St. Laurence beats Benet to win the Class 3A state championship

St. Laurence’s Daniel Coyle was one of the standout players at the state finals this weekend in Joliet and it had nothing to do with his hitting or pitching. He’s an eye-opening defender at third base, sure-handed and aggressive.

It turns out that’s why Coyle hasn’t pitched a ton this season. Heading into the Class 3A state championship game against Benet he had thrown just 17 innings.

“It’s hard to take Dan off of third base because he’s so good,” Vikings coach Pete Lotus said. “But ultimately the guy on the mound is the most important.”

Coyle flashed his glove early in the game, drove in the go-ahead run in the sixth inning and closed out St. Laurence’s 8-5 state title win with three innings of relief pitching.

“I’m always on my toes ready for the next situation,” Coyle said. “I love it. I live for this type of stuff. It just feels so good to bring one home finally.”

Coyle gave up one run and one hit in three innings. He struck out four and didn’t walk a batter.

“It’s his toughness,” Lotus said. “Dan just kept making pitches. He did such a good job getting out of the [fifth inning], stranding a man on third base was huge to keep it a tie game.”

Coyle had two hits, two RBI and scored a run. Every Viking in the lineup managed at least one hit. Connor Marino, Adrian Perez, Ben Geary and Orlando Vazquez all had two hits. Enrique Villanueva contributed a sacrifice fly in the third inning and a crucial RBI single in the seventh.

“I knew Benet was a pretty good team and we needed some insurance runs there,” Villanueva said. “This feels amazing. It truly does. This state title means the world to all of us.”

Junior John Strzechowski learned he was starting the state championship game on the way back to the hotel after the semifinal win against Triad.

“The nerves going through my body were insane,” Strzechowski said. “But my dad told me to turn my nerves into excitement. That’s what I did. After the first inning, I settled down and the team had my back.”

Strzechowski pitched four innings and allowed four earned runs and five hits. He struck out three and walked two.

“I’ve known [Strzechowski] a long time,” Lotus said. “In these types of games, you need someone that is going to be able to withstand the highs and lows and John is that type of kid and that’s why we gave him the ball.”

Sophomore Quinn Rooney, the offensive hero for Benet (27-13) in the semifinals, homered to right field in the fourth inning. It was the only home run in the first six games of the finals.

“Congratulations to St. Laurence,” Benet coach Jorge Acosta said. “It was just a fun game, back and forth. We battled back and had some opportunities. It was a really good high school baseball game.

“This has been over a decade in the making. We have had some really good teams over the years that didn’t have a chance to get here for one reason or another. Hopefully, this is a stepping stone for our team to become regulars and get a chance to win a state title.”

It’s the first state championship for St. Laurence (37-5).

“Some tears came out of my eyes after that last out,” Strzechowski said. “It is just unbelievable.”