On an unseasonably warm winter evening at Lee Pfund Field in Wheaton, IL, the West Chicago Wildcats Varsity baseball team set out to play the first game of their season against Hoffman Estates.

West Chicago’s last game was in the first round of the IHSA playoffs when they lost a hard-fought 12-inning game against Glenbard West. The Wildcats finished with an 11-12 record last year and placed sixth in the Upstate Eight.

With the new season that started today, the Wildcats lost seven seniors from last year’s squad.

The opposing Hoffman Estate team is coming off a 6-5 win against Chicago Hope Academy on March 11. Senior Adrian Lara-Acevedo went 1/2 with an RBI, a run, and 2 walks. Last year,  the Hawks had a poor season with a 9-21-1 record and a last-place finish in the Mid-Suburban-West Conference.

For the Wildcats, senior southpaw Tyler Heath got the start. The Oakton College commit got his season going by hitting a ground-rule double that went over the center fielder’s head, but got stranded at second. Heath also started it up on the mound by letting up no hits in the first inning.

“I think my first innings of the season were definitely a good foundation for how I am going to be this year,” Tyler Heath said.

When the Wildcats got back up to the plate in the top of the 2nd, senior Dominic Cicero got on base after getting walked. Cicero would eventually score the first run of the new season after a single up the middle by junior Royal Day.

“It was good to get back into the swing of things. I was just looking for a base hit to set the mood [for] the game, so we [could] get the bats hot. After that, our bats woke up – finally – and that’s how we won the game,” Day said.

The Hawks scored two runs in the bottom of the 2nd after a bases-loaded throwing error by Cicero, and a sacrifice fly, which would make the game 2-1 in favor of Hoffman Estates.

But that lead did not last long, as Brandon R. Heath reached second base after a bunt single and an error. Next up was Zach Williamson, who got to first on a hit by pitch, which would put runners on first and third after Brandon Heath stole third for West Chicago. Tyler Heath started his day 2/2 by adding on a single up the middle to bring his brother home.

The Wildcats would add three more runs to that lead in the same inning from a sacrifice ground ball from junior Tommy Doyle, a sacrifice fly from senior Rafael Herrera Mota, and an error from the catcher that would bring senior Kyler Campbell home to make the lead 5-3 for the Wildcats.

No runs scored in the 3rd, which would be Tyler Heath’s last pitched inning, and Brandon R. Heath would come into the game, making Tyler Heath’s final game stats 0 earned runs and 4 strikeouts in 3 innings pitched. Brandon R. Heath continued the streak by throwing a scoreless fourth inning. Campbell got the top of the 5th started by getting hit by a pitch, then Doyle lined a double into left field to advance Campbell to third. Both Campbell and Doyle would score to increase the lead to 7-3.

In the top of the 6th, Day hit a sky-high triple to the wall in center field, which would lead to an RBI from senior Ryan Zalak – and be the last run of the game for either team, making the final score 8-4 Wildcats.

“It was a solid win today to get the ball rolling, but I wished things went a little smoother on the mound for me. But we are starting out on a good note. As a team, I’m hoping we improve on our defense, and iron out any issues that pop up before tourney time comes around,” starting pitcher Tyler Heath said.

West Chicago’s next seven games are all against out-of-conference opponents, which include @Wheaton North (3/13). @St. Francis (3/18), @Aurora Central Catholic (3/20), vs Addison Trial (3/21), vs West Aurora (3/25), vs Schaumburg (3/27), and Vs Glenbard North (3/29).

“I’m looking for a great season with the team,” Day said.