The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

PAGE 18 - PLAINDEALER - FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1984 let's' talk On the Sideline Dick Rabbitt Homers spark Lady Warriors past Skyhawks Softball, baseball to open FVC play The Fox Valley Conference will open play both in baseball and softball next week. With only seven teams in the conference, each team will draw two byes during the season. Last years baseball winner, Crystal Lake South, has yet to win a game at this writing. The Gators of Jim Beck finished on top last season with a 12-2 record. Pitching is the name of the game and the Gators are looking for some help in that department. Speaking of pitching, the Tigers of Crystal Lake Central are loaded. Their third place finish last season, along with a sophomore squad that went 13-1 in the FVC, rank them as the team to beat this season. Veteran coach A1 Banker always seems to have his team in the running for the top spot. Everyone is watching the Dundee-Crown Charters. They were picked in both football and basketball to be a contender, but fell to the wayside. Coach Jerry Curtright has the top pitcher in the conference, in senior Todd Mitter The senior righthander was an all-conference selection last season, and is already 2-0 in the early going this season. Curtright seems to get the most of his material, and with the combination of the two sc hools, may come up with a winner after all. Woodstock has three all-conference players returning to coach Ed Brucker - Greg Bradshaw, Greg Fields and George Birdsell. Birdsell already has hurled a no-hitter, shutting out the Zion ZeeBees 9-0 Monday night. With football, basketball and wrestling championships behind them, the Streaks are looking to add the baseball crown to the trophy case. They indeed have a talented group of senior athletes. r If Brian Wilson can get his Warrior pitchers in the groove, they too can make some waves this spring. They will have to shore up their defense a little more. With a little more warmer weather, the hitting should improve and the crack of the bat should be heard down at McCracken Field. The Warriors open up play at Jacobs Monday, and on Wednesday they play the Golden Eagles of Jacobs at 4:30 p.m. Jacobs and Cary-Grove were both down last season in the standings, and both have new coaches this spring. Of the two, Cary-Grove seems to be the stronger at this time. However, anything can happen in baseball, especially in the Fox Valley. In softball this spring it looks as if it can be a wide open race. Last year's winner, Crystal Lake South, will have a tough job defending the title. The Gators lost a lot by graduation and have been struggling in the pre-conference games this spring. The Warriors of Pat Wirtz, if they can get by the first inning jitters, should make a run at the crown. They were just a game behind the Gators last year, and had an undefeated sophomore team to give them additional strength this year. In the two games I have seen this spring, they come to hit, and hit they do. If the pitching holds up we could see a winner. Crystal Lake Centrai lias looked good this spring. The Tigers had a bad spring last season, and are looking for better things this year. They have a young lady, Laura Jensen, who is a fine all-around athlete and as she goes, so goes the Tigers. Dundee-Crown, fresh from the elite eight in basketball have turned their attention to softball. The Chargers have a fine group of athletes and are looking forward to this season. Like the boys, they should be one of the favorites this spring, but only time wil] tell Cary-Grove has started off real well this spring, could be the surprise team in the FVC. They seem to have good pitching and have scored a lot of runs in their pre-conference games. The unknowns at this spring are Woodstock and Jacobs Woodstock was the cellar team last spring, but had a respectable sophomore squad that should give them some help as the season progresses. Jacobs always seems to be the spoiler, winning games they should not win, and losing games they should win. Maybe this season they will get their act together and win a few more games. Next week we hope to get you up to date on track and tennis in the Fox Valley. Running Warriors sweep Round Lake By Mike Lamb Plaindealer sports writer So they say Wrigley Field is a pitcher's nightmare on a windy day. Chicago Cub manager Jim Frey should have had his pit­ ching staff try pitching at the West Campus softball diamond last Tuesday. The wind was definitely blowing out. Just ask^hnsburg pitcher Debbie Gahroeck. The sophomore served up four pitches which ended up being hit beyond her outfielders by Warrior hitters. Another homerun was hit by Johnsburg. All, in all, five homeruns were slugged out in no-mans land at the West Campus field. To track coach Dan Boland's chagrin, the flu bug had hit his boys squad. When five of his athletes reported unfit to par­ ticipate in Monday's triangular with Round Lake and Harvard, Boland became a little con­ cerned . But his young sophomores and freshmen filled in the holes, and his squad ended up winning the meet with 96 points. Round Lake finished second with 70, while Harvard scored 17. "So far the young ones have been holding up to the pressure. They keep on improving. If they continue to win it will give the kids some confidence," Boland said. The Warriors placed first in 11 of the events. Distance runner Brian Wright and hurdler Dave Beste led the team with two firsts each Wright captured teh 3,200 meter run in 10:09, with teammate Chris Creutz At the end, McHenry displayed the most power, out- slugging Johnsburg 20-7. The win raised McHenry record to 3- 1, while Johnsburg fell to 1-2. "Boy, did we slam the ball," said McHenry coach Pat Wirtz. "That's the best we have hit the ball, that's for sure. Any pitcher would have trouble on a windy day like this." Johnsburg coach Bob Schmitt took nothing away from the McHenry offense. "They had two big innings. They hit well." The two big innings Schmitt referred to was the second and fourth innings. Down 4-1, the Warriors exploaded for 11 runs in the second, and then added eight in the fourth inning. A total of 15 batters faced Gahlbeck in the second inning, with the big hit a two-run homer by Patty Johnson. Except for a lead-off walk to Gerri Haner, all of the fireworks occurred with two outs. Johnson's homer knocked in Haner. After that, 11 straight Warriors reached base on either walks, singles, and on two errors. The other three homeruns were hit in the eight-run fourth inning. After Haner singled and Val Kilday reached on an error by the third baseman, Melissa Greve poked one out over the left-fielder's head for three runs. Andee Norton's single, bet­ ween two fly outs, set up another homer. This time, Cindy Gaines slammed one for two RBI's. Renee Mezzano used her m m m % * * • ; m ^ : MR r m ' O , < M ' V* • \ f - : i f Renee Mezzano of the McHenry Warrior softball team comes sliding into third base after a John- (Plaindealer photo by Mike Lamb) sburg wild pitch. The Skyhawk throw came too late and Johnsburg ended up winning, 20-7. Johnsburg girls track future brighter finishing second in 10:10. Wright's second first came in the 1,600 meter realy in a time of 4:48. He was also a member of the 1,600 meter relay team which took a first. Brian Smith, Beste and Marty Koleno were the other members. Beste was first in the 110 meter high hurdles in 17.0, while Mark Etheridge was second in 19.4. Beste also took the high jump with a leap of 5-6. Beste finished off the day with a second place in the triple jump in 35-414. McHenry also captured the 3,200 meter relay and the 800 meter relay. Terry Harth, Koleno, Mike Maksymiak and John Paschke won the 3,200 in 8:50. Jim Shaver, Keith Losch, Sandy Lively and Curt Justen were timed in the 800 in 1:38.1. Another first came from Pat Hughes in the discus with a heave of 82-11'4. By Barb Ansell - Plaindealer sportwriter Girls track has not been the most popular sport in Johnsburg and that fact may have con­ tributed to its weak conference showings in the past. With a large team turnout this spring, coach Bill Hurckes believes the future looks brighter. "Our problem in the previous years isn't that we don't have quality athletes. In fact, we've had girls who have won medals at state competition and con­ sistently place in the first or second spots. But we don't have the numbers," Hurckes said. "This year we have 19 girls on the team, which is the largest number in two years. But compared to the other teams, it's still not enough. We need those third and fourth place points to claim the team vic­ tories." Of the 19 members of this year's track team, the Skyhawks will be able to count on eight returning varsity members. The strongest of the returning varsity members are sophomores Beth Hiller and Vicki DeBeau, and senior Missy Christy. Christy, who placed sixth in the mile and 13tu in the half mile at last year's state competition, will again be challenging her oppents in those events. Another state medalist returning to the team is Hiller, who finished 18th in the long jump last year. DeBeau whose strength can be seen in the high jump, set a new school record of five feet in last Friday's meet with Alden- Hebron. "That's an exceptional jump for this early in the year," said Hurckes. "DeBeau is a good around track athlete. She is strong anywhere we put her, and she will also be running the 400 meter run for us." Four members of the track team are also making their p/esence known. Theresa Hauck, Sherri Scavo, Laura Oeffling and Kelly Quinlan displayed solid performances in their first track meet. "These girls have never participated in track before, but if their times are an indication of what they can do, they will be very tough competitors. We will be able to count on them to provide us with some needed team points," Hurckes said. "We've spent our spring preparation building a base level of condition. This base level will help the girls develop stamina and endurance. By establishing this level now, when we are able to get outside more, we will be able to con­ centrate on speed work and field events." While Hurckes is impressed with this year's team, he doesn't Want to become over confident. "I feel positive, but I do have some reservations about the season. "Going to class 2A com­ petition has threaten some of the returning girls a bit, but that fear has been felt in all of the sports areas already this term. I don't think it is impossible for us to compete at this level. It's just another hurdle to cross and it means we will have to work harder, but I don't see any reasons why Christy and Hiller couldn't repeat or improve their state performance this year." As a team, Hurckes is looking for a "respectable" showing. "I'd like to finish somewhere in the middle of the conference pack. If we can go in and do well in each meet and stay away from injuries, the balance of this year's team will carry us through." The biggest test will be the county meet. "Johnsburg will host the county meet. Hosting the meet will help us, but it will still be our first real test of how well we can pick up the points in the larger meets." For now, Hurckes is pleased with the way things are going. "This year's team is running smoother than last year. A lot of that is because I know how to handle the team better. They know me better and we're all getting along well, and that's a plus. I hope things can keep going this way. "I'm looking for the girls to make personal improvements from meet-to-meet. If they can improve from meet-to-meet, the team improvements will come too. I want to keep things loose. Improvements and fun is all you can ask for. Everything else will follow in time." speed instead of power. After hitting a single, Mezzano stoled second and third and then scoring on a wild pitch. The final homer was hit by Monique Betancourt, knocking In three runs. Wirtz was happy with the pitching performance of Sarah Prust, was starting her first game of the seasons on the mound. "I purposely DH her today so she could concentrate on pit­ ching," said Wirtz. She only had two bad innings, and started out rough. After lead-off hitter Debbie Tvaroh flew out, Chris May singled, while Kucharski singled. Kathy Butler's singled knocked in May. The last three runs were knocked in on a homerun by Julie Anderson. Woodstock edges Marian in seventh WOODSTOCK -Through the first five innings of the Wood­ stock-Marian Central girls softball game, it appeared that the team to hit last was going to win. It almost happened that way as Woodstock's girls scored seven runs in the top of the seventh inning to defeat Marian, 19-12, in a see-saw battle at City Park on a windy, cold Monday afternoon. The game was tied at 4-4 after two innings, at 8-8 after three, at 9-9 after four and at 12-12 after six. One team would get momentum and the other would come to bat and take it away. Woodstock's winning pitcher was freshman Mary Jo Firn- bach who went the distance for the Streaks. She was also the game's leading hitter with a five-for-five performance. She had two triples, two doubles and a single and all were line drives. Josie Baumann led Marian in hitting with a 4-for-4 while Julie Berna and Marian Asfeld added three hits and Donna Remke and Betsy Baumann chipped in two. ..... But had Marian won the game, it wouldn't have been totally an offensive-laden win. The game's standout was Hurricane leftfielder Julie Callahan who made no less than four running, diving catches to take extra-base hits away from the Streaks. "She was everywhere. She did an outstanding job," Marian Coach Lisa Billman said of her sophomore outfielder. "This is her first year in softball at Marian and she's doing well." Woodstock jumped to a 2-0 first-inning lead on Lisa Pamquist's single, Firnbach's triple and Kim Hay's single. However, Marian rallied to claim a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the frame as the first six batters reached on base hits. Included in that string was Nancy Walsh's triple and singles by Beth Penza, Betsy Baumann, Remke, Asfeld and Josie Baumann. WHS tied the score in the bottom of the second on two walks and a Firnbach double. The teams then traded even amounts of runs for the next several innings until the decisive seventh when the Blue Streaks sent 11 batters to the plate. Singles by Nancy Walters, Lori Drabek, and Toni Sampson started the spree while Linda Garcia and Firnbach followed with triples. Hay and Andrea Wett added singles and Walters doubled in her second at-bat of the inning. . In the bottom of the seventh, Josie Baumann reached on a leadoff single, but the next three batters were retired to end the game. "I thought we got a little shook in the top of the seventh," Billman said. "We fell apart as a team - everyone at the same time. Then their hits started falling and we were in trouble. It's tough to lose a game like that after battling back and forth for the whole game." Hay added four hits to the Woodstock attack as the Streaks rapped out 18 hits as a team. Last Friday, WHS was ripped by Round Lake, 23-6, as RL jumped to a 12-1 first inning lead. The Panthers added three runs in the second and eight more in the third. Marian faces Grant Wed­ nesday. /