Before the season, it would have been easy for opponents to overlook uncommitted junior righty Jake Matise on a Mount Carmel pitching staff that featured guys going to Miami and Notre Dame.
But Matise has blossomed into the ace. He was named the Catholic League Blue’s pitcher of the year. And he felt really good about his chances Wednesday night against a loaded Nazareth team.
“Every time, I just know what I’m capable of,” Matise said. “I trust my preparation and I know what I’m able to do, so it’s pretty easy to go out there every time and be confident in myself.”
Matise backed up that confidence, allowing just two hits in a complete game as the Caravan knocked off the Roadrunners 6-1 in a Class 4A Reavis Sectional semifinal that was played at Triton College in River Grove due to field conditions from the rain.
Wake Forest recruit TJ McQuillan went 2-for-3 with an RBI double and a run for fifth-seeded Mount Carmel (25-13), while Illinois commit Joey Ireland contributed a two-run single. Wharton County recruit Kolin Adams scored three runs and Anthony Chavez added an RBI double.
Mount Carmel will take on top-seeded Brother Rice (34-3) — a 2-1 winner over Oak Park-River Forest — at 11 a.m. Saturday in the sectional final at Reavis. The Catholic League Blue rivals split two regular-season games.
Matise, meanwhile, retired the first 12 batters for second-seeded Nazareth (31-7). He finished with eight strikeouts and scattered two walks.
Mount Carmel coach Brian Hurry knew Matise could deliver in the big moment.
“He certainly has not been overlooked by our team, his teammates in the dugout or everyone on the coaching staff,” Hurry said. “He’s been a great pitcher for two years now.
“He’s a fierce competitor. He attacks the zone. He’s able, in these big games, to slow the game down and not make the moment bigger than it is and just execute.”
Matise has formed a strong duo with Notre Dame recruit Connor Elenteny as Miami commit Ian Tosi missed the entire season due to an injury.
“With Ian hurt, I kind of had to fill in a bigger role and take over his spot, and I think I’ve done it well,” Matise said. “I’m not too worried about not getting a lot of attention before.
“I’m glad for those guys and where they’re going to college, but hopefully I’m going somewhere, too. There were some coaches out here.”
Matise (8-1) — whose the lone loss came way back on March 29 against Lockport — could hardly believe it when he found out he was the Catholic League Blue’s pitcher of the year.
“That actually really caught me by surprise,” Matise said. “I wasn’t really thinking about it. Then my coach calls me in the morning and he tells me, and I was just in shock.
“I was like, ‘Whoa, I really did this. I really won it, in the CCL Blue, the best conference, in my opinion.’ It’s really a huge honor. It’s super cool.”
Mount Carmel took a quick lead Wednesday night on McQuillan’s RBI double in the first inning and broke things open with four runs in the third.
The Caravan knew Matise would take it home from there.
“This kid had a no-hitter through four innings and only gave up two hits in seven innings against Nazareth,” McQuillan said. “That’s a great team over there, but we felt really confident with him out there. This kid deals.”
Junior catcher Mario Medina took that belief in Matise a step further.
“In my eyes, every time Jake’s out there, it’s a win,” Medina said. “We’ve just got to have the bats to back him up.”
Matise, who has pitched since he was 6 years old, has been totally focused on that aspect of the game since he started high school and gave up hitting.
There’s a simple reason why he loves his position.
“Just getting other dudes out,” he said. “It feels good.”
