St. Charles North coach Todd Genke planned on having sophomore shortstop Nick DeMarco come into Friday’s game to pitch at some point.
Two runners on and nobody out in a one-run nail-biter in the sixth inning was that time.
DeMarco induced a line drive to junior first baseman Kyler Brown for a double play to end that threat and retired St. Rita in order in the seventh, closing out a 6-4 victory in the Class 4A state semifinals at DuPage Medical Group Field in Joliet.
The final pitch by DeMarco, who earned his first win, was a strikeout and advanced the North Stars (29-10) to the state championship game for the first time in program history.
DeMarco fell behind 3-0 in the count to Gavin Mottl before recovering for the strikeout.
“I couldn’t find the zone the first three pitches,” DeMarco said. “But I just put it in there and make them make the last out of the game.
“I ended up coming all the way back to get the strikeout. That was awesome. It was a pretty cool way to end it.”
The North Stars will now play at 5 p.m. Saturday against Edwardsville (36-5), a 2-0 winner over Hampshire in the other semifinal.
Genke had no qualms about calling upon DeMarco, the Notre Dame baseball recruit who helped St. Charles North reach the 7A state championship game in football and is a top-level prospect.
“We thought it was a perfect situation with his velocity, ability to get ahead and obviously his breaking ball,” Genke said of using DeMarco in relief. “He’s a big-game player.
“That’s why we want him in there in those situations. He came through for us like he has all season.”
St. Charles North had runners on base in the first three innings but couldn’t break through until the fourth.
Alex Najera drove in Ryan Thiesse with a squeeze bunt and Egon Hein lined a two-run single to give the North Stars a 3-2 lead they would not relinquish.
St. Charles North added on in the fifth, with DeMarco scoring on an error and Thiesse coming around on a bloop single from Marco Torres.
St. Rita (34-7) earned two runs back in the bottom of the inning and in the sixth had the go-ahead run on base before DeMarco took over on the mound and Brown recorded his unassisted double play.
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“It was a great play by him, heads-up play, right to him, stepped on the bag, doubled him off,” DeMarco said. “It was a game-changer there because if that ball gets through, it’s a whole other game.”
The North Stars finished third in their only other appearance at state in 2016. This time, they have a shot at the state title.
“It’s awesome to be a part of,” Brown said. “We’ve been doubted for many years. Just to prove ourselves the past couple months has been great.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.