Published on May 18, 2026 7:41 am
Last Updated on May 18, 2026 7:44 am
Effingham High School came through with a 5-3 victory over Effingham St. Anthony to claim the City Baseball Series title Friday.
The Bulldogs drew first blood, scoring a run in the opening inning. Henry Brent led off the frame with a single. With one out, Blake Verdeyen and Aiden Lauritzen drew back-to-back walks. A walk to Charley Spour scored Brent and the Bulldogs led 1-0.
The lead went to Effingham in the top of the second. Max Flack drew a walk but was thrown out out. Westin Hayes doubled and came home on a double by Wyatt Hayes. Jacob Warner was hit by a pitch. Andrew Wagoner drew a walk. Brody Boehm singled and Carter Braddy followed with a single scoring a run. When the dust had cleared, Effingham held a 2-1 lead.
But that didn’t last long. Freddie Jansen opened the second inning for the Bulldogs with a single. Chase Dorris then followed with a single. On a fielder’s choice, Will Bierman reached base and Dorris was thrown out. Brent followed with a fielder’s choice RBI. Rogan Allen singled but the Hearts got out of further damage with a fly ball.
Effingham put runners on base in the third as Brayden Tucker singled and Max Flack drew a walk but they couldn’t bring them home.
The Hearts put two on base in the top of the fifth as Tucker drew a walk and Flack singled. But the Bulldogs got the next three batters out to end that threat.
The Bulldogs rumbled in the fifth as Aiden Lauritzen singled with two outs. Spour and Ben McDonald drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. But a fly ball out ended the frame.
In the sixth, Effingham scored three runs. Wagoner and Boehm had back-to-back singles. Braddy followed by drawing a walk to load the bases. A walk issued to Traub scored a run. St. Anthony then got two outs but the Hearts’ Westin Hayes was hit by a pitch, scoring a run. The final run came home on a passed ball and the Hearts had moved into a 5-2 lead.
St. Anthony tallied a final run in the seventh as Verdeyen drew his second walk of the contest. Lauritzen followed with a double. A fielder’s choice and an error on a ball hit by Sp0ur, scored the run but the next three batters went down in order, ending the threat.
Westin Hayes and Wyatt Hayes had a double and an RBI each for the Hearts while Boehm and Braddy finished with two singles each.
St. Anthony was led by Lauritzen with a single and double.
At St. Anthony
Effingham 020 003 0 — 5-9-0
St. Anthony 110 000 1 — 3-7-0
WP — Wyatt Hayes. LP — Clark.
Effingham — Wagoner, single; Boehm, 2 singles; Braddy, 2 singles; Traub, 1 RBI; Tucker, single; Flack, single; Wes. Hayes, double, 1 RBI; Wy. Hayes, double, 1 RBI
St. Anthony — Brent, single, 1 RBI; Allen, single; Lauritzen, single, double; Spour, single; Jansen, single; Dorris, single