The Waterloo High School baseball team claimed the third place trophy at the IHSA Class 3A state tournament in Joliet on Saturday, defeating Dixon 9-2.

Dixon took a 2-0 lead in the third inning, but Waterloo answered with four runs each in the fourth and fifth innings to take control of the game. 

A bases loaded single by Graham Baker produced Waterloo’s first run and Tyson Roedl followed it up with a two-run double in that game-changing fourth inning.

Sophomore hurler Dustin Crawford cruised the rest of the way as the Bulldogs ended their season with a win.

A welcome home parade for head coach Mark Vogel’s Bulldogs took place early Saturday evening down Main Street, ending with a celebration on the courthouse grounds.

On Friday, Waterloo lost 8-2 to St. Laurence in the IHSA Class 3A state semifinal.

The Bulldogs squandered solid opportunities to score in the first and fifth innings, while St. Laurence plated runs in each of the first three innings off Waterloo starter Drake Downing before adding two in the fourth and two more in the fifth to pull away.

Read more on Waterloo’s state tourney experience in the June 12 issue of the Republic-Times newspaper. To subscribe, click here.