Hilltoppers enjoy 10-3 victory at
Busch Stadium
[August 04, 2025]
The third time was the charm as the Mount Pulaski Hilltoppers
finally got the opportunity to take the field at Busch Stadium in
St. Louis on Saturday.
The previous two meetings between the Hilltoppers and the Prairie
Central Hawks were cancelled due to rainy weather but Saturday’s
game was nothing but sunshine as the two teams took the field at
noon.
Playing a high school game on a major league baseball field is a
unique opportunity and the Hilltoppers enjoyed every minute of the
experience.
The 10-3 win was a nice ending to the 2024-25 season but it’s the
lifetime of memories from this one day that will follow these young
athletes for the rest of their lives.
The game featured 18 Hilltoppers and their coaches along with two
bat boys and a slew of fans from central Illinois cheering on the
purple and gold.
Without a doubt it was a very cool experience for everyone in
attendance.
The Hilltoppers were the visitors on the scoreboard so they had the
opportunity to reach the batter’s box first with the walk-up music
blaring throughout the stadium. Liam Smith and Aaron Volle drew
walks in the first inning but they were stranded on base after
Preston Cowan popped out to the shortstop.
Senior right-hander Liam Smith took the mound for the Hilltoppers in
the bottom half of the first inning and he plunked the leadoff
hitter in the helmet. Smith was either right on target or way out of
the strike zone in the first inning, taking turns striking guys out
and hitting them. Strikeouts won in the end, as Smith recorded three
Ks and two HPBs. The Hawks did take a 1-0 lead as a runner stole
third and scored on a passed ball.
Mount Pulaski’s offense was quiet in the second inning, with two
walks, two strikeouts and a pop-up in foul territory that was
snagged by the Hawks catcher, who made a great sliding catch to
record the out.
Luke Martin was pumped when he took the mound for Mount Pulaski in
the second inning against the Hawks. Martin was reaching back and
giving it all he had to strike out the side on 14 pitches. The first
two batters Martin faced went down swinging while the third batter
was frozen with the strike three call by home plate umpire Ryan
Mason, a Mount Pulaski native.
Mount Pulaski was hoping for a run in the third inning, with two
more walks putting runners on base, but the Hawks had other plans.
An inning-ending double play fell into the hands of Prairie Central
when Cowan hit a sharp line drive to short that was caught by a
leaping Easton Friedman. Smith was left in no-man’s land and the
score remained 1-0 in favor of the Hawks.
Eric Cooper took his turn on the mound in the bottom of the third
inning and he did not spend a lot of time out there. He threw ten
pitches and nine of those were strikes. Between two strikeouts,
Cooper got a great defensive play from one of the best center
fielders in the game. Aaron Volle tracked down the fly ball in
center and made a terrific running catch to rob Friedman of extra
bases.
Mount Pulaski finally had the chance to tie the game in the top of
the fourth inning when Tyler Cross singled with two outs. After a
walk to Chase Roberts, Cooper singled to center and earned the first
RBI on the day for the Hilltoppers. Cross plated the tying run for
Mount Pulaski.
Aaron Volle made the move from center field to the pitcher’s mound
for the Hawks fourth inning. Volle faced three batters, retiring
each one a different way. Volle tossed just 14 pitches and he
recorded a fly out to left, a strikeout and a ground out.
Mount Pulaski’s bats heated up in the top of the fifth inning and
the Hilltoppers broke the game wide open by scoring eight runs.
Volle started the rally with a one-out double. He crushed the ball
over the centerfielder’s head and hustled into second base. Volle
took third on a wild pitch and eventually scored the go-ahead run on
Carter Clark’s fielder’s choice. After Jaeden Jackson walked, Cross
hit his second single of the day. Cross hit a rocket line drive to
left, scoring Clark to make the score 3-1. Roberts drew another walk
to load the bases for Cooper. Cooper smacked a double to left and
everybody came running home on that hit. The score escalated to 6-1
with Cooper settling in at second base. After Smith was hit by a
pitch and Martin walked, the Hilltoppers had the bases loaded when
Volle strolled to the batter’s box again. This time Volle hit a hard
single up the middle and Cooper and Smith scored easily. Martin came
home on a throwing error and this allowed Volle to take second base.
Volle has a sweet swing and he definitely joins an elite group of
athletes by getting two hits in one inning. The junior was also
second on the team in hitting during the regular season with a .388
batting average and after Saturday he’s batting 1.000 at Busch
Stadium.
Mount Pulaski would end their half of the fifth inning with a 9-1
lead and the smiles in the dugout were as big as the Mississippi
River.
Jaeden Jackson got the nod to take the mound for Mount Pulaski in
the bottom of the fifth inning. A proud White Sox fan, Jackson hit
the first two batters, surrendered a single and allowed two runs
before settling down to get three outs. He tossed 18 pitches in his
outing. Give credit to each outfielder for recording three fly ball
outs. The score remained 9-3 when Jackson closed out the inning.
The sixth inning was pretty quiet for Mount Pulaski, with Austin
Kretzinger the only one to reach base via a walk. Kretzinger did
steal two bases in the inning.
The sixth inning also marked the beginning of the JV team in the
lineup.
Carter Clark spent his last day as a 15 year-old taking the mound
against the Hawks in their half of the sixth inning. Clark had a
great outing, tossing 15 pitches and facing the minimum three
batters. He struck out two batters and got another one to ground out
to first.
The Hilltoppers started the seventh inning with groundouts by Skyler
Durst and Reed Martin. Wesley Bobell and Ethan Kern then drew walks
for Mount Pulaski. Bobell made it all the way to third base on wild
pitches when Caden Wyler was in the batter’s box.
Wyler, who had not swung a bat for a year and half due to injuries,
would connect with one and send it through the middle infield where
the second baseman made a great play and threw him out. Wyler gave
the fielder plenty of time for the throw since he had to hobble down
the first base line. A good set of knees makes this a base hit, but
Wyler still had a great smile at the contact he had made.
Preston Cowan was terrific on the mound in the seventh inning. He
tossed 17 pitches and 12 were strikes. He struck out the first two
guys looking and sent the third one back to the dugout swinging at
strike three.
The game was going pretty quick and the eighth inning was proof of
that. Tucker Fitzpatrick started the inning with a pop out to third,
Kretzinger struck out and Keoni Charron grounded out. Only eight
pitches were made but it’s worth noting that both Fitzpatrick and
Charron made great contact on each of their two at-bats in the game.
Chase Roberts got the opportunity to move from behind the plate to
the mound in the eighth inning to face the Hawks hitters. He had
them figured out. Roberts faced four batters and struck out three of
them. He issued one walk that was harmless and he threw a total of
19 pitches to his catcher, Wesley Bobell.
The game was getting close to reaching the two and a half hour time
limit when Mount Pulaski grabbed the bats in the ninth inning. Ethan
Stoddard and Durst each singled to center to start a scoring threat.
With Bobell in the batter’s box, Durst and Stoddard pulled off a
double steal. Stoddard had been on third base after a previous wild
pitch and he ran home as Durst swiped second. The dugout cheered as
Stoddard made the score 10-3. After two walks and a pop out to end
the inning, the Cardinals announced the game was over due to the
time limit.
Both teams shook hands at home plate and the dugouts were cleared
quickly after a brief photo opportunity with the famous Arch in the
background.
Mount Pulaski had eight hits off Hawks pitching.
Eric Cooper, Aaron Volle and Tyler Cross led the Hilltoppers with
two hits apiece.
Skyler Durst and Ethan Stoddard each had one hit.
Cooper finished the day 2-for-4 with a run scored and four RBIs.
Volle was on base every single time. He was 2-for-2 with two walks,
a single, a double and two RBIs. He also scored a run.
Cross was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI.
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Aaron Volle was the winning pitcher for Mount Pulaski. Volle was the
pitcher on record in that big fifth inning.
The Hilltoppers used eight different pitchers, each for an inning.
They combined to strike out 17 batters and only issued one walk.
Only two of the runs were earned. And the Hawks had just one hit in
the game, a single in the fifth inning. A good day’s work for the
Mount Pulaski pitching staff.
The day was a dream come true for every baseball player at the
ballpark and particularly those who grew up Cardinal fans.
Liam Smith, the senior who got the start on the mound for Mount
Pulaski, has rooted for the Cardinals his whole life and as the team
leader he said, “The experience was fantastic, not really knowing
what to expect Busch stadium did not disappoint!”
“Taking the mound for the first inning was a bit nerve racking
considering it has been awhile since I picked up a baseball,” said
Smith. “It took me a while to get dialed in and yes, I did hit
somebody… or two.”
While Smith did not catch himself in a replay on the JumboTron, he
says he did get to experience all of his teammates and lower class
men's faces on the big screen during lineups/announcements and that
was pretty cool.
"It was a darn good time and it was a heck of a way to end my
baseball career,” added Smith.
Luke Martin has been to a lot of Cardinal games with his family and
he’s the only one of his siblings to play at Busch Stadium.
“Oh, it was amazing,” said Martin. “Getting rained out twice and
then it finally happening, the little kid in me is just out of words
to express what I felt when I walked in here this morning.”
Martin was focused on the mound like Al Hrabosky in the second
inning. Martin struck out the side, although a lot less dramatic
than “The Mad Hungarian” himself, but throwing heat nonetheless.
“Oh, it was great,” said Martin. “I had a little adrenaline so I
knew I was throwing harder than what I normally do. It was awesome
standing on that mound knowing a bunch of legends have been there
before me. It was an amazing feeling.”
Eric Cooper is another Cardinal fan who was enjoying the experience.
“It was a great time,” said Cooper. “I am extremely thankful for the
coaches that gave us the opportunity. Growing up and going to
Cardinal games, it was just awesome being down on the field and
looking around. We come here to watch major leaguers play and then
to be on that field, it was a great time.”
Cooper had a big hit to clear the bases in the fifth inning and he
had a successful inning on the mound.
“It was great,” said Cooper. “I’m glad we ended up winning through
the five innings for Varsity and then the JV ended up winning their
innings so that was the most important thing. I am glad I was able
to help the team win. Everybody threw really well and closed the
door.”
As for a favorite memory of the day, “That first step on the field
was unreal,” Cooper said. “It was amazing.”
Tyler Cross also had a day at Busch Stadium that he’ll never forget
and he comes from a long line of Cardinal fans.
“It’s the first time I’ve played in Busch Stadium and it was really
cool,” said Cross. “It’s kind of surreal because I’ve grown up going
to Cardinal games but I’d never played on the field.”
Cross said Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina were his favorite players
growing up. His best moment from the Hilltoppers game was his second
hit, which was the line drive he smacked to left field that drove in
a run.
Aaron Volle joins former Lincoln College baseball coach Chuck
Lindstrom as one of the few guys to bat 1.000 in a major league
ballpark. Lindstrom did it in 1958 at Comiskey Park as a member of
the Chicago White Sox. Lindstrom was 1-for-1 with a walk and a
triple in the only MLB game of his career.
Volle had a lot of reasons to smile after Saturday’s game.
“I’m just so happy right now,” said Volle, from the parking lot
across from Paddy O’s. “I mean, it’s a once in a lifetime
experience. I am never going to forget it obviously. I am very happy
with how I performed. It’s definitely a memory that I am going to
have forever. It was just awesome.”
When asked about his favorite Cardinal player, Volle said it would
be a sin if he didn’t say Yadi was his favorite player growing up.
Volle had plenty of highlights from Saturday’s game and he will have
stories to tell for years to come that’s for sure. As for a favorite
moment, “That’s a tough one,” said Volle. “There were so many.”
After careful thought, he replied, “I would say my second hit. I got
down in the count and came back and I was able to win it. I was just
very happy with how that worked out.”
Volle was down in the count, a ball and two strikes, when he fouled
two pitches off before winning the battle and drilling the ball to
center, driving in two runs.
Mount Pulaski coach Troy Burgard, who happens to be a die-hard Cub
fan who proposed to his wife, Ashley, at Wrigley Field nonetheless,
is now 1-0 at Busch Stadium. That’s a stat he can brag about to his
fellow Cub fans. Burgard was happy for the opportunity for his team
to play in St. Louis and he was genuinely enjoying every minute.
“It was great to finally get to play this game on the third
attempt,” said Burgard. “It took a lot of help from the players,
their parents, and the community to sell enough tickets to make it
happen, and I’m grateful for their support. It was totally worth all
the time spent getting it all organized to see the team out there,
and we could not have asked for better weather.”
“The boys played an outstanding game,” continued Burgard. “It’s been
a while since our last game of the spring, but they looked like they
were still in mid-season form. There were way too many incredible
moments to list them all, but every player on the team had a hand in
this win. The pitching was outstanding, and we made some great plays
in the field. It took a few innings to get the bats going, but they
really woke up in the fifth inning with some big two-out RBI’s.”
“Prairie Central was great to work with on getting this game lined
up, and I’m thankful that they were still able to play after the
first two cancellations. It took a long time for us to find an
opponent for this game, so it was a relief to find out that they
were on board for it. They have some really good ball players and
showed great sportsmanship.”
“I really wanted it for this group to get to the state tournament
this spring,” said Burgard. “Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, but
this was a pretty awesome consolation. They are such a great group
of hard-working kids, and I’m so happy they got to have this
experience that they’ll remember forever. A big thank you to
everyone that had a hand in making this happen for them.”
The 2024-25 Mount Pulaski Hilltoppers Roster
Coaches
Troy Burgard
Trent Kavelman
Tim Milligan
Jon Garlits
Players
Aaron Volle
Austin Kretzinger
Caden Wyler
Carter Clark
Chance Payne
Chase Roberts
Eric Cooper
Ethan Kern
Ethan Stoddard
Jaeden Jackson
Keoni Charron
Liam Smith
Luke Martin
Preston Cowan
Reed Martin
Skyler Durst
Tucker Fitzpatrick
Tyler Cross
Wesley Bobell
Bat Boys
Karter Kavelman
Evan Clements
[Teena Lowery]
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