Northwest Indiana Top-10

2004 High School Rankings: Week 11

6-9-2004

A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith

Oddly, the three teams from the six county (Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Newton, Starke and Jasper) area loosely referred to as Northwest Indiana, that made the state finals are the same three teams that made it last year. Whiting, on their home field all the way to the finals, was no surprise. Lake Central was formidable and favored. But Andrean was supposed to make it before anyone else did. They got stopped by West Lafayette pitcher Brittany Stanley (22-6). What is ominous with LC facing DeKalb superstar Krysten Shumaker (28-1) and Whiting facing undefeated Indianapolis Lutheran senior Nikki Nofziger (22-0) is that LC and Whiting didn't hit the ball very well last week. This is a strong prep softball area of the state but it is NOT, by any stretch of region-bias, the strongest area. Indianapolis is. Note to Whiting and Hanover Central. You almost never defeat Indianapolis private schools in state title games. In any sport. And Center Grove has won four state softball titles. All three Northwest Indiana teams that made the state finals last year went home empty-handed.

1. ANDREAN (29-5)

MERRILLVILLE - The 59ers could not duplicate their earlier 4-2 win over West Lafayette and the season ended in a 3-1 loss to the Red Devils (25-6). Andrean scored only two runs all day, which realistically shouldn't ever get it done. Pitcher Lori Knopf (17-3) and Katie Ivancich (12-2) didn't get the run support of past 59ers teams, although Andrean has failed to score in playoff situations in each of the last three seasons. In the last three years, Andrean has not had a post-season pitching breakdown. The offense has failed them and the odd thing about that is, Andrean's line drive based offense failed in 2002 and 2003 against Hanover Central and their lefty-dominated slap and run offense failed them last Saturday. Both pitchers and catcher Samantha Markowski return in 2005, when the 59ers again will spend some time as the state's top-ranked 3A team. Leadoff batter Ashley Emmett (42 stolen bases) and No. 3 hitter Carly Rossner will be hard to replace, but the 59ers have just four seniors. Andrean must find a way to bridge the quality gap between a very weak sectional and a very strong 3A regional. They should note that West Lafayette star Brittany Stanley (22-6) is just a sophomore and regional conqueror West Lafayette (25-6) had just one senior on the playoff roster.

2. Lake Central (27-3)

ST. JOHN - LC was able to slide by Portage 1-0 and Penn 2-0 to take the 2004 Merrillville Regional title. Junior Katie Mitchell hit a home run to help beat Portage and Mitchell had two RBI singles to nip Penn (21-11). LC was not the offensive force they have been most of the year and they must be more prolific this weekend with dominant pitchers like DeKalb's Krysten Schumaker (28-1) and Center Grove's Darcy Wood (26-1, 362 strikeouts) in their way. LC has played the schedule they need to win the state title and this is their fourth consecutive trip to the finals. Tall left-hander Beth Toyias (17-0) pitched two two-hit shutouts last Saturday. Let the record show, she has had a senior season superior to any other LC pitcher in their long and hugely successful history. Up to this point.

The word on Schumaker is that you must get her early in the game. The Western Michigan recruit with a 65-MPH fastball and 16 shutouts, dominated the bats of upset king Harrison 1-0 with a two hit shutout last week in the Harrison Regional championship game, striking out the side in the seventh inning.

Wood shut Lake Central down and out, 2-0 in the 2003 state title game. That is something the LC girls will be reminded of this week. LC the region's top team? DeKalb beat Harrison. LC didn't. LC met just two winning teams in the DAC this year and the Munster team they crushed 10-1 was badly overrated. There should be no air of invincibility on the bus headed for Indianapolis on Friday. LC has earned great praise up here but DeKalb (29-2) and Center Grove are formidable teams standing in the way. Ask the question again Sunday morning.

3. Portage (27-4-2)

PORTAGE - Portage did as well as they could without reaching the state finals. The 1-0 loss to Lake Central (27-3), their third loss of the season to LC, certainly is not a negative on their 2003 season. After seasons of 30-4 (2000), 26-4 (2001), 23-9 (2002), the Indians 'slumped' to 19-9 last year and came back strong (27-4-2) this season. For programs like Portage, it's not a great year unless they reach the state finals but this is about as near-great as it comes. Plus, RHP Meagan Gutierrez (16-2) comes back for two more seasons. The problem? Any way you look at it, Portage has to get by Lake Central and that will continue to be a very tall order for the foreseeable future.

4. Chesterton (20-6)

CHESTERTON - Chesterton ended up 0-5 against Lake Central (27-3) and Portage (27-4-1) and 20-1 against everybody else. They never did hit Portage freshman right-hander Meagan Gutierrez (16-2), who beat them three times. Junior Laura DeLeon (14-5, 0.59 ERA, 149Ks in 126 innings) pitched a three-hitter and retired 21 batters in a row against Portage, but ended up losing 1-0 in nine innings. With the regional results, you still can't convince me that Portage is a better team than Chesterton. The Trojans are well set for 2005 with pitchers DeLeon and Ashley Thomas (6-0, 62 Ks) both returning while LC suffers some big graduation losses.

5. Lowell (20-9)

LOWELL - Lowell had a four-game winning streak broken by Lake Central 6-2 in the Lake Central sectional championship game and LC reaching the state finals only makes Lowell's season look better. Lowell was 0-2 against LC. The challenge has been thrown down for the Red Devils, who return the core of their lineup for the next two seasons. Lowell must lift their game to break the sectional dominance of LC, a very tall order. Cristin Just (9-5) returns for two more seasons and gifted CF-SS Kelly Johnson has three more years. Top hitter Nicole Fletcher missed the final four weeks and she also returns. The Devils, who have great speed, need to add physical strength to become the kind of line drive hitting team LC has. Lowell also needs a No. 2 power pitcher so Just doesn't have to pitch all the big games. The state tournament again shows that, when elite teams meet, you've got to be able to create runs without extra base hits. I repeat, this team has as good a group of players as any in this region. They also have as difficult a state tournament path as anyone in the state.

6. Munster (25-3-1)

MUNSTER - Munster's 10-1 loss to Lake Central doesn't look so bad with LC in the state finals again. But that's a mixed grace. Munster still has to find a way to get by a four-time state finalist. If the goal is to go to the state finals (and it doesn't have to be), Munster needs to schedule every good team they can find. I repeat. Drop the Munster Invitational. You do not need more nonconference games at home. You want to travel. The Mustangs might want to enter the 16-team Twin Lakes Invitational, especially with powerhouse teams like McCutcheon, Eastern and West Lafayette and Andrean there. The travel and elite competition helped two-time state finalist Hanover Central rise to the level of state contender. Munster loses just two seniors for 2005 although one of them is closer Stephanie Andjelich (4-1, 0.42, 10 saves). The Lady ponies have greatness on the horizon but they must realize that sometimes, no matter how hard you ride, you never reach the horizon.

7. Hanover Central (25-7)

CEDAR LAKE - Hanover has won 20 of 22 games but to say they are 'streaking' or have great 'momentum' would not be the truth. I don't know if I can possibly explain how Hanover beat Rochester 8-7 in the LaVille Regional championship game. It was more a Little League baseball game than a state tournament softball game. Hanover was trailing, down to their last three outs twice and down to their last out once before rallying repeatedly. The Lady Cats totaled 18 hits in the 12-inning title game, a big upgrade over the last three weeks, when they barely scraped out one or two runs. DH Christie Wick was 4-for-7 after a season of struggles.

Actually, that was a big upgrade over the regional semifinal when Megan Myers' RBI single, just HC's third hit of the game, gave the Lady Cats a 1-0 win over No. 6 Bremen (24-6). Hanover's schedule, for a 2A team, looks better every day. HC's losses are to Munster (23-3-1), Whiting (28-5), McCutcheon (28-6), Chesterton (20-6), Lowell (20-9), Illinois Class A state champion Beecher Ill.(35-3) and Bishop Noll (17-14). And they have wins over Lewis Cass, Bremen and Rochester, three 20-game winners and top-10 squads.

HC has gone 24-5 (2002), 25-8 (2003) and now 25-7. Truthfully, they have done everything they were asked to do this year, dominate the PCC and win the regional. The Lady Cats appear a decided underdog against No. 3 Scecina (25-6) and they would probably then see No. 2 Eastside (30-2) in the 2A state finals. But after last weekend, when they won two games in their last at-bat, Hanover won't collapse if they fall behind.

8. Highland (19-5-1)

HIGHLAND - Highland got smoked out by Lowell 7-2 in the state tournament and they didn't get another shot at Munster or Lake Central. The Trojans were not a good defensive team and they paid for it here. Dominant RHP Stephanie Zimny graduates, but Highland figures to be able to replace her with a multiple girl rotation led by Beth Haley. Highland's problem is that their 'window of opportunity' has closed. The other teams in their sectional -- Lowell, Munster and Lake Central, are looking at big years next season and so is LAC rival Andrean.

9. South Central (22-7)

UNION MILLS - The Satellites got shut out by Sarah Grams (18-4) and Marquette in the South Central Sectional 1A championship game. Marquette had lost to South Central 4-0 earlier in the season. Four of SC's losses were shutouts (Glenn, Culver Academy and Hanover twice), so their problem is obvious. The Satellites should not be too discouraged. They return every varsity player on the roster including RHP Chantal Gross (18-7) and leadoff batter and region base steal leader Angela Ward (51-105, .486, 34 stolen bases). SC does have a 1-0 win over Whiting (28-5), which is in the state finals, but they didn't earn a rematch. One problem for South Central is four-time PCC champion Hanover Central, another state finalist, returns the core of their team next year as well. One plus for SC is that Whiting, the two-time Class 1A Region champ, does not.

10. Merrillville (15-16)

MERRILLVILLE - They lost 3-0 to Portage in the sectional championship game, but the year was a success as they found a pitcher in Amy Vargas (7-10), who pitched a perfect game 2-0 victory over Crown Point in the sectional semifinals. Seven of Merrillville's losses are to 20-game winners Portage, Merrillville and Chesterton. Vargas is better than her record and coach Amy Govert's task is to improve the defense and offense around her for the next three seasons. But that won't be hard. The offense wasn't very good and when you have a solid pitcher, players tend to come out of the woodwork. Pay no attention to won-loss records. And don't let any region homer tell you that Whiting or Morton are better teams than Merrillville.

It's Judgment Day for.........

Whiting (28-5)

WHITING - The Oilers again walked the 'yellow-brick road' to the state finals with every game at home. I repeat. That's the bonus of having a high quality facility. Merrillville did it for many years. Twin Lakes has that possibility and Penn does every other year. It isn't cheating but you're lying if you say that being at home isn't a major factor when you win two extra inning games at the Class 1A regional level. Your foes are traveling 50-150 miles and you're going home for lunch.

Whiting senior RHP Maria Martinez (23-5) backboned the Oilers' 13th and 14th consecutive wins with a three-hitter against Pioneer in a 3-2 nine inning win and a two-hitter against Marquette in a 2-0, 13-inning win. In five playoff games, Martinez, who was 16-4 last year, struck out 39 and walked eight in 43 innings, 42 of them shutout innings.

What bothers you is that Whiting has just 32 base hits in the entire state tournament. They aren't hitting and that's what got them beat at this point last year. Whiting has not trailed in the state tournament and with that weak an attack, it's not a place they can go. The Oiler girls are in the state finals, but let's talk truth. They should be. Whiting now leaves their home field for the first time in six post-season games and they face undefeated Indianapolis Lutheran RHP Nikki Naffziger (22-0). Anyone who has reached the state finals has had a great year, no matter how easy the path. But if we're being honest, there are doubts about a team that has struggled to win five 1A playoff games at home.

WEEK (10) NOTES - Rochester's 8-7 loss to Hanover Central prevented them from becoming the first school to send a girls team to the basketball, volleyball and softball state finals in the same school year. Whiting's 1A state semifinal game with Indianapolis Lutheran will be aired Friday night live on WJOB (1230) AM. The station will follow Whiting as long as they are in the tournament. With semistate baseball on the air Saturday afternoon, there is no way that Hanover Central will be on the radio, even if they reach the 2A state finals, which is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Saturday. If Lake Central reaches the state 4A title game at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, WJOB will air their game.

An oddity, Penn senior Tiffany Krcelich (16-5) was born in the Lake Central school district and moved to Granger in the Penn district 14 years ago. Penn is 0-20 against Lake Central. Martinsville went 19 innings to beat New Albany 1-0 in the 4A Castle Regional championship game.

Indianapolis Lutheran star Nikki Naffziger (22-0) struck out 16 and allowed just two earned runs in a 9-5 win over Clinton Prairie (19-8) Saturday. Noffziger pitched through five errors.

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