Twin Lakes Invitational Preview

5-07-2010

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

Lowell pitcher Lauren Wels averages 10 strikeouts per game and is batting over .500.

Lowell second baseman Jacki Fletcher and shortstop Megan Bolanowski during last year's Twin Lakes Tournament. Both will be back this weekend.

Crown Point coach Brett Crutchfield brings his team to Monticello for the second time.

Hanover Central has an opening night game with Andrean, two teams with 12-4 records.

The city of Twin Lakes is a tourist attraction with Indiana Beach nearby.

Hanover's Jessica Toth pitched and won last year's Saturday evening Twin Lakes Invitational championship game.

The TWIN LAKES Invitational
$5 each day @ Twin Lakes high school- Monticello Indiana
WEATHER: 60% chance of rain Friday, Sunny and mid-50s Saturday

FRIDAY (all records as of 5-5-10)
Twin Lakes (8-5) vs. Maconaquah - 5 p.m.
(West Lafayette) Harrison (12-8) vs. Pioneer - 5 p.m.
(Lafayette) Jefferson (2-16) vs. Lewis Cass (8-5) 5 p.m.
CROWN POINT (15-1) vs. Frontier (9-5) 5:45 p.m.
(Howard Co.) Eastern (9-6) vs. McCutcheon (11-8) 6:30 p.m.
Munster (11-6) vs. Western (9-2) 6:30 p.m.
ANDREAN (12-4) vs. HANOVER CENTRAL (12-4) 6:30 p.m.
Benton Central (6-6)vs. LOWELL (12-8) 8 p.m.

SATURDAY (all times are Eastern Standard Time)
Frontier (9-5) vs. Twin Lakes (8-5) 9 a.m.
Eastern (10-6) vs. LOWELL (12-8) 9 a.m.
Munster (11-6) vs. (West Lafayette ) Harrison (12-8) 9 a.m.
Jefferson (2-16) vs. ANDREAN (12-4) - 9 a.m.
Maconaquah vs. CROWN POINT (15-1) 10:30 a.m.
McCutcheon (11-8) vs. Benton Central (6-6) 10:30 a.m.
Pioneer vs. Western (9-2) 10:30 p.m.
Lewis Cass (8-5) vs. HANOVER CENTRAL (12-4) 10:30 p.m.
Maconaquah vs. Frontier (9-5) 12 noon
McCutcheon (11-8) vs. LOWELL (12-8) 12 noon
Munster (11-6) vs. Pioneer - 12 noon
Lewis Cass (9-5) vs. ANDREAN (12-4) 12 noon
Twin Lakes (8-5) vs. CROWN POINT (15-1) 1:30 p.m.
Eastern (10-6) vs. Benton Central (6-6) 1:30 p.m.
Harrison (12-8) vs. Western (9-2) 1:30 p.m.
Jefferson (2-16) vs. HANOVER CENTRAL (12-4)1:30 p.m.

Semifinals - 3:30 p.m. (Eastern time)
Championship - 6 p.m. (Eastern time)

MONTICELLO (5-7-2010) This isn't the strongest Twin Lakes Invitational and I would be very surprised if no Northwest Indiana team reaches the championship game.

The only candidates not from NWI would be Harrison, with strong right-hander Brooke Jordan, Western and McCutcheon, which will get a pass to the semifinals for reasons I'll explain in a moment. Jordan struck out 15 in a 3-0 win over Lafayette Catholic last month and 11 more in a 4-2 win over Frontier. The right-hander pitched at Twin Lakes last year and her team lost the championship game 2-1 to Hanover Central.

Harrison and McCutcheon play the level of competition where they won't be intimidated by 4A No. 5 Crown Point (15-1), a very scary team.

The first fact here is that Lowell (12-8) can't win. The Devils, state finalists in 2009, have their school prom this weekend. It's my understanding that they will leave after the 12 noon (11 a.m. Central time) game with McCutcheon, win or lose, so their girls (they have 10 seniors) can get home. Unless there is a change of heart, Lowell will not participate in the semifinals and finals under any circumstances.

Welcome to girls sports.

So the winner of McCutcheon-Eastern probably reaches the semifinals and McCutcheon plays the far tougher foes. McCutcheon rolled over 1A No. 10 Clinton Prairie 11-0. Eastern pitcher Meghan Thomas was 12-11 last year with an 0.56 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 145 innings. That means her team is just awful at the plate.

Western lost to Andrean in the Twin Lakes Regional championship game last season and they reportedly have had a good season, winning their first six games. But Cass stomped them 8-4 last week after Western led 4-0.

The easiest path to the semifinals might be Crown Point's as the Bulldogs have no 4A teams in their four-team pool and there's no way they can lose to 1A Frontier and 2A Maconaquah. Saturday afternoon's game between CP and host Twin Lakes will determine one semifinalist.

One pool may be decided early Friday as Andrean takes on Hanover in a rematch of opening night the last two years.

I don't think Cass can defeat either Andrean or Hanover, rated 5th in Class 2A. The fourth team in that pool is Jefferson (2-16).

Munster, Pioneer, Western and Harrison is a difficult group but Harrison should beat Munster to advance.

So we could be looking at Harrison, McCutcheon, Crown Point and Hanover or Andrean in the semifinals. Hanover is on a winning streak and I'll take them to nip Andrean and reach the semifinals.

The semifinal brackets may have changed form 2009, but if they haven't, CP plays Hanover in the semifinals and that will be a feature.

The Bulldogs (15-1) and Lady Cats (12-4) did not meet in Monticello in 2009 and their proposed meeting in the 2010 CP Invitational on April 24 was rained out. CP has the better team overall but they are certainly going to see right-hander Jessica Toth (6-2), who should face CP's undefeated Taylor Perry (8-0).

I can't see Hanover, even with all the top teams they've played, scoring more than one run against Perry. CP is hitting very well and they should beat Hanover to reach the finals.

Harrison and McCutcheon, who have played six one-run games against each other in the last three seasons, are neighbors but not always friends, it is my understanding. McCutcheon, the 2008 4A state champ, has just one senior, infielder Megan Gray, who is a college (Division I Tennessee-Martin) recruit as a hitter. But Brooke Jordan is the best pitcher on either team and, even though McCutcheon topped the Raiders 3-1 on April 14, I like Harrison in a close semifinal.

Harrison and McCutcheon may have faced a tougher schedule than CP so the Raiders have much more experience than McCutcheon and play in a couple of tournaments, meaning they have played multiple games in one day.

If this tournament was seeded, CP would be the top-seed, but the Lady Bulldogs have played nothing but single games so far and I think that matters when you are playing for the fourth time in the same day.

Harrison was the pre-season No. 7 in 4A and I think they win the title over Crow Point.