Gibault earns state tournament bid with rout of Illini Bluffs

For the first time since 2013, the Gibault Hawks are headed back to the Class 1A State Baseball Tournament.

Cole Buckner and Tim Reinholz hit home runs and drove in three runs each as the Gibault Hawks routed the Illini Bluffs 14-3 Monday in the Class 1A Springfield Class 1A Baseball Super-Sectional at Lincoln-Land Community College.

The Hawks (26-8) scored five runs in the first inning then added four runs in the second as they took a commanding 9-0 lead.

Mark Branz and Eric Schreder added three hits for the Hawks, who banged out 15 hits in the game which was stopped in the fifth inning by the 10-run role. Brand was the winning pitcher.

Gibault, the ‘13 Class 1A state champion, will take on Steeleville (23-5) at the Class 1A State Tournament at Dozer Park in Peoria beginning at noon on Friday.

This story was originally published May 27, 2019 at 9:14 PM with the headline "Gibault earns state tournament bid with rout of Illini Bluffs."