Top-10 High School Baseball Teams in

Northwest Indiana - Week 5: 4/29/2003

A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith

1. Valparaiso (11-2)

The 2-1 loss Tuesday (April 29) at Crown Point is not surprising. Senior pitcher Jeff Samardzija (3-2) largely stopped the CP attack, allowing only one earned run. Nick Windsor (3-0) and Mike Gildein (2-0) are still undefeated. The Monday defeat was the first seven-inning loss for Valparaiso this season. Valpo crushed LaPorte 11-2 and Chesterton 11-0.

2. ANDREAN (11-1)

The 59ers followed their first loss (4-3 to Griffith) with wins 2-1 over Thornwood and 13-1 over Whiting. Despite being held to just two hits against Thornwood, Andrean hits over .400 as a team. Righthander Mike Ryan is 4-0. Andrean will face Highland (9-2) and Harrison (5-5) this week in the Harrison Classic in West Lafayette.

3. LAKE CENTRAL (9-3)

Lake Central had won 7 in a row after a 10-0 win over Hobart Monday. Sophomore Brett and senior Adam Summers pitched back-to-back shutouts over Morton and Hobart. Brett Summers (2-1), almost 6-foot-6, has vast potential as a right-handed pitcher. Jose Mendez and Gary Ruvoli have over 40 stolen bases between them. LC has Crown Point (10-2) and Munster (10-3) this weekend.

4. CROWN POINT (10-2)

Senior Adam Vetter improved to 4-0 with a 2-1 victory over top-ranked Valparaiso Monday. The Bulldogs losses are 7-5 top Michigan City and 4-2 to Munster. Kevin Vandas was 2-for-3 in the win over Valpo. CP has to focus on Thursday's game with Chesterton, a DAC match, instead of Fridays' game with rival LC (10-3).

5. Highland (11-2)

Throw out both of Highland's losses. The 19-1 loss to CP was a fluke and the 11-4 loss to Munster came when Highland gave a player a first time start. Joel Schmal went to 5-0 Monday with a 6-0 shutout at KV. He struck out 10. You can overanalyze. When Schmal pitches, Highland can be a No. 1 team.

6. Lowell (10-3)

Before the game with Lake Station Wednesday, the Red Devils had outscored the opposition 148-50. Senior Ryan Basham leads NW Indiana with seven home runs. Junior Ed Overdorf was 5-for-5 against Gavit and senior Brian Stamper was 5-for-5 against Hammond.
The pitching-weak LAC is hurting this team. They need to see top pitchers. A 21-1 game actually hurts both sides. Lowell does have Andrean (12-0-1), Crown Point (10-2) and Highland (10-2) still to play but there are a lot of soft teams in the next couple of weeks. Expect the Red Devil hit parade to continue.

7. LaPorte (8-4)

LaPorte came from behind to beat Plymouth 6-5 Saturday after losing to Merrillville 4-2 and Valparaiso 11-2. It will be tough for the Slicers to beat any top teams because of their lack of a lead pitcher. This is a very young team that should improve as the season progresses. Blake Hindsley can be a top catcher.

8. Clark (8-2)

Clark is using senior pitcher Russ Gould at every possible turn and it may be catching up to him., Gould (3-1) was KO'd in Monday's 8-5 loss to Bishop Noll . Clark isn't playing enough and senior pitcher Joe Anderson may be hurt.

9. Renssealer (7-4)

The Bombers have lost to No. 3 (4A) McCutcheon and the other three defeats are by one or two runs. Starter Jeremy Rodibaugh has allowed eight hits in three complete games but he's only 1-2. Nathan Amsler (3-0) has struck out 37 in four starts. Like Clark, the Bombers have not played enough games.

10. Munster (10-3)

A pure offensive team. The Mustangs outscored foes 117-56 in their first 13 games. Wins over Crown Point and Highland last weekend came against backup pitchers but the win over Highland came with backup players. Munster's seniors went to the prom before the 11-4 victory in the Munster Invitational championship game. The ponies lost to Clark and Bishop Noll last week and the defense is still shaky but if they can find consistent pitching in the next five weeks, they could get back to the 20-win mark.

Others to watch

Griffith (5-8)

I still think this team is as good as Munster, Clark and Lowell and that thought was confirmed during a 4-3 win over top-ranked Andrean. But a 10-4 loss to Chesterton the next day raised the same old doubts. better than Munster or Clark. Senior Briuan Miles has five complete games.

Bishop Noll (6-3)

Noll has beaten Munster 6-1 and Clark 8-5 but they lost to Lowell 8-3. Noll's 7-run sixth inning gave the Warriors the win over Clark. Noll just hasn't played enough to know what they have. They are a lot like LaPorte but LaPorte has been playing consistently. Noll has not.

BOONE GROVE (6-6)

The .500 record is deceptive. The Wolves have lost to Class 4A teams Lowell, Merrillville, Valparaiso, Michigan City and Munster. The other defeat was 3-1 to 2A power Rensselaer. Steve Rathjen (2-30 was very strong in a five-hit shutout of Hanover Monday. Senior Marcus Banning, in his first year as a pitcher, is 3-1. They still have a shot at 20 wins.

BALL NOTES: CP's Adam Vetter (4-0) has no college choice at this point. The Bulldog right-hander has defeated LaPorte, Valparaiso, Portage and Morton, allowing a total of five runs. Munster travels to Lake Central at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 3.

CP makes a return visit to LaPorte on Wednesday, May 7 at 4:45 p.m. Merrillville pitcher Jason Plys (3-1) may play for Crown Point American Legion Post 20 this summer. Merrillville cannot get Merrillville High School to allow them the use of the high school baseball field so they will have major problems completing their schedule. Post 20's 40-game regular season is scheduled to begin on June 11. Post 20, which plays most games at home on Teagle Field in Crown Point, will travel for doubleheaders at Logansport and New Castle (May 28-29) and at Lafayette (July 5). Post 20 also has single games at Plymouth (July 15) and at Remington (July 16).