“Pitch is in the dirt…there’s a wild pitch! Here comes the state championship. It’s over. The Cougars win. Trey Stewart wins on a wild pitch. Plainfield South is the champion of Illinois.”

CubeProductions announced this to fans attending the Phil Lawler Summer State Championship at Silver Cross Field, and were given a taste of what the upcoming Plainfield South baseball season had to offer.

“We knew we were going to be a good team going into this season, and if we played how we did at summer state, we can win another championship,” senior Antonio Gutierrez said.

South comes into this season with seven committed players, five of which appear on the Cougar pitching staff.

“Our pitching staff is incredibly deep this year. Most teams will have one or two guys like we have, but with us we’re 5 deep on the mound with more young guns waiting in the wing,” assistant coach Brendan Holba said.

South’s starting rotation features the SEC-bound duo of Kentucky commit Austin Marozas and Missouri commit Konnor Ash, along with Jordan Mikel who’s heading to Western Illinois.

“Austin has battled adversity and pitched well for us this year. With the talent that he possesses and the hype that surrounds him, he has done a great job keeping everything under control,” Holba said.

Holba also comments about the play of Ash and Mikel.

“Konnor has been a guy that you want to give the ball to as often as possible. He competes and works incredibly hard, always willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win,” Holba said.

Holba adds that although Mikel leads the team in wins, he also has made an impact in the field.

“Jordan is an unbelievable athlete that can make plays that just leave you scratching your head as to how the play was even made,” Holba said.

According to assistant coach Chet Lines, the team has already experienced their ups and downs, but with correct preparation coming down the stretch, they’ll definitely do damage in the playoffs.