HEARTS TAKE FOURTH: Effingham finishes with a fourth-place trophy after its 2-1 walk-off loss to Sycamore

Jun. 11—JOLIET — Chances were there.

But for the second-straight game, the Effingham baseball team couldn't come away with that one hit they so desperately needed.

The Flaming Hearts fell to Sycamore on Saturday in the Class 3A Third-Place Game at Duly Health and Care Field in Joliet.

"I haven't looked over the book, but we had quite a few runners on base and couldn't find that timely hit; we couldn't make it happen," Effingham head coach Curran McNeely said.

The Hearts finished the game by stranding 10 runners on base in its 2-1 defeat.

Effingham scored their only run in the top of the fourth after junior Kaiden Nichols worked a bases-loaded walk with two outs.

Senior Jack Harper then grounded into a fielder's choice to leave the bases loaded and the Hearts ahead 1-0.

The Spartans then tied the game in the sixth.

Senior Joey Puleo reached first on an error. Senior Kiefer Tarnoki then hit a single, pushing Puelo to third before junior Matthew Rosado hit an RBI single that plated the game-tying score.

Effingham senior Josh McDevitt showed his brilliance again, though, getting senior Tommy Townsend to strikeout and senior Jimmy Amptmann to ground into a double play to retire the side with runners on first and third.

"I thought he was a fantastic pitcher," Sycamore head coach Jason Cavanaugh said. "It wasn't just the velocity but the sharp break and the ability to throw the breaking ball in any count. He worked inside and outside and we had a lot of strikeouts looking, but he was also making his pitches."

McDevitt threw eight innings, allowing five hits and one walk to 14 strikeouts.

He was lifted following the eighth inning after reaching his pitch limit. He struck out Townsend for his final out in a Hearts jersey.

"Dude's a competitor," McNeely said. "You watch him do all of his work, everything that he's done this year; it's always with a purpose. He fights his tail off inning-to-inning, and if he does get a runner on base, he becomes better and gets sharper with his stuff. You can't speak highly enough of him."

In each of the last two wins for McDevitt, he had mentioned that he didn't have nearly his best stuff.

Saturday was a different story.

McDevitt said he felt he commanded all his pitches well against a team that batted .372 (439-for-1,179).

"I felt confident in everything and I knew I had to. I knew they would hit fastballs if you left them in the zone, just like every team we've been playing the last couple of weeks," McDevitt said. "We knew they would be aggressive, so I had to be good with my pitches and felt good out there."

After the game, McNeely was joined in the press room by McDevitt, senior centerfielder Quest Hull and senior catcher Myles Maxedon.

McNeely was visibly emotional when talking about the three seniors he sat with at the table and the other four on the concourse below.

"This group of seniors has been so fun to be around," he said. "We're going to usher in a new group of guys next year. As the head guy, you'll always remember that first full group. We went through a lot. They get introduced to me, brand new. They've set the bar for all groups to come."

McNeely was also emotional during the game when he shared a moment with the Missouri-bound McDevitt after he left the field in the eighth.

"Just a senior that I'm super proud of. We've spent four years together and seeing him blossom into what he's become today and where he started as a sophomore at the varsity level to where he's at today is just a testament to him and all the hard work he's put in," he said. "I'm glad it's paid off for him."

"Our relationship has been awesome the last four years," McDevitt added. "I'm extremely grateful to have him on my side and know I wouldn't be where I'm today without Coach McNeely, so I'm super thankful for him and all the coaches I've had over the years — I've been really lucky."

Likewise, McDevitt also felt the same about having Maxedon behind the plate.

That trust has never wavered, either.

"Myles has been my catcher since we were eight," McDevitt said. "He's the guy that I trust the most behind the plate. To see our relationship grow over the years and to see us both grow as baseball players, I've been super grateful to have him. I'm extremely blessed to have a guy I can trust back there and it's cool to see how he's progressed throughout high school and become the leader he is."

Maxedon simply called catching a pitcher like McDevitt "amazing."

He also joked that he plans on bragging whenever he watches him on television.

"You can't put it into words; to think I caught him for a full year and did pretty well together and now, I get to sit at home and watch him on TV — you can't ask for anything more," Maxedon said. "I'll always be able to say that I caught him and the farther he goes, the more I'm going to brag about it."

McNeely also acknowledged Maxedon — and the catchers that preceded him — afterward.

"We've been blessed the last two or three years with some good guys behind the plate," he said. "We've talked about situations and who we have coming up; we have a scouting report that we talk about the night before, but I've always trusted what [Maxedon] has done and what all of the catchers in the past have done and be able to call pitches."

Effingham finishes the season with a 22-17 record.

The Hearts had the lowest enrollment (736 students) of the four high schools involved.

McNeely said that proves anything is possible.

"It just proves that it can be done," he said. "We were the smallest team here as far as enrollment wise goes, but it shows people out there that it's not impossible. It takes a lot of effort, a lot of work and sometimes, some hurt feelings a little bit, but you continue to show up day in and day out; never give up on yourself, always try to get better day-to-day and eventually, it's going to pay off for you."

Hull and Maxedon also reacted to the journey afterward.

"It means a lot to inspire the next generation and let them know what we're about; hopefully, we can keep it going," Hull said.

"All of the little kids that come out here and watch us this weekend, we were once them," Maxedon added. "We were led by example and you sit there and want to be them, so being that inspiration to the kids sitting in the crowd means everything."

McDevitt continued by saying how happy he was to see his team battle against top-tier competition.

"We've faced great competition for the last few weeks and I'm proud of how we've all battled. We were talking before this weekend and knew the only thing we could do was go out there and play as hard as we could," McDevitt said. "For us to come out here and compete with a good team like that for nine innings says a lot about our team and our culture."

All three seniors at the table knew they wouldn't be able to attain this dream without the tutelage of McNeely, though.

"He's a great role model," Hull said. "We definitely wouldn't be where we are without him."

"None of us would be where we're at without him," Maxedon added. "It's not just sitting here and talking about baseball; his work ethic is great. He's always one step ahead of everything and teaches us to be the same way."

Contact EDN Sports Editor

Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231 or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.