Oak Forest’s Andrew Dawson knows that the first rule of pitching is confidence.
The junior right-hander walks onto the mound with the mindset of owning the mental game for the Bengals. And he understands that type of assurance will also rub off on his teammates.
“You have to show that you’re the best out there,” Dawson said, nodding. “You might not always be, but you have to believe it. I just love having all the attention on me.”
The spotlight shined squarely on Dawson’s shoulders Monday.
The response? He worked a four-hitter without a walk in a complete-game gem as host Oak Forest grinded out a 2-0 South Suburban Blue victory over Lemont.
Junior outfielder Gage Tokarz tallied two hits and an RBI for the Bengals (17-10-1, 13-2). Dawson improved his pitching record to 6-2, consistently working ahead in the count against Lemont.
Senior right-hander Matt Devoy nearly matched Dawson’s performance, striking out six and allowing just four hits in five innings for Lemont (22-4-1, 13-1).
But Dawson, whose fastball has been clocked at 90 mph, seemingly took advantage of every opportunity to keep Lemont’s hitters off-balance.
“Locating my off-speed was the biggest thing as well as getting ahead in the count,” Dawson said. “I knew they were a great team and could definitely hit, and I’m more of a strikeout guy.
“I like to throw it past them.”
Junior catcher Daniel Chopp has a unique bond with Dawson. The two reverse their roles during the spring, with Chopp managing his throws and helping calm his nerves.
In the fall, Chopp was the quarterback and Dawson a receiver as the Bengals reached the second round of the Class 6A football playoffs.
“We definitely feed off each other,” Chopp said. “When he’s doing well, I like to make him know he’s throwing great. He was mixing up pitches, changing up his timing.
“He kept their runners honest on base and kept them guessing in the box.”
Tokarz pointed out that Dawson understands the need for a pitcher to be unpredictable.
“He’s great at changing his speed and his fastball,” Tokarz said of Dawson. “He throws that high fastball — that gets him going. He has a lot of confidence. He’s a good kid and wonderful player.
“He makes the team laugh. Fortunately, I never face him that much in practice, but he definitely throws it by people.”
Outgoing and brash, Dawson enjoys the limelight. He doesn’t shirks from his responsibilities.
“I have a lot of confidence up there and I felt great,” he said of defeating Lemont. “I’ve had some ups and downs over my career, but this is definitely a high point.”
A young life spent in the game and on the mound has taught Dawson to navigate the physical and psychological demands of the position.
“It’s definitely hard, but I trust my coach to make the right calls,” he said. “Physically, you deal with arm pain. I think the biggest thing is not getting down in my head when something goes wrong.”
Pitching was his destiny, given his father, Michael, was a standout player growing up in Oklahoma and his mother, Stephanie, excelled playing softball.
His older brother, Joshua, also was a pitcher for Oak Forest who graduated last year. The brothers played together in each of Andrew’s first two seasons.
“My brother pushed me to be better, and I think that gave me an advantage,” Andrew said.
As the youngest in his family, Dawson sought to carve out his own identity and name.
“I always hung out with my brother’s friends and was very competitive,” he said. “Now I’m my own person. My personality is outgoing and I love to bring out the mood of the team.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
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