Baseball: Oak Forest Blanks Shepard, Celebrates Senior Day in Style

Touching All the Bases: In the first inning of a 9-0 baseball victory over Shepard, Oak Forest senior pitching ace Kyle Funkhouser looked like he was the one in a bit of a funk. The game started five minutes early Wednesday at Bengal Field. He took the mound before he completed his warm-up tosses in the bullpen. And Shepard put runners on first-and-third with one out thanks to a double by Paul Gregory and a single by Adam Samad.

Then, Funkhouser (8-1) settled into a groove and left the Astros’ hitters in a funk. He pitched four-hit ball over six innings to pick up his eighth victory in nine decisions. He struck out eight in a performance worthy of a Senior Day celebration.

Three other seniors stepped to the fore for the Bengals. Kyle Sleeman had two hits, including a solo homer off the sign hanging under the scoreboard in left field. John Zubek had three hits, including a double, and George Jester added three hits and three RBIs. Sophomore Brian Richard wriggled his way into the limelight, too. He had four hits, including three doubles, and drove in three runs.

Patch’s MVP: Kyle Funkhouser, senior, right-handed pitcher, Oak Forest. A handful of major league scouts were on hand to watch him pitch. He was consistently hitting 89 and 90 with his fastball on their speed guns.

Shepard Leaders: Paul Gregory  (1-for-2, double), Adam Samad (1-for-3), Ramsey Hamdan (1-for-3, double), Christian Araiza (2-for-2).

Oak Forest Leaders: Brian Richard (4-for-4, 3 doubles, 3 runs, 3 RBIs), John Zubek (3-for-4, double) George Jester (3-for-4, 3 RBIs), Kyle Sleeman (2-for-3, solo homer, 1 run, 1 RBI), Kyle Funkhouser (6 IP, 0 runs, 4 hits, 8 strikeouts), Kyle Czeszewski (1 scoreless inning pitched in relief).

Quotable I: “We ran out on the field a little bit early, and I wasn’t fully ready,” Oak Forest’s Kyle Funkhouser said. “I battled in the first inning. Then, once I got in a groove—about the fourth or fifth inning—I think I had about five out six strikeouts. I got into a little bit of zone there when I got fully into the game.”

Quotable II: “Oh, yeah, it was a great atmosphere with all the people out here for Senior Day,” Oak Forest catcher John Zubek said. “And, with all of us getting recognized, I think everybody was playing a little bit harder.”

Quotable III: “The one thing about ‘Funk’ is—a lot of pitchers can just do one thing, you know, just blow the ball past you,” Shepard coach Frank DiFoggio said. “He picked up on what we were doing. He adjusted to us, as hitters, and he neutralized us. So, when he got into trouble, he went to a different gear. That’s what special pitchers do—guys that are going to Louisville, D-I pitchers. Kudos to him.”

Team Records: Oak Forest is 18-4 overall and 11-2 in the South Suburban Blue. Shepard is 11-11 and 8-5.

What’s Next: Both teams resume action at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, May 3. Shepard plays host to Lemont. Oak Forest is at Argo.