Prep Baseball: Success contagious at Hampshire High

Hampshire senior Brandon Gehringer and the Whip-Purs will take on Illinois Valley Central in today's Rockford Class 2A Super-Sectional at Road Ranger Stadium in Loves Park.
(Michael Smart/Staff Photographer)

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Let the good times roll.

That's the Hampshire baseball team's focus as it heads into its first-ever super-sectional appearance this afternoon.

In what's been a remarkable spring for the Whip-Purs' athletics programs, the baseball squad hopes to pick up where the girls soccer and boys track teams left off last weekend with another groundbreaking accomplishment.

On Saturday, not only did Hampshire's girls soccer team take second place in the Class A State Finals for its best-ever finish, but senior Quinn Walker also became the school's first male individual state champion when he captured the 300-meter hurdles title at the Boys Track Class A State Finals.

In addition to those accomplishments, the Whip-Purs' softball team earned a regional title earlier this month and the baseball team continued its impressive postseason run by collecting its first-ever sectional championship on Saturday.

Now the baseball team takes center stage when it plays Illinois Valley Central in today's Rockford Class 2A Super-Sectional at Road Ranger Stadium in Loves Park.

"(Saturday) night I went to the school for a short assembly to welcome the soccer team, and at the same time Quinn Walker was back with the track team," Hampshire baseball coach Steve Ream said. "It was a great atmosphere, and what was most exciting about it is that they were all telling us they are coming to our baseball game.

"It's a great situation where everyone is having great success and everyone is supporting everybody."

Hampshire (18-13) faces a difficult test against IVC (32-6), which is hoping to follow up its 2006 run to the Class A state title. The Grey Ghosts finished 40-2 that season.

IVC saved junior pitching ace Chris Razo in Saturday's 9-3 victory against Farmington in the IVC Sectional final, but Razo still contributed by collecting three hits.

Ream said the Grey Ghosts' success both past and present likely makes the Whip-Purs an underdog going into today's game, but he doesn't think that will change his squad's approach.

"I'm hoping we go in a little looser because once you get to this point I think it's all kind of gravy," Ream said. "You're playing on a nice field, you're in the Elite Eight and we've accomplished something. Anything more we can accomplish would be great.

"We've been on a roll, and we think there's no reason we can't continue to stay on a roll."

The Whip-Purs have indeed caught fire of late, winning four straight postseason games after enduring an up-and-down regular season.

Clutch hitting and solid defensive play have aided the playoff run, but Hampshire wouldn't be where it is today without some strong pitching performances from sophomores Kent Larson and Ryan Burke.

Larson will likely get the nod in today's game after Burke tossed a complete game in Saturday's 8-7 win against Mendota in the Byron Sectional final. Larson owns a 6-2 record and entered the postseason with a 1.17 ERA.

Although today's game will be played on the biggest stage and with the highest stakes of any previous game in program history, Ream thinks the mind-set his players adopted during the season will help overcome any pregame jitters.

"I remember early in the season, our guys would look at the other team thinking, 'Whoa, they're good,'" Ream said. "Now they're not so worried about the other team. They have confidence and know what they can do."