1.) 4A CROWN POINT (29-3)
22-9 (2006), 21-12 (2005), 17-11 (2004), 22-10 (2003)

CROWN POINT - This was the No.1 team all season.  They never lost two in a row and they defeated everyone they got to play more than once.  But Crown Point had a very bad game against Penn, making five errors, hitting into three double plays and losing the regional semifinals 9-2.  Looking at the big picture here, this is another in a series of late playoff losses that a program most often has to go through before they become champions.  As time separates the present from the lousy semistate loss, it will become harder and harder to be unhappy with a team that won 29 out of 32, two tournaments, one league and two post-season titles, besides being 4-1 in playoff games.  CP returns in 2008 as three-time sectional champions and defending DAC kings.

It will be more difficult to repeat the sectional crown as the IHSAA has changed the lineup and CP must now defeat LaPorte to win the sectional.  But the Bulldogs will return four starting pitchers in Blake Mascarello (6-2, 2.90 ERA, 61Ks, in 39 innings), Matt Kozlowski (4-0, 3.00 ERA), Eric Clayton (4-0, 0.73, 23 Ks, in 28 innings) and Michael Hernandez, who pitched six shutout innings against 2A No. 2 Boone Grove.  The Bulldogs must replace six senior position players, but catcher Nick Hladek (32-99, .323, 29 RBIs, 11 steals) returns and CP has many candidates for the infield and outfield.  The infield won't be a problem as Clayton and Kozlowski (24-56, .429) played shortstop on occasion in 2007 and Mascarello (30-81, .375, 3 HRs, 22 RBI) was the regular first baseman.  If junior Russell Chick can take over in center field and the Bulldogs can find corner outfielders, Crown Point will win 20 again in 2008.  But, with no returning outfielders, I would remind you that the No. 1 team at the end of 2007 isn't necessarily the No. 1 team at the start of 2008.

2.) 4A Chesterton (20-6)
15-13 (2006),12-12 (2005), 19-9 (2004), 8-20 (2003)

CHESTERTON -  The Trojans surely still have regret over their sectional loss to Crown Point.  Right-hander Sean Green (9-2) struck out eight, but he allowed a home run to Blake Mascarello with the score tied 1-1 in the fourth inning.  The Chesterton defense made three errors and they didn't really play well enough to win.  But the Trojans then watched CP go down early at the semistate and I now assume they think they could have done better.  John Miller (24-47, .511) had an RBI double against CP and Matt Bailey (26-59, .441) hit a homer off winning pitcher Chris Saroff.  The 6-foot-7 right-hander did an outstanding job for the Trojans all year and he was selected June 6 in the major league's amateur draft of players.  Green did not appear ready for pro ball physically.  Odds are he'll pitch college ball next year.  But Chesterton graduates 13 seniors including Green (9-2) and all-area catcher Jeff Gaston (25-56, .446) from one of the school's best teams.  They were clearly the No. 2 team, but as is the case with CP, do not assume that No. 2 at the end of 2007 means No. 2 at the start of 2008.  It doesn't.

3.) 2A Boone Grove (25-6-1)
26-4 (2006), 24-7 (2005), 17-12 (2004), 21-7 (2003)

PORTER TOWNSHIP -  Boone has to have some major bad feelings about the way this season ended.  The spot they could have had in the state finals was taken by Heritage (21-10), a team that was totally overwhelmed by South Spencer in the state title game.  The Wolves graduate a lot of good players, including catcher Josh Cobb (.443, 32 RBIs), Joe Johnson (39-95, .411) and Jim Kulchar (.350, 2-1, 5 saves).  Kyle Ferber (11-3, 1.49 ERA) comes back to lead a squad that will include CF Nick DiMarco and top-of-the order hitter Drew Kidd.  You also have to look out for a freshman left-handed pitcher named Wayland Roach (1-0), who pitched a complete-game victory over Delphi in his only varsity start of the year.  Boone truly played a state finals schedule this year facing Crown Point, Marquette (29-3), West Lafayette (22-6), Munster (22-8), Griffith (23-10), not to mention league rival Washington Township (21-8).  With the possible exception of Andrean and CP, no team sought out more tough competition outside league play in 2007.  Boone also changes sectionals in 2008 and they will no longer have to play Wheeler or rising programs at Hanover and Bishop Noll.  The Wolves have the best record in NW Indiana (61-10-1) over the last two years and, the record shows, they have manhandled even LAC and some DAC foes on occasion.  There is no reason to believe that Boone won't win 20 again in 2008, no matter who they play.

4.) 4A LaPORTE (22-9)
25-6 (2006), 30-5 (2005), 25-7 (2004), 22-10 (2003), 20-9 (2002), 28-2 (2001)

LaPORTE -  The Slicers lost 8-6 to South Bend Clay and that had to be a disappointment. But they'd have had to beat Penn, CP and Kokomo to reach the finals and truthfully, they weren't going to do that.
LaPorte had a rebuilding season and they won while they rebuilt.  They now have a new center fielder in sophomore Kyle Rosenbaum, who is as good as any in NW Indiana. Freshman left-fielder Dustin DeMuth has great promise and LaPorte had a dominant JV team. they have a new power hitter in sophomore Tyler Overmeyer. Junior second baseman John Gakle batted. 422 in limited play.
The Slicers improve defensively and they surely know it.   LaPorte made 47 errors in 31 games, which is not a ton, but too many for a champinship team. .

Junior first baseman Ian Neilsen (.344, 7 HRs, 35 RBIs) will be the best returning player in the Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC).  The Slicers did win 20 or more for the 41st season in a row and the Slicers got very good seasons out of junior pitchers Nielsen (8-2, 2.52 ERA) and lefty Neal Hackett (8-2), who were both all-DAC.   LaPorte's string of four consecutive sectional titles has been broken and next year they move into the eight-team 'super' sectional with 4A No.1  Crown Point so sectional champinships will be much tougher for the next four years. 
But with three all-DAC players (Rosenbaum is the other) returning, LaPorte will return in 2008 as the pre-season favorite in the Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC).  But who's going to host that eight-team sectional and who's going to ride the bus three times?

5.)  3A ANDREAN (25-10)
25-8 (2006), 33-2 (2005), 26-8 (2004), 27-7 (2003)

MERRILLVILLE -  Andrean went exactly as far as they should have gone, losing 4-1 to eventual state champion Norwell (35-0) in the title game of the 3A Plymouth Semistate.  Sophomorre Adam Norton (7-4) allowed just seven hits to the state champs and he'll be back in 2008.  The 59ers actually did beat Kokomo (26-4), the team that reached the 4A state finals.  The Niners were 11-1, then they were 17-9 and finally 25-10 so it was a bit of a roller-coaster season.  Coaches say they resent the term rebuilding, I guess because they want to be adversarial.  but privately, I think they all know that's what you do in high school sports where you can't control the roster.  But LaPorte and Andrean rebuilt very successfully in 2008.  Sophs Kevin Franchetti, Thomas Polus and Mike Pokers return as starters.  Juniors Jeff Strbjak and Austin Sutter also will fill big roles and Sutter will probably get another full shot as a starting pitcher.

The 59ers lose a lot of good talent, but don't be at all fooled.  Coach Dave Pishkur has plenty coming back and the 59ers will be a very big favorite to win the opening Northwest Crossroads Conference (NWCC) title.  Soph P/SS Adam Norton (.385, 5 HRs, 36 RBIs) will see his offensive numbers dip but his pitching numbers (7-4, 2.01 ERA) should get even better.
The Niners will face a new sectional lineup that will include Griffith, probably Andrean's arch-baseball rival.  They get some extra nonconference games moving from an eight-team league to a seven-team league.  I'd like to see Andrean, Boone, Crown Point and one other team get together for a four-team tournament. The next two seasons should be very good for the 59ers, but they want to go to the state finals or, at Andrean, it just doesn't count.

6.) 3A Griffith (23-10)
23-8 (2006), 19-15 (2005), 19-14 (2004), 17-12 (2003)

GRIFFITH - Andrean got the best of Griffith, 7-3 in the regional championship game, as the Niners got 10 hits off D-1 star Matt Kuna (8-3, 2.07).  Kuna and Ryan Bridges (.425, 7 HRs, 34 RBIs) plus nine other seniors leave big holes for the 2008 Panthers but Griffith wont be unarmed with CF Keremy O'Brien, pitchers Jake Terpstra (1-1) and Tim Cooper (6-3). Derek Hitt is a powerhitting outfielder and the school reportedly has some very good athletes at the freshman level.  
They wont like to hear how they're rebuilding in 2008 but its just the way it is. Rebuilding does not mean you cant win in the post-season.
The other big change for Griffith in 2008 comes off the field as they now face Andrean at the sectional level and Clark or Morton at the regional level instead of the other way around. I'd rather have it that way because its easier to line up your pitching for the main foe, if you get that foe early.
As the Panthesr found out this year, it wil always be difficult to beat Andrean at the reguional level than it would be a school like Morton or Clark with less pitching depth.
Griffith gets a little more cntrol of the schedule in 2008 as well.  Here's another team that gets a couple of extra nonconference games moving from an eight-team division with a 16-team tournanet into a seven team conference with no tournament.
The core of this team, is still good and they allow 20 games for experience, the Panthers should be reday to battle Andrean for the 2008 sectional title.

7.) 4A Munster (22-8)
23-11 (2006), 19-14 (2005), 23-6 (2004), 20-10 (2003)

MUNSTER -  The Mustangs got surprised by Highland 3-2 in the sectional quarterfinals to end the year.  It was a stunner because Munster was 3-0 against Highland during the regular season.  The surprise was that Munster, a solid offensive team, only scored two runs against Highland's Nick Cianci (8-2).  The wild horses got eight hits and a walk and that should equal more than two runs.  Senior pitcher Chris Winterhaler gave up just six hits and two walks, but an RBI single by Mike Bremer.  Coaches and players don't admit that they do not have as much control over their destiny as they think they do.  I thought this year's Munster team was as good as last year's squad, which got to the semistate title game.  But it's better to be lucky than good, if it's all about winning. The early exit for the 2006 regional champs signals a changing of the guard.  Munster loses core position players like Brett Keeler (48-103, .466) and Bret Keil (41-102, .402) from the 2007 Lake Athletic Conference (LAC) champions and they must revamp the varsity roster.  Munster has top caliber youth leagues and they seem to rebuild successfully every other year.  But right now, they would seem to be looking for position players.  Word is, they have them.  The landscape for Munster changes in 2008 with a new league, some extra non-conference games and a new sectional lineup that includes Morton.

8.) 4A LAKE CENTRAL (16-12)
19-10 (2006), 28-3 (2005), 24-7 (2004), 23-6-1 (2003)

ST. JOHN -  Here's a team that, while they are 8th in this final poll, they will not be 8th in the pre-season poll for 2008.  LC returns all eight position players who started the regional championship game, a 10-0 loss to Crown Point.  Big sophomore pitchers Eric Summers (1-2) and Danny Mannick (2-2) will lead a pitching staff that will have a lot of new faces.  But the position players in Summers (24-68, .353), Joey Kawa (22-72, .306), AJ Doyle (33-84, .393), Kyle Kaluza (30-82, .366) and clean-up man Ryan Boss (28-85, .329, 7HR, 25 RBIs) will all be back in 2008 and there are more sophomores who will be heard from.  If you watch some of the American Legion Ball where LC boys are spread out to get playing time, this team isn't just loaded, it's overloaded.  What they need, though, is the one ace pitcher who can go head-to-head with CP's best or LaPorte's best.  That pitcher did not surface in 2007.  No team has more talent returning and everybody in the Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) knows it.  If Summers and Mannick become the power pitchers they hope to be, look out for LC, because this is a big, strong team with good speed and they are going to score a lot of runs.

9.) 3A Kankakee Valley (20-11)
16-15 (2006), 22-9 (2005), 19-14 (2004), 14-17 (2003)

DeMOTTE  -  Kankakee Valley tried to rally from a 6-0 deficit against Andrean, but they fell short, losing 6-4 in the KV Sectional semifinals.  KV, which did not truly have a No. 1 starting pitcher all year, went with lefty Matt Dobin, probably planning to come back with right-hander Micah Raebel later in the game.  Dobin (2-1), gave up six runs early and while Raebel came on to pitch four shutout innings, KV could not come back.  The Kougars lose Dobin (.553, 8 HRs, 37 RBIs) and Derek Kunzman (40-83, .482, 3 HRs, 33 RBIs).  The Kougars bring back Raebel and Ryan Popp (4-0) in 2008, but they'll need some new position players.  They'll have to find good ones.  Griffith joins the Kougars' 3A sectional mix in 2008.  But the 2007 Kougars appeared to close the gap on the 59ers and Griffith, the top 3A programs in this area.  KV split four games with Andrean and the 59ers know they have a new rival.  Here's another area where the youth leagues consistently produce good position players.

10.) 4A Valparaiso (13-12-1)
15-13 (2006), 8-21 (2005), 16-13 (2004), 25-5 (2003), 27-5 (2002)

VALPARAISO -  The Vikings could not hold a 6-2 lead, losing 8-7 to Crown Point in what was almost a major sectional upset.  Nate Windsor held the Bulldogs to four runs in five innings, but CP overwhelmed relief pitcher Chooch Sizemore to rally for the win.  This was a solid team that was 0-3 against CP (29-3), 0-2 against Chesterton (20-6), 0-1 against Munster (22-8) and 1-1 against LaPorte (22-9).  Valparaiso seemed on the verge of a significant winning surge this year, but it never came.  I would suggest that they can't be too unhappy losing to a CP team that finished the season ranked No. 1.  But they might argue that they're going to have to get past the Bulldogs sometime and this is the second consecutive time CP has eliminated Valpo.  The Vikings lose most of their pitching to graduation.  Except for sophomore Mike Krantz, the staff will have a lot of new faces in a league where LaPorte and Lake Central are going to return most of their varsity rosters.  Valpo is going to have to introduce some new faces next year to even think about being in the top half of the DAC.  And the new eight-team 4A Sectional is not something they'd have voted for.

On the outside looking in ...

3A Clark (20-10)
25-6 (2006), 22-7 (2005), 24-5 (2004), 21-8 (2003), 20-5 (2002)

HAMMOND -   I hope Clark continues to play teams like Chicago's Mt. Carmel (31-7-1) and LaPorte (22-9).  There's no shame in losing to great programs.  I would argue that the highlight of the Pioneers' season was the 6-5 loss at LaPorte in the Slicers' first night game.  Junior Trent Howard (6-6) stepped into the No. 1 role, as he battled the big teams like LaPorte and Andrean.  That's why his record slipped from the 7-2 record he had as a soph.  Howard is playing with the Hammond Chiefs traveling team, which is good for his future.  Chris Schmittel (6-2) did a fine job facing some of three lesser teams, although he did pitch against Munster (22-8).  Clark graduates Mike (.506, 26 steals) and Al Carpen (.463, school record 67 RBIs), but they retain Jon Carpen, Trent and Trace Howard and Josh Moore.  Clark didn't get by Morton this year, but the landscape changes drastically for them in 2008.  The Pioneers move into an 'Easy like Sunday morning' sectional in 2008 with Gary schools Roosevelt, Wirt and Lew Wallace plus Hammond and Gavit.  Clark should dominate that sectional for the next four years.  They will be four time sectional champs, but they can't leave it at that.

Since they have a lock down on that new sectional, the Pioneers should go out and take advantage of the bust up of the Lake Athletic Conference to schedule much tougher teams.  The Pioneers want to play most game on the road because their home field is so bad.  (Why can't somebody get the Pioneers off that mine field they call a varsity baseball diamond?)  Morton has closed the gap on Clark in the city of Hammond.  But Morton moves up to Class 4A where they'll need Clark Kent to transfer in before they'll beat Lake Central and Munster.  The next four years for Clark presents a major opportunity for the Pioneers to get to the state finals.  They've got to jump on it.

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