ELGIN — Rochelle Little League’s Junior League Baseball All-Stars took the field for the 2024 Illinois Little League State Championship tournament in Elgin over the weekend. Rochelle went 2-1 over three games to finish fifth out of the 10 qualifying teams in the final standings.

The Junior League All-Stars include Elijah Schweitzer, Nolan Zick, Brayden Harley, Jasper Macklin, Elijah Good, Joey Chadwick, John Williams, Kolton Cragin, Dayton Mellor, Edwin Cervantes, Sebastian Albertson, Luke Chadwick, Riley Smith and Zach Johnson. The Junior League All-Stars are coached by Mike Medina, Jaime Huerta and Mike McGill.

Chicago East Side

Rochelle started the state tournament with a 9-5 win over Chicago East Side Little League on Saturday. Riley Smith led the Junior League All-Stars on the mound, throwing three and two-thirds innings with three strikeouts while holding Chicago East Side to two hits. Luke Chadwick went 1-for-3 with a double and two RBIs to spark the Rochelle offense in the win.

Chicago East Side held a 2-0 lead after three singles and two walks in the top of the first inning. After adding another run on two singles in the top of the second inning, Chicago East Side saw its lead cut to 3-1 in the bottom of the third inning, where Nolan Zick’s RBI groundout scored John Williams for the first Rochelle run of the game. Chicago East Side regained its three-run advantage after smacking an RBI single to surge ahead 4-1 in the top of the fourth inning.

Rochelle claimed the lead with a four-run rally in the bottom of the fourth inning. After Luke Chadwick’s RBI groundout brought the Junior League All-Stars within two, Joey Chadwick laced an RBI double to left field and scored on a wild pitch to tie the game at 4-4. Sebastian Albertson then scored on an error after drawing a two-out walk to give Rochelle a one-run lead.

Edwin Cervantes belted a sacrifice fly to right field in the bottom of the fifth inning, allowing John Williams to score and give Rochelle a 6-4 lead. Chicago East Side earned one run back on an error in the top of the sixth inning, but the Junior League All-Stars answered with three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, where Elijah Good scored on an error and Luke Chadwick sent an RBI double into left field to score Kolton Cragin. Sebastian Albertson added a sacrifice fly.

Rushville

Rochelle improved to 2-0 in the state tournament with a 10-3 win over Rushville Little League on Saturday. Elijah Schweitzer started on the mound for Rochelle, firing three innings while striking out six batters and allowing just one hit. Kolton Cragin and Nolan Zick combined to throw the final four innings for the Junior League All-Stars, limiting Rushville to two hits and three runs.

Rochelle exploded for six runs in the bottom of the first inning, where Brayden Harley smacked a two-run single to center and Elijah Schweitzer gave Rochelle a 3-0 lead with an RBI groundout. Riley Smith followed with an RBI single to right field and Nolan Zick’s RBI groundout put Rochelle up 5-0. John Williams scored on a wild pitch to cap off the six-run frame.

Rochelle tallied two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, taking an 8-0 lead after Riley Smith scored on a wild pitch and John Williams scored on a balk. Rushville responded with two runs on one walk and one single in the top of the fifth inning, but Rochelle answered in the bottom of the fifth inning, where Sebastian Albertson laced an RBI single to score Zach Johnson and Elijah Schweitzer drove home Luke Chadwick on an RBI groundout to put Rochelle up 10-2.

Rushville concluded the game with one run on an RBI groundout in the top of the seventh inning. Riley Smith went 2-for-3 with two singles and two runs scored for the Rochelle offense, while Brayden Harley and Elijah Schweitzer each finished with two RBIs in the victory.

Elmhurst/River Forest

Rochelle suffered a 17-2 loss against Elmhurst/River Forest Little League on Sunday afternoon to conclude the round-robin format of the state tournament with a 2-1 record. Elmhurst/River Forest scored eight runs on four singles, two walks and two errors in the top of the first inning before adding seven runs on four singles to take a 15-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning. 

Rochelle tallied two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, where Luke Chadwick scored on an error and Nolan Zick drew a bases-loaded walk for an RBI. Elmhurst/River Forest sealed its win with two runs on three walks and a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth inning.