The Lane Tech Champions will head out on the road to challenge the St. Rita Mustangs at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Lane Tech will be looking to extend their current eight-game winning streak.
On Friday, Lane Tech was able to grind out a solid win over Payton College Prep, taking the game 8-3.
Dodger Friedrich spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered three earned runs on five hits. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than one walk any time he's pitched this season.
Jacob DeVinney
| 04/18/25 @ Payton College Prep | 3 |
| 04/08/25 @ Von Steuben | 2 |
| 03/20/25 @ Loyola Academy | 2 |
| 04/14/25 @ Whitney Young | 1 |
| 04/01/25 @ Jones | 1 |
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Jacob DeVinney, who went 2-for-4 with three RBI and one double. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. Jeremiah Aguiniga also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Lane Tech kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least 11 hits in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for St. Rita, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They walked away with an 8-4 victory over Homewood-Flossmoor on Wednesday. The win continues a trend for the Mustangs in their matchups with the Vikings: they've now won three in a row.
Peyton Panozzo made a splash while hitting and pitching. He pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has become a key player for St. Rita: the team is 4-2 when he allows at most two hits, but 1-8 otherwise. Panozzo was also big at the plate, going a perfect 1-for-1 with one run and one RBI.
In other batting news, St. Rita got a big performance out of Colin Quinn, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one stolen base and two RBI. Joe Camer was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one triple, two RBI, and one run.
Lane Tech's victory was their eighth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 11-6. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.3 runs on average over those games. As for St. Rita, their record now sits at 5-10.
Lane Tech came out on top in a nail-biter against St. Rita in their previous meeting back in March of 2024, sneaking past 8-6. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Champions since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
