What a difference a few days can make.
In his last start, Homewood-Flossmoor senior Henry Humes allowed Lockport only one hit through three innings. The Porters then picked up on something and scored seven in the next two frames.
Humes made the necessary adjustments and was dominant against Bradley-Bourbonnais on April 10. He surrendered one walk and an error over seven innings to help the Vikings to a 6-0 SouthWest Suburban Conference win.
It’s the Northwestern signee’s second no-hitter this season. He struck out 10.
“Pitchwise, pitch shape, pitch velo, location, everything was the same as Monday,” Humes said. “Honestly, just some bad luck on Monday, some adversity we had to face. We worked on it and came out today just knowing I had to have a good head going into the game.”
Humes was efficient, needing only 78 pitches to complete the game. He was perfect through five innings.
“He’s the guy. He is our guy. I like him against anybody,” coach Marcus Rodgers said.
Jhames Holley had a huge day at the plate. The senior first baseman was 3-3 with a home run, double and three RBIs. The round tripper was an opposite-field solo shot to lead off the fifth inning.
Mikey Watson and Ashton Jones each reached base twice, Watson scoring a pair of runs. Jones had two stolen bases. The pair wreaked havoc on the bases early. Watson singled, stole second, reached third on a wild pitch and then scored from third when Jones stole second base in the first inning.
But the Vikings (7-3, 1-2) ran themselves out of a few chances later. Christian Hudson and Jamir Scott were each caught trying to swipe third base, Hudson in the fourth inning and Scott in the fifth.
“We are a speed team. We have to steal bases when we get on so I give them the green light. If you get a good jump, you go,” Rodgers said. “Closer games, those green lights become read but it just puts more pressure on the defense and that’s what we’re trying to do.”
The win came after two consecutive losses to Lockport. H-F needed this one to keep pace in the SWSC.
“It was super important (to get a victory) in a conference game, especially, but against (Bradley-Bourbonnais) we probably should’ve scored a lot more runs, been a quicker game than it was today,” Humes said.
Sophomore Brock Hamilton did not dress for the game. He dislocated his thumb and is expected to miss four to six weeks, Rodgers said. Evan Bradford also missed the game with a concussion but is expected to return soon.
