Coming off a loss to Morton in the Sectional Semi-Finals to end Rock Island Baseball’s 2021-2022 Season, the Rocks were hungry for a deeper run into the postseason. Losing 7 starters from the previous year, a couple underclassmen would step up and take control of what the seniors left behind.
With being a couple games into the season, the Rock’s record sat below .500, with a record of 7-8, but then, a spark went off within the Rock Island Team. They won the second game of a doubleheader against Galesburg in late April, after a 3 game loss streak, and never looked back. After that game, the Rocks went on a 23 game winning streak, leading them to back to back Regional Championships, as well as the first Sectional Championship since 1999. Unfortunately, they fell in the Super-Sectional Championship to go to State, but that didn’t take away from the tremendous season they had.
One senior, in particular, has had a big impact on the program as a whole, Outfielder/Pitcher, Conner DiIulio. Conner has started his Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior years, and states, “To be honest, me starting on Varsity as a freshman really helped me mature as a player. I feel like, personally, I have had growth to be able to put my team and myself in positions to have success, especially last year.” With Conner going into his senior season, he will be a key factor in the pitching rotation, while being the starting center fielder, when not on the mound.
Another big bat and key piece that adds to this talented Rock Island team is Junior Namarion Coleman. The Sophomore, at the time, started every game, and worked his way up to the top, leadoff hitter. When asked about the pressure of starting Varsity for the first time, Coleman explained, “I was expecting a lot more pressure than what I felt. I felt prepared and mentally ready for the team.” Coleman will continue to add to the success of the team this season with being one of the best Juniors throughout the Western Big 6.
Leading up to last season, a lot of people questioned Rock Island as to what they could accomplish, how they will produce throughout the season, but also, how adversity will help spark their fight to the postseason. DiIulio stated, “The doubt and people talking down on Rock Island Baseball, for me, it fuels the fire. I can’t speak for the team, but I feel like it’s the same for them, as well. We got really good at tuning out the negative and playing for each other which is where we have our success.”
Not only are they used to tuning out the negative, but also allowing adversity to help push them to keep going during the 23 game winning streak. Coleman states, “I feel like what fueled us was the hate we were receiving from other schools, and our chemistry that we had was just different from everybody else.”
Adversity has been something Rock Island players and staff find quite normal, and are used to seeing. When Rock Island’s Varsity Coach Jay Wayland stepped down in 2019, Freshman coach Jake Scudder stepped up. Many people were doubtful and un-optimistic about the future of Rock Island Baseball but under the control of Scudder, the Rocks would soon be one of the best teams in the Big Six.
“Rock Island was really lucky to get a coach like Coach Scudder. He knows the game super well. He’s been around it for so long that when he talks, and gives you advice and tips, you need to listen because he’s always looking out for only the best for all his players. I couldn’t imagine having any other coach than Coach Scudder because after his first 2 years, people were excited about Rock Island Baseball again. Each year, he gets better and better, and to be honest, it’s hard not to be excited about Rock Island Baseball,” Said DiIluio
With the amount of success the Rocks have accomplished, that creates a target on the backs of the team when heading into the next season. “I think that when we lost, we came to the conclusion that we can play with anyone in the state. So, as we go into this season, we bump up to 4A, and we know our talents, and we know what we have to do to win, so it only adds confidence to us, and we just have to grind harder than we ever gave before,” DiIluio stated.
Since the 2024 season is quickly approaching, players are ready to get back on the field and take on the Western Big 6 again, but with a first place finish in mind. After last season, they lost a couple big seniors, which means underclassmen will have to take on their role a little bit more.
DiIulio states, “This year, we will need some of our juniors that played a little bit of Varsity, like Alex Churchill and Chase Curry to step up because they will be some of our everyday guys we rely on.” Curry pinch ran last season, and Churchill played right field and played a key factor in the bottom half of the line up. Even with the loss of a couple seniors, a lot of the lineup will be returning, and Coleman states, “People can expect the same intensity and excitement that we had from last year.”
The Rocks start their season next Monday, February 26th with tryouts, and will have their first season game on the 15th of March down in Missouri for their annual spring trip with conference play starting soon after on March 26th Vs United Township.
