EAST LANSING — The stars of Orchard Lake St. Mary’s baseball made quick work of fellow Catholic League member Dearborn Divine Child in the Division 2 high school baseball state semifinals at Michigan State University on Thursday, June 11.
But the bottom of the lineup had to first put the team in a position to do damage. St Mary’s 7-8-9 hitters, consisting of junior Joseph Schilp, senior Nate Bauman and senior Preston Duff, planted the seeds for the game-deciding rally in the bottom of the third inning.
Schilp, Bauman and Duff loaded the bases with three straight singles. Senior shortstop Hudson Brzustewicz, a Notre Dame commit, cleared the bases with a hard-hit ground ball that hugged the first-base foul line, rolling to the base of the foul pole for a three-run triple with no outs. Then starting pitcher Luke Crighton hit a triple to right-center to score Brzustewicz and scored on a sacrifice fly.
The five-run third inning, coupled with a dominant start from Crighton on the mound, was more than enough for a comfortable 8-0 win over Divine Child for No. 1 St. Mary’s.
“The bottom of the lineup goes out there and competes,” said Brzustewicz, who finished 2-of-3 with three RBIs. “They find a way to get on and thenwe can flip it to the top with me, Crighton, [Andrew] Tribul, [Derick] Conrad and we go in and try to barrel the ball up.”
While St. Mary’s was able to overcome a sluggish start against Falcons starter Liam Gibbons, Divine Child could not crack that same puzzle against Crighton.
The Indiana commit faced 24 batters, just three more than the minimum in seven innings, while allowing four hits with eight strikeouts and no walks. All four of Divine Child’s hits were singles, and only one runner reached scoring position with a stolen base.
“He’s done that in every game he’s pitched in this year,” St. Mary’s coach Nick Di Ponio said of his ace. “The last two years, every time he has taken the mound, we feel like we have a really good chance to win. He throws a ton of strikes, throws multiple pitches in any count.”
Crighton did not start for St. Mary’s in last year’s state semifinal loss to Forest Hills Eastern. Crighton came on and shut things down in relief, but Forest Hills Eastern had already built a healthy enough lead to outlast the Eaglets, 5-4.
This year, there was no thought of starting any pitcher for the semifinal besides Crighton.
“It felt good,” Crighton said. “I just wanted to help my team win, and I am glad we were able to this year.”
Crighton dutifully mixed his four pitches – four-seam fastball, changeup, slider and curveball – and avoided any hard contact in the 83 pitches thrown across seven scoreless innings.
“Our coach is really good at calling pitches, so I trust him a lot and I’m confident in what I’m throwing,” Crighton said.
Senior Andrew Tribul, a Michigan State commit, started the fifth inning with a single to right field. Zach Essig drove in two runs with a single two batters later, and then scored himself on a fielder’s choice from Schilp.
The Eaglets finished with eight runs on 12 hits, with eight players recording at least one base knock and all nine starters reaching base. St. Mary’s also only struck out three times across 27 at-bats.
“Top to bottom, it has been really fun to watch this group compete this year,” Di Ponio said.
St. Mary’s (36-5) has now won 26 straight games entering Saturday’s Division 2 state championship game against Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills. Kenowa Hills beat Vicksburg 9-6 in the first semifinal with a four-run rally in the top of the seventh inning.
St. Mary’s is seeking its first title since winning the Division 1 crown in 2022.
Despite owning a long winning streak and spending most of the season ranked as the No. 1 team in Michigan, the St. Mary’s players do not carry the same mental burden as other clear-cut title favorites.
“We are just having fun together,” Crighton said. “Everybody on this team is super close. We love being with each other, so we are having fun and playing loose. It has helped us a lot.”
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Jared Ramsey covers high school sports for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at jramsey@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: No. 1 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s baseball stars cruise through semifinals
