Abby Brueggmann, Reese Rourke lead Lincoln-Way West to win over Bradley-Bourbonnais

BOURBONNAIS − When Lincoln-Way West faced Bradley-Bourbonnais on April 15 for a SouthWest Suburban Conference matchup, it was the host Warriors that picked up a 17-9 win.

But runs were much harder to come by in Friday’s rematch, with Lincoln-Way West’s Abby Brueggmann and Bradley-Bourbonnais’ Lydia Hammond in the circle.

Hammond allowed only five hits and three runs over seven innings, but Brueggmann managed to be a bit more effective. The junior allowed just three hits over seven shutout innings to lead the Warriors (17-9, 6-6) to a 3-0 win over the Boilermakers (14-10, 5-5) and help the team bounce back after a pair of heartbreaking SWSC losses in extra innings earlier this week.

For the Warriors, junior shortstop Reese Rourke drove in what proved to be the game-winning run on a fielder’s choice in the third inning. She said it felt good to get back in the win column after losing 4-3 to Andrew in nine innings Monday and 7-6 to Lincoln-Way Central in eight innings Wednesday.

“We certainly came out here with a great mindset today,” she said. “We talked about it in practice how we lost a few games by one run, and we really wanted to get back at it, play our best, and I’d say that’s what we did today.”

Rourke also made some sparkling plays at short, starting in the bottom of the third. With a runner on second and two outs, she leapt to catch a line drive off the bat of Bristol Schriefer that would have tied the game had it went over Rourke’s head.

In the fifth, she dove low to her right to snag another liner off the bat of Leila Middlebrook that looked sure to be a leadoff hit in what was still a 1-0 game at the time.

“I definitely just focus on my pre-pitch [routine], making sure I’m ready for every ball,” Rourke said of her defensive impact. “I make sure my feet are moving so I can react right away, and I would say that’s the most important thing for me.”

In addition to Rourke’s gems in the field, third baseman Molly Finn made a diving catch of her own to end the fourth inning. While Brueggmann struck out seven batters Friday, she said it is comforting as a pitcher to know what her defense is capable of doing on balls in play.

“The defense was great,” she said. “There were some great plays at short and third. ... I feel relaxed knowing I have a great defense and I don’t have to strike out every hitter.”

Brueggmann got some more breathing room in the top of the sixth. Rourke led off the inning with a double. She was then bunted to third by Reese Forsythe and scored with ease when Reese Cusack drilled a home run to left.

The trio of Reese’s at the top of the lineup Friday have been key to the Warriors’ production all season.

“Reese Rourke is just such a fun player to watch, whether seeing her in the box or some of those plays she made at short today,” coach Heather Novak said. “Just incredible athleticism. Reese Forsythe doing the little things behind the plate, and in her at-bat being able to advance runners and how important that is to a good team win. And Reese Cusack was clearly ready to hit when she came up and jumped on that pitch.”

For the Boilermakers, Schriefer, Suttyn Hop and Shannon Lee each singled to account for all the damage off of Brueggmann. While the team made solid contact at times, often resulting in unfortunate outs, head coach Haylee Beck said she felt they let Brueggmann dictate too many at-bats and had a hard time finding good pitches to hit.

“Part of it is bad luck,” she said. “Part of it is just hitting the ball really hard and hitting it right at them, or them making a really great play. Some of it is that, and some of it is we struggled to hit our pitch today a little bit. I think we were a little anxious, pressing a little bit and found ourselves hitting her pitch as opposed to ours.”