Normel West Gets 2-1 Win Against Limestone

By The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.

Apr. 15–BARTONVILLE — Matt Caslow threw seven strong innings and Seth Astroth made a key defensive play as Normal West High School’s baseball team defeated Limestone, 2-1, Friday in a nonconference game.

West (10-3) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the third inning. Lucas Sylvester, who had two of the Wildcats’ four hits, led off with a single. A sacrifice bunt and a passed ball moved Sylvester to third base, and he scored on a fielder’s choice grounder by Zach Williams.

Astroth’s defensive gem came in the fourth inning as the first baseman snared a hard-hit grounder to get the leadoff hitter. The out became key when Danny Otten followed with a solo home run to tie the score at 1-1 for Limestone (13-2).

“That was a big play in the game,” said West coach Chris Hawkins. “Seth made a diving play on a hard-hit ball. And the next guy gets up and hits a home run n so that really made a difference in the game.”

West took the lead for good in the sixth inning. Williams drew a leadoff walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and to third on a groundout. Astroth then beat out a slow roller as the throw by the Limestone shortstop pulled the first baseman off the bag, allowing Williams to score.

That was all Caslow would need in boosting his record to 4-0. The senior allowed four hits with no walks and five strikeouts.

“Matt threw with a lot of guts and heart today,” said Hawkins. “He was throwing strikes and the defense came up with the plays behind him. It was a solid high school baseball game.”

Drew Koeppel (1-1) took the loss for Limestone, striking out seven Wildcats.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.

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