Evanston defeated Niles North 9-2 this afternoon in the first round of the Oak Park Regional.
The top of the first inning was shaky on the mound for Evanston starter Josh Isenstein with Niles North loading the bases on two hit batsmen and a walk, but Isenstein was able to battle through adversity by striking out the side stranding all the baserunners.
Then the Evanston offense took over scoring two runs in the first and five more in the second to take a commanding 7-0 lead.
Brandon Vamarasi (2 for 4, 2 RBI) keyed the five-run rally in the second with a two-run home run. Evanston tacked on runs in the fifth and sixth. Max Siedlecki had a pinch hit RBI triple in the sixth.
Isenstein got the win pitching four innings giving up three hits, one run and striking out seven. Jack Anderson and Jordan Crawford were dominant in relief with Anderson pitching two innings and Crawford finishing the seventh by striking out the side.
Evanston (17-19) will play the host Oak Park-River Forest on Saturday at 11 a.m. for the regional championship. The game will be a rematch of Oak Park’s 1-0 victory over the Kits in March.