IHSA baseball: Four state champions crowned in Illinois for 2026 – Peoria Journal Star

Updated June 13, 2026, 9:17 p.m. CT

The final day of high school sports competition in Illinois will see four state champions crowned in baseball in Champaign and Joliet.

The Tremont Turks, prevailed in their quest for their first-ever state championship, winning 10-0 Saturday in the Class 1A final against Granville Putnam County.

Class 2A’s final saw St. Joseph-Ogden beat Elgin Harvest-Westminster 15-1, delivering their first-ever state tournament after a pair of runner-up finishes in 2016 and 2017.

Up in Joliet, Chicago St. Rita, won their first state title after three runner-up finishes, winning the Class 3A final 12-11 in eight innings over Troy Triad, last year’s third-place finishers.

Class 4A’s championship game saw defending state champion Libertyville beat Park Ridge Maine South 7-6 in eight innings, in a game pushed up by the Illinois High School Association due to the threat of inclement weather.

Here’s a look at the action from the diamond:

Class 1A: Tremont 10, Granville Putnam County 0 (5 innings)

Tremont delivered their first state title in style, dominating Putnam County in a run-rule 1A title win.

Hunter Smith delivered a pair of hits, both of which scored runs, while also providing two innings on the mound. Despite a rain delay that lasted 57 minutes, Tremont kept the pressure on, scoring five runs after leading 5-0 before the second-inning delay.

Tremont played in their second state tournament, having finished fourth in 2011. Putnam County played in their seventh state tournament, matching their runner-up finish from 2013 in Class 1A.

Class 2A: St. Joseph-Ogden 15, Elgin Harvest-Westminster 1 (5 innings)

St. Joseph-Ogden made the hometown fans happy with a compelling run-rule victory over Harvest-Westminster in the Class 2A championship game.

Bryson Houchins went 3-for-3 on the day, homering and driving in three runs. Will Haley also added three RBIs, while Trevor Ames, Finn Miller and Asher Pruemer each drove in two runs for the Spartans. Ames also pitched four strong innings on the mound, giving up just two hits and a single run.

Tonight’s win was the 40th victory of the season for the Spartans. They had made two previous state tournament appearances, both runner-up finishes in 2016-17 in Class 2A.

Harvest-Westminster had never played in a state baseball tournament until this year.

Class 3A: Chicago St. Rita 12, Troy Triad 11 (8 innings)

After blowing a seven-run lead in the sixth and seventh innings, Vinny Stubitsch delivered St. Rita their first state championship with a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning, scoring pinch runner JJ Quinlan in a game delayed for over an hour due to rain.

St. Rita led 11-4 after five innings, thanks to Stubitsch, who hit a two-run home run in the first inning, and Aden Gutierrez and Jake Sellis, who each had three hits and a pair of runs batted in. But Triad rallied, getting three runs in the sixth inning, then getting four runs in a controversial seventh inning that saw St. Rita catcher Colin Quinn appear to catch the game-ending final out in foul territory, only to see the game continue after umpires ruled that he hadn’t fully secured it before he dropped it.

In that very same at-bat, Carter Gaskill tied the game with a three-run homer to right.

St. Rita was playing in their seventh state tournament, finishing second three times in 2009, 2010 and 2014. Their last appearance before this year came in 2019, finishing third.

Triad played in their second-straight state tournament and third overall, having already clinched the best performance in school history with a 2-0 win over Crystal Lake South on Friday. They finished third in last year’s tournament.

Class 4A: Libertyville 7, Park Ridge Maine South 6 (8 innings)

Libertyville delivered their second straight state title thanks to a late-inning charge, rallying from three runs down to defeat Maine South, who had been competing in their first state tournament in 60 years.

Libertyville scored three runs in the sixth inning on a wild pitch that brought home Aiden Weaver, a sacrifice fly from Mathew Hera that scored Nate Cera and a Jack Cenar RBI single that scored Chase Lockwood to tie the game at 5.

In the eighth inning, Cenar reached to lead off the inning after a dropped third strike from Maine South catcher Luka Stojakovic, then scored on a balk by pitcher Russell Hengels. Carson Holmes added an insurance run that proved to be important by lining an RBI single that scored Madden Cotts.

Cotts pitched brilliantly out of the bullpen, throwing 2 1/3 innings and giving up just a single run on a hit-by-pitch in the eighth. He struck out pinch hitter Nick Massucci with the bases loaded to end the game.

Weather concerns forced the IHSA to move up the start of the championship game, with the third place game between Naperville Central and Chicago Mt. Carmel being played afterward.

Libertyville won their first state title in school history last year, beating McHenry 4-1 in the Class 4A title game. They have played in four state tournaments, making it to the championship game in each one.

Maine South hadn’t been to a state tournament since 1966, when they lost the state championship game to Northbrook Glenbrook North.


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