Richards, Oak Lawn Finish 1-2 in SSC Red Baseball

The dust has settled in the South Suburban Conference, and Richards’ baseball squad has come out on top in the SSC Red. Oak Lawn finished right behind the Bulldogs, in second place.

Oak Lawn had a chance to share the conference title with Richards heading into Thursday’s game against Lemont, but the Spartans fell 6-2. Oak Lawn left 10 runners on base and failed to get the big hit, according to coach Brian Clifton.

Richards (20-12 overall heading into Friday’s game against Bolingbrook, and 14-5 in the SSC) beat Reavis on Monday and Tuesday to do its part to claim the conference crown. Tuesday’s victory was as wild as they come. Richards rallied from a 7-1 deficit with two outs in the bottom of the seventh to beat Reavis 8-7.

The Bulldogs, however, dropped two non-conference games this week, falling 6-2 to Homewood-Flossmoor on Wednesday and losing 9-3 to St. Laurence at home on Thursday.

Richards coach Brian Wujcik said his team needs to clean up its defense. Richards had five errors on Thursday and four on Wednesday.

“We need to play better defense—that’s the bottom line,” Wujcik said, pointing out that three of H-F’s six runs on Wednesday were unearned.

Boys Tennis Sectionals Heat Up

Oak Lawn, Richards and Marist all were represented at the Sandburg Sectional on Friday.

In singles, Oak Lawn’s Marcin Szczepaniak advanced to the semifinals with two match victories, including a 6-0, 6-1 win over John Sutko of Richards in the second round and a 6-2, 6-2 win over Sandburg’s Yasir Shihabudeen in the quarterfinals. Marist’s Alex Haizel also advanced to the semifinals, with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Andy Szczepaniak.

In doubles, Marist’s Matt Bisbee and Matt Krakowski advanced to the semifinals, while Oak Lawn’s Jason Klaer and Rami Oraibi fell in the quarterfinals.

Because they advanced to the semifinals, Marcin Szczepaniak, Haizel, and Bisbee and Krakowski all secured a spot in the state meet.

Richards Tunes Up for Softball Playoffs

Richards’ softball team has two more non-conference games as a final tune-up before the playoffs begin next week. Today the Bulldogs will put their undefeated record to the test when they face Antioch at the Stone City Jamboree in Minooka. The Bulldogs will face Lincoln-Way West on Monday.

“We have two really good teams to get us going,” Richards coach Julie Folliard said.

Marist’s girls soccer team faces Stagg today in the Marist Regional championship game. Last year, Marist lost in a regional championship game.

It will be the first matchup of the season between Stagg and Marist.

“We’re going to give them everything we’ve got and hopefully we can win a regional on our own field,” Marist coach Sean Maxwell said.