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Northwest Indiana Top-102004 High School Rankings: Week 5 |
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A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith |
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Northwest Indiana Top-102004 High School Rankings: Week 5 |
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A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith |
In
week
four
Munster beat Carmel and McCutcheon (14-5) to
win the Carmel Invitational over the weekend, their first significant stretch of
the season. The Mustangs made a bid to join Portage, Chesterton, LC and Andrean
in the area elite, but two errors and four walks in a 5-2 win at 1A Whiting set
them back somewhat. Portage (14-2-1, 7-1) and Chesterton (15-3, 6-2) geared for
another shot at LC (15-3, 8-0) in the DAC while newcomer South Central (10-2,
5-0) and three-time defending champion Hanover Central (8-5, 4-0) prepared to do
battle for the PCC crown.
Two one run losses at home (Munster and Whiting) mean nothing. This team is going through a lull in the schedule. Junior Lori Knopf (6-2) smoked overmatched Hammond 5-0 Tuesday (4-27-2) for her third shutout of the year. Knopf has not allowed more than three runs in any complete game this season and no other No. 1 pitcher in the region can say that. Despite their low ranking elsewhere, no team has scored more than three runs against Andrean in any game this year. The 59ers play in the Valparaiso tournament this weekend and they could see Elkhart Memorial (9-4) and right-hander Heather Van Galen (8-3). Andrean has the 16-team Twin Lakes tournament and a talent-rich four team tourney at Castle still to come. Andrean had a 5-game span where they scored just 18 runs, even though they went 4-1. Warm weather will help the left-handed slap and slice, speed teams and that's what Andrean is now. The 59ers need to be ready. They drew Jefferson (5-8), Wheeler (8-5) and 3A No. 14 West Lafayette (11-4) in the May 7-8 Twin Lakes Invitational.
2. Lake Central (14-3)
Lake Central went to 8-0 in the DAC after a 4-0 shutout of Crown Point Tuesday. The 2-3-4 hitters, Kari Duncan, Katie Mitchell and Stacey Adamski, are as good as anybody's core batting order. Left-hander Beth Toyias (8-0) is vastly improved over last year. LC did get smoked 3-0 at Harrison (6-3), a game in which LC made a season-high six errors. But LC's Toyias and Katie Golden shut out Jefferson 1-0 on just two hits. LC has played eight games on Saturday afternoons against teams from outside this area. That's the old independent schedule that other schools can't or won't play. LC is 5-3 in those games but that's not relevant. The point is, they take on all comers. Everybody, Munster, Portage, Chesterton, they all want a second chance to beat LC, the 3-time 4A region champ. But I don't think they will find LC unprepared for battle.
3. Chesterton (15-3)
The pitching tandem of Laura DeLeon and Ashley
Thomas continues to hold up through a difficult schedule. Thomas pitched
consecutive shutouts last week over Bishop Noll, 10-0 and Michigan City, 18-0.
DeLeon shut out Valparaiso 5-0, beat Crown Point 7-1 and lost 1-0 to Lake
Central before a 4-0 three-hit shutout of Lafayette Catholic. When the wins pile
up you look at the losses and the Trojans fell 1-0 to LC, 1-0 to Portage and 4-2
to Harrison, which has defeated Portage, Chesterton, Highland and Lake
Central. April results have absolutely no value, but Chesterton did as much with
a heavy April schedule as they probably could.
4. Portage (14-2-1)
Portage paddled Griffith 5-0, KV 11-0 and Valparaiso 1-0 after three DAC wins last week. Freshman pitcher Meaghan Gutierrez (8-1) has walked only two in 93 innings. Portage has won six in a row since back-to-back losses to Lake Central 6-5 and Harrison 2-1 on April 14-17. Only LC has scored more than three runs on Portage all season. This is not a great offensive team, though. Portage had just 109 (6.4) base hits in 17 games. Now, they don't have small schools on the schedule to jack up the hit totals but a predominantly senior team should hit better than this. Portage pushed across an eighth inning run to beat Valparaiso 1-0 Tuesday. Valpo's better than that record and this is a rivalry. But Portage beat LaPorte 2-1 on April 21, scratching out seven hits against a last place team. I don't know the answer.
The Devil winning streak stands at six before Thursday's game against Andrean (11-2). The four core 2003 freshman starters (Liz Martin, Cristin Just, Carrie Shelhart and Nicole Fletcher) have played a year and a half now. Keep in mind that losses to 4A state-rated squads Chesterton and Portage were in extra innings. This is really a 7-1-2 team. Throw in soph catcher Courtney Austgen and speedy freshman SS Kelly Johnson and here is the region's coming team. But since it's Lowell and not Highland or Munster, the Red Devils will avoid high rankings and accolades for some time to come. Lowell needs a big win and Andrean, Lake Central, and Munster provide opportunities. The draw at the Twin Lakes tournament lines Lowell up against Merrillville (8-6), Twin Lakes and Frontier (5-7). The Devils could take that pool which means they will play five games on May 7-8. Other than Andrean, Lowell plays the toughest schedule in the LAC. But are they too young to survive it?
6. Munster (11-2)
Munster has been rolling since a 4-3 opening
loss to Homewood-Flossmoor (7-10). Four wins at the Carmel tournament last week
were the highlight of the season and a shaky 5-2 win at Whiting Tuesday can be
overlooked. The Mustangs' 2-1 win over McCutcheon (14-5) is significant because
McCutcheon is similar to Lowell, a sectional foe. That was McCutcheon's only
loss in four games at Carmel. You don't win with home runs in softball but
Jackie Yerga, who hit two homers off Whiting's Maria Martinez Tuesday
(4-26-2004) might disagree. Munster used three pitchers against McCutcheon and
they used three against Munster. 20 wins is a given but a 5-2 win over a 1A team
is not a badge of honor. Munster, as usual, is getting inundated with local
publicity (all Munster teams do) and that can be a team killer. Teams lose for
three reasons. Lack of talent, lack of luck and too much ego. I know for a fact
that Munster does not have a lack of talent.
7. Highland (10-2-1)
Highland edged Boone 1-0 and slid past Clark 7-6 and that's not very good. The Trojans turned back Jefferson 2-0 Saturday in West Lafayette but they also lost 6-0 to Harrison. Highland's losses were 4-1 (to LC) and 6-0 and that's not good. Highland is grooming pitcher Beth Haley for the future and that might explain the 7-6 win and the 6-0 loss. Senior Stephanie Zimny, who struck out 11 against Jefferson pitching a one-hit shutout, should be ready for the big games to come. Highland needs to play six games this weekend in the Highland Invitational. That tournament can be a launching pad because it gets everybody on the roster involved.
HC nudged Clark 7-4 after playing
an expected smack down on LaCrosse 11-0 Saturday, but 7-5 is unacceptable for
the players they have. Hanover has won 26 regular season PCC games in a row and
35 consecutive games against PCC foes. But the Lady Cats appear to be coasting
and waiting for the big games. If that's the case, the draw at Twin Lakes will
shock them to some serious reality. After the PCC showdown with South Central
(9-2, 5-0) Tuesday, Hanover will find out if they are contending or pretending.
The Satellites have not played a serious schedule and it will be hard for them
to whip up on HC. The outcome of that game should not fool anybody.
Hanover has NEVER advanced out of pool play in the Twin Lakes Invitational and
odds are, they won't this year either. The draw at Twin Lakes will pit HC
against Class 1A No.7 Pioneer (8-4), Class 3A No. 3 Lewis Cass (8-0) and Class
4A No. 7 McCutcheon (14-5). Three traditional mid-state softball powers in a
20-hour span. That's called drawing the short straw. Somebody saw them coming.
Still, this draw could be exactly what the Lady Cats need to shove them into the
playing more that could return them to the state finals. This draw could also
see them getting smoked three times and heading for home with the sun still high
in the sky. It's time to let the truth be told.
9. Griffith (8-7)
Senior Jessica Banke struck out 7 in a 3-1 win over Morton (9-6) Monday. The Panthers played errorless ball to get the job done. Griffith also went error free Monday but they lost 5-4 to up-and-coming Wheeler (9-4) in nine innings. They have not come up with a No. 2 pitcher so Jessica Banke will have to carry the load by herself in big games. The Panther schedule usually creates a good team by the season's end.
10. Merrillville (8-8)
The Pirates edged back over the .500 mark with a 13-7 win over Bishop Noll Monday, but they lost 2-1 at LaPorte Tuesday night. The Pirates fell 1-0 to Valparaiso Saturday even though freshman Amy Vargas struck out 10 in 11 innings. The Pirates' schedule is very, very good so their 8-8 is better than Whiting's 10-3. Let's be honest. There aren't 10 really good teams.
What's
going on..........?
South Central (9-2)
Some
local polls have South Central included in the Top-10 and three-time PCC champ
Hanover Central excluded. Those polls are blind to strength of schedule. There
is no comparison in the schedules. HC has played Chesterton, Lowell and Munster.
It's all on the line Tuesday in the PCC as the new team in their league gets a
shot at the team with a 35-game league winning streak. South Central sophomore
Chantal Gross pitched a two-hit shutout against South Bend Adams in a
significant 5-0 win last week. The losses are to New Prairie (10-2) and John
Glenn but the biggest win (other than Adams) is over Hebron (9-2). Can they hit
HC's Amanda Wendlinger? Only Chesterton has.
What's wrong with........?
Whiting (10-3)
Nothing.
They finally started to play good teams consistently. What does Tuesday's 5-2
home loss to 4A No. 10 Munster mean? Nothing. The same thing the 1-0, 10-inning
win over Andrean meant. Whiting is going to lose more regular season games. That
isn't the issue. They must be ready late next month. Hebron (9-2), Pioneer (8-3)
and Marquette (7-3) stand between the Oilers and a return to the state finals.
Whiting still has major offensive problems. The Oilers had just 99 base hits
after 13 games (7.6). Take away 42 hits against Gavit, East Chicago and Hammond
and the average is 5.7. That is nowhere near good enough. For the second time in
five games, Whiting batters struck out 19 times in the same game. Oilers fanned
10 more times Monday against Munster. Watch the strikeout totals carefully in
the next few weeks. Whiting must make contact or they can't return to the state
finals.
NOTES: Whiting lost 1-0 to top-ranked Indianapolis Lutheran
(11-0) at Pioneer last weekend. The other losses for the Oilers (10-3) are to 3A
Morton (9-5) and 4A Munster (12-2). Remember when ANDREAN swept Culver Academy
in the first week of April? Culver crushed North Judson 16-2 Monday afternoon to
improve to 9-2 on the season.
Remember
5-10 right-hander Claire DeVreese who struck out 300 and barely lost to Lake
Central at the Penn Regional last year? DeVreese struck out 15 Monday to
lead Mishawaka (10-4) to a 2-0 win over South Bend St. Joseph's. A note about
St. Joseph's (4-10). Junior pitcher Andrea Stone missed the first seven games
for St. Joe with a broken foot. Her return was a 10-0 no-hitter April 23
against Adams. A landmark game at New Prairie where the Cougars (10-1) beat
Bremen 3-2, breaking Bremen's seven year, 100-game Northern States Conference (NSC)
winning streak. Pitcher Shaina Smith (9-1) pitched a five-hitter over 10 innings
to beat Class 2A No. 5 Bremen (9-2), who gets a rematch on May 12.
Elkhart Memorial (11-3), which plays at Valparaiso Saturday, no-hit Concord 2-0
Monday behind senior right-hander Heather Van Galen (7-2). Class 4A No. 11
Concord (11-2) also gets a rematch on May 12.
2004 PCC Softball Tournament
Defending
champion - Hanover Central (2001, 2002, 2003)
Quarterfinals
- May 14, 2004
Washington Township at LaCrosse
HANOVER CENTRAL (7-5) at BOONE GROVE (4-8)
South Central (10-2) at Morgan Township (6-4)
Kouts (3-6) at Hebron (9-2)
Semifinals - May 15, 2004
WT or LaCrosse vs. HANOVER or BOONE - 10 a.m.
SC or MT vs.Kouts or Hebron - 12 noon
PCC Championship - 3 p.m.
2004 Twin Lakes Invitational
at
Monticello, Ind. (4 fields)
all games - 90-minute time limit with international tie-breaker
POOLS (with top-10 rankings)
(1) Twin Lakes, Frontier, MERRILLVILLE and LOWELL
(2) Jefferson, West Lafayette, WHEELER and 3A No. 3 ANDREAN
(3) Benton Central, Culver Military, 2A No. 1 Eastern and BOONE GROVE
(4) 1A No.7 Pioneer, 2A No. 3 Lewis Cass, 4A No. 8 McCutcheon
and HANOVER CENTRAL
Friday, May 7 - pool play
Frontier at Twin Lakes - 5 p.m.
WHEELER vs. 3A No. 14 West Lafayette - 5 p.m.
Benton Central vs. BOONE GROVE - 5 p.m.
4A No. 8 McCutcheon (14-5) vs. 2A No. 3 Lewis Cass (8-0) - 5 p.m.
MERRILLVILLE vs. LOWELL - 6:30 p.m.
3A No. 11 Culver Military (9-2) vs. 2A No. 1 (Howard Co.) Eastern (13-0) -
6:30 p.m.
(Lafayette) Jefferson (5-8) vs. 3A No. 3 ANDREAN (12-2) - 6:30 p.m.
1A No. 7 Pioneer (8-4) vs. HANOVER CENTRAL (7-5) - 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 8 - pool play
MERRILLVILLE vs. Frontier - 9 a.m.
4A No. 8 McCutcheon vs. 1A No. 7 Pioneer - 9 a.m.
Benton Central vs. Class 2A No. 1 Eastern - 9 a.m.
WHEELER vs. 3A No. 3 ANDREAN - 9 a.m.
Twin Lakes vs. LOWELL - 10:30 a.m.
3A No. 11 Culver Military vs. BOONE GROVE - 10:30 a.m.
3A No. 14 West Lafayette vs. (Lafayette) Jefferson - 10:30 a.m.
HANOVER CENTRAL vs. 2A No. 3 Lewis Cass - 10:30 a.m.
MERRILLVILLE vs. Twin Lakes - 12 noon
BOONE GROVE vs. 2A No. 1 Eastern - 12 noon
(Lafayette) Jefferson vs. WHEELER - 12 noon
2A No. 3 Lewis Cass vs. 1A No. 7 Pioneer - 12 noon
LOWELL vs. Frontier - 1:30 p.m.
Benton Central vs. 3A No. 11 Culver Military - 1:30 p.m.
3A No. 14 West Lafayette vs. 3A No. 3 ANDREAN - 1:30 p.m.
4A No. 8 McCutcheon vs. HANOVER CENTRAL - 1:30 p.m.
SEMIFINALS: 3:30 p.m. at Twin Lakes high
CHAMPIONSHIP: 6 p.m. at Twin Lakes high
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Revised: July 10, 2004.
