pitchers. We’ll find a way to be competitive at some point here.”