Chicago Public League baseball has had its struggles. Last year it looked like the North Side was primed for a big breakthrough. But when the playoffs rolled around many of the city teams were on the wrong end of a lopsided score in regional action.

Lane Tech wasn't one of those teams but at the end of the day they still lost, 6-5 at the hands of St. Patrick.

The Indians then sat back and watched the Shamrocks make the most improbable run. St. Patrick, who entered the state playoffs with a sub .500 record, took second place at the IHSA state finals and Lane was left to dream about what could have been.

But that Indians' squad lost just two starters and now they're ready to make some history of their own.

"34 years is long enough," said Lane Tech head coach Jeff Szukala, referring to the last time a city team won the state championship (Hubbard over Belleville West). "The state championship is one of our goals. If we stay healthy and play the way we're capable of we have as good a chance as any of winning it."

With two city straight city titles under their belts, the Indians have set their sights higher.

"A state championship would be a great way to end our senior year," shortstop Joshua Colon said. "After two city championships the next thing is a state championship."

Losing to St. Patrick let this Indians' team know what they're capable of. Lane held a 5-4 lead late but St. Patrick pushed across two runs for the regional championship.

"It was very frustrating because we made some mental lapses and they won that game," senior outfielder Danny Serrano said. "Then they went and won second place and that could have been us."

The sign of a mature team was the fact that Lane went out and won five straight games after losing to St. Patrick in the state playoffs.

"We didn't really dwell on it too much because we had the city playoffs after that and we knew we had five games to go win," Szukala said. "Baseball is a funny game and (St. Pat's) had momentum after beating us. If they didn't have that bad call at state they could have been state champions."

What makes this Lane Tech team so dangerous is how experienced they are.

"We graduated (Willie) Davila and (David) Pena and we have to replace those two guys," Szukala said. "But we're returning our entire pitching staff and we have two aces, Bryan Platt and Scott Doebler. How can a coach complain about that?"

In addition to Platt and Doebler, Szukala will look to J.P Palazon, Adam Nieves and Antonio Calderone to quiet the opponents' bats.

At the plate, the Indians have Colon, Serrano and Sam Graebe to form the heart of the order. Other key contributors include Jay Alamo, Jonathan Quiles and James Glaesser.

"We have a senior-laden team and there's a lot of pressure to perform," Graebe said.

The players are extremely excited about what they can accomplish this year.

"The expectations are high for this team," Colon said. "We want to go do something like St. Patrick did last year. We want to set a new standard for Lane Tech baseball and Public League schools."

Two years ago the Indians became the first Public League team to win a sectional game.

"The last few years have been building steps for us," Serrano said. "We feel we have a team who can go Downstate and compete. We just have to stay healthy and keep working hard towards our goal."

And while a state title would be historic for Lane Tech it would mean even more for city baseball.

"We'd like to open the door for all the city teams," Graebe said. "It's something to strive for."

After all, the last time a city team won a state title Ron Santo was playing on the North Side.