Errorless defense continues to give Raiders edge during state championship pursuit

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Jack Linenfelser planted his right foot hard deep in the hole at shortstop and whistled a throw across the diamond, gunning down Gillespie’s Bryan Jubelt for the second out in the third inning of Saturday’s Class 2A Pleasant Plains Sectional championship.

Had the Quincy Notre Dame baseball team’s senior shortstop paused to set himself, double-clutched or done anything to cut a split second or two off the throw, Jubelt likely would have been safe.

Linenfelser and the rest of the Raiders never hesitated once.

The way the defense played behind starting pitcher Jake Schisler — seven groundouts, five flyouts and no errors — helped pave the way to a 5-0 victory over the previously unbeaten Miners at Lincoln Land Community College’s Claude Kracik Field.

“When your pitcher’s throwing strikes, it’s easy to play good defense behind him,” Linenfelser said. “They’re not walking and clogging up the bases. They’re putting the ball in play. It’s just easy as a defense to play behind a pitcher doing that.”

The Raiders have committed only one error in 28 postseason innings, allowing Schisler and right-hander Tyler Dance to be confident throwing any pitch and not be afraid of contact.

“You attack because you have complete confidence the plays will be made,” said Schisler, who struck out eight and allowed five hits in his second complete game of the postseason. “I trust these guys whole-heartedly.”

They’ve been there for him all season.

The Raiders have committed 29 errors in 35 games, but only two errors in their last six games.

“It;’s the chemistry we have with each other that makes us play well together,” senior center fielder Tucker Tollerton said. “We know how to stay positive and stay calm.”

They also know how to play with a lead. The Raiders scored twice in the top of the second inning — Schisler helped himself with a two-out, two-run single — and used it to their advantage defensively.

“As a defense and as a pitcher, you can relax a little bit after you take the lead,” Linenfelser said. “You can let your talents play and not be so worked up about little things.”

That doesn’t mean the Raiders can get complacent.

“At the end of the day, it’s whoever is going to have the most energy and come out swinging first,” Schisler said. “We were able to do that.”