Kamp stars on mound in recent win.
By Mike Miazga
Correspondent
The Willowbrook baseball team has carried its winning ways of the spring straight into the summer.
After a recent sweep of Montini in summer league action, the Warriors had 12 wins through late last week. The Warriors also recently played against Glenbard West.
“We had some other kids step up this week,” said Willowbrook coach Vic Wisner late last week.
One in particular was Mason Kamp, who had a strong pitching outing in one of the games against Montini. He went 5 innings and allowed two hits and one earned run.
“Mason’s start was very encouraging,” said Wisner. “He really did well.”
Another player who has helped the Warriors this summer is incoming junior Danny Holloway.
“Danny is a junior who has done a great job at second, third and short for us,” said the coach. “He’s having a great summer. With some of our pitchers playing middle infield spots such as Jack Hines and Ryan Mintz, we need a guy who is flexible and can move around the infield and Danny certainly has done that. He’s been that flexible guy. He’s started a couple of doubles plays. He’s been great.”
Wisner has been pleased with the team’s progress at the plate in June. “A big positive is we are starting to really hit the ball,” he said. “A guy like Jeremy Conforti is a junior who is batting third or fourth and has really stepped up and hit the ball hard.”
Wisner also likes the mix of returning players and potential newcomers to the varsity. “We have a good idea about the guys who are coming back and what we have with them,” he said. “It’s a matter of who is going to step up and take up those spots that guys such as Mike Dembowski (graduated senior) and MJ Ranieri (graduated senior) as examples.”
As has been custom in recent years, Wisner is confident about the quality of pitching he has on the roster.
“Our pitching has been good,” he said. “We will be good on the mound. We have guys coming back such as Vince Ruchala in the bullpen who logged 19 or 20 innings of relief work in the spring. Jack Nilles, Ryan Mintz and Jack Hines also are back. We’re also excited about a guy like Jack Klobucar who is a lefty. Pitching-wise I’m very encouraged. (Pitching) coach Curtis Hudson has developed a deep pitching staff. We’re deep with arms again. It’s going to be no different than the past few years.”
Another positive for Willowbrook this summer has been watching a new group take shape, Wisner noted.
“We start out trying to find who we are and then we work hard to find whoere we are,” he said. “Each team has its own ID. This team is starting to find its own ID. Everybody out there wants to contribute to being a good team.”
Willowbrook is off this week for the Fourth of July holiday and returns to action next week with the start of the state summer playoffs.
