Smack-dab in the middle of Grant’s forward progress this season has been Braden Otahal.

The emerging junior center fielder sets the table as the leadoff hitter, is a reliable pitching option and plays rock-solid defense.

“We knew he would be playing a big role for us this year,” Grant coach Dave Behm said. “He’s just a really good ballplayer who we came to depend on as the season went on.”

The fourth-seeded Bulldogs had won eight of their past nine games heading into the Class 4A Dundee-Crown Sectional semifinals in Carpentersville on Thursday, and there was Otahal again, giving them the best offensive start possible in a bid for another victory.

Otahal led off the bottom of the first inning with a home run, his second of the season, against second-seeded Hononegah.

“That was a good moment and a good way to start us off,” he said. “It was great to see all the guys coming out of the dugout. He gave me a pitch that was right there, and I hit it hard. It just so happened to go over the fence.”

Otahal’s solo shot also happened to produce Grant’s only run in its season-ending 6-1 loss.

Nonetheless, his home run emphasized the impact he has made on the Bulldogs (17-17), who won the fourth regional title in program history. He was the winning pitcher in their 12-5 win against Larkin in the regional semifinals last week.

Perhaps most notable about Otahal’s blast against Hononegah (28-6) is that it came on an 0-2 pitch, normally not the time a leadoff hitter is aiming for the fences. But the result didn’t surprise Grant sophomore shortstop Ryne Dzierzynski.

“I love his aggressiveness at the plate,” Dzierzynski said. “No matter what count it is, he has the same approach and just sprays the ball everywhere. You name it, and he does it.”

Otahal has produced offensively primarily but not exclusively from the leadoff spot this season. When he and the team went through a midseason slump, Behm switched things up, dropping Otahal into the cleanup spot, among other shifts.

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“Baseball is a tough game, especially when things aren’t going your way,” Behm said. “He came back into the leadoff spot over the last five or six games and did really well.”

Otahal appreciated the move down in the order, saying he felt the ebbs and flows of the season catching up with him and that the break from the top spot was as good for him mentally as it was physically.

“I got in my head a little bit in the middle of the season,” he said. “It really got me back to playing the way I know I can play — putting less pressure on myself because I was trying to do a lot. I wasn’t relaxed up there. Getting relaxed really helped.”

Otahal has always played that way defensively. He was flawless in the outfield against Hononegah and made a sliding catch in shallow center.

Life can get lonely out there, but Otahal has found a way to stay focused.

“I’m always trying to sing myself some songs to help keep me energized,” he said. “And my parents are always on me to make sure I’m playing well out there. That part of my game is always something I’ve taken pride in.”

Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.