Energized Bulldogs win again

Published: April 29, 2009

Kane County Chronicle

MAPLE PARK – After the Batavia baseball team's close win at home to start their series against Kaneland, the Bulldogs found themselves energized and confident while the Knights seemed to need a pick-me-up.

The Bulldogs (15-5, 10-1 Western Sun Conference) didn't provide one, starting Wednesday's 6-0 win with a solo home run at the start of the second inning from Brian Krolikowski. 

"I realized [Kaneland's Steve Colombe was] throwing a lot outside," Krolikowski said, "I just wanted to drive it to the right." 

He did just that, sending the ball over the right-field wall and putting Batavia on the board.

Colombe responded to the home run with two consecutive strikeouts. The junior had five strikeouts in six innings and left four Bulldogs on base before letting another run cross in the fifth inning. 

Batavia's Tim Schofield (3-for-4, two runs) bunted a single and advanced to third off teammate Joe Aguilar's base hit. Tim Drish then sent Schofield home with an RBI single.

Schofield also made waves in the bottom of the inning, backing up Adam Karger's pitching (nine strikeouts, one hit, four walks) with quick throws from shortstop. 

"It was a lot of fun making plays for [Karger]," Schofield said, adding that Tuesday's win helped add fuel to his team's fire. "That comeback win ... helped us out a lot. Hopefully we can take them out tomorrow and sweep the series."

Krolikowski echoed that confidence. 

"It feels great," he said. "It gives us a lot of momentum for the series and the rest of the season."

Coach Brian Aversa praised the tenacity showed by the Knights (14-7, 6-5 WSC) in the beginning, especially from Colombe.

"Steve did a great job keeping them down," he said. "We just let some stuff get away and lost focus."

With senior Troy Pritchard on the mound in the top of the seventh, the Knights gave up four more runs to the Bulldogs on four walks, an RBI from Jordan Coffey and a wild pitch.

The final run might have been the most painful for the Knights. As Karger was walked to first base, Kaneland catcher Mike Pritchard stood up to talk to his pitcher without calling time, which Batavia took advantage of by sending pinch-runner Joe Melby across the plate.

"We were just taking advantage of the situations we were given," Batavia coach Matt Holm said. "It was a win-win. I mean, you're either safe at home or it's called time and he's sent back."

Holm also praised Karger for his recent pitching performances after returning from an early injury. 

Aversa said his team has to tighten up and refocus if the Knights expect to make a dent in Game 3.

"They've got a great staff and we can't change too much," he said. "I think some of the guys learned that they need to work on their focus."

Uncharacteristic power leads Knights

Published: April 28, 2009

Kane County Chronicle

MAPLE PARK – If the Kaneland softball team was looking to tighten up the race up in the Western Sun Conference, the Knights did so with confidence to spare. 

The Knights overpowered Batavia from the beginning Tuesday thanks to a revved-up offense en route to a 9-0 win. 

Shortstop Jess Lubic started the offense for the Knights with a deep triple to center field in the first inning, and later scored on a fielder's choice.

In the fourth and sixth innings, Kaneland blew the lead wide open on a pair of season-first home runs. Sophomore Andrea Dimmig-Potts nailed a three-run homer in the fourth, which gave Lubic her second of three runs scored and Sara Rose her first of two. 

Then, in the sixth, catcher Rilee Vest hit a surprise grand slam.

Both girls said they weren't aiming for fences. 

"I thought it was going to get caught by Katie [Coleman, Batavia's left fielder]," Vest said of her homer. "I was very surprised to see the rest of my team at the plate."

"I was just hoping to hit the ball solid," Dimmig-Potts said. "I was just looking to get a base hit."

With their offense clicking, the Knights (14-5, 5-2 WSC) protected a comfortable lead with strong pitching and defense. Delani Vest pitched all seven innings, giving up five hits, striking out three and walking one.

"[Delani] was great," Rilee Vest said. "Her curveball is always on."

"Delani's been solid all year," Kaneland coach Dennis Hansen said.

Hansen said the early lead paved the way for a strong offensive output.

"That run took the edge off, [so] we had a lot of patient at-bats," he said.

Batavia coach Lee Pedraza had to hand it to Kaneland. 

"They were well-positioned. I can't fault them for that," he said.

Nor could he fault his pitcher, Brooke Nelson, for her five walks.

"She's the last person I'm going to fault," he said. "She's carried us all season. ... I think she was anxious to do well."

That anxiety, he said, caused some rhythm and tempo issues with Nelson. In his eyes, Batavia (10-8, 5-2) simply was unlucky to play a hot team on an off day for the Bulldogs, who had been playing well themselves lately.

"We're looking for leaders on the team who lead with the bat," Pedraza said. "The girls are anxious to get back into it."

North Stars capitalize on Geneva blunder

Published: April 27, 2009 (in print the following the day)

Kane County Chronicle

Photo by H. Rick Bamman

GENEVA – One mistake was all it took for the St. Charles North softball team to cash in.

That mistake came in the top of the fifth inning with two outs and North Star Emily Watts on first base. Loren Cihlar hit a fly ball to left field. Geneva's Nikki Davis ran for the catch and had the ball in her grasp, but dropped it after colliding into center fielder Danielle Caprile.

The play gave Cihlar an RBI double as Watts sprinted home, enough for a 1-0 win for North on Monday against Geneva.

"I will take it when I can get it," North coach April Stary said, "even when it's ugly like that."

The Vikings had little chance to respond. North (10-5) allowed only four Geneva baserunners in the game.

North pitcher Amanda Ciran struck out 12 batters. Before the game, Ciran had been struggling with a 1-4 record. But with the rest of the defense clicking behind her, it looked almost impossible for the Vikings (8-10) to get anybody on base.

Ciran cited a productive pitching lesson on Sunday and catcher Annie Korth's calls from the plate as a turning point. 

"It felt so good," she said. "[Korth] did very well. We just click."

"The defense hasn't always been behind her," Stary said of her wining pitcher. "But they were today, thankfully."

What the North Stars need upon for their crosstown game today against St. Charles East is more offense. 

"We weren't doing our job at the plate as well as we should be," Stary said.

Geneva pitcher Kristyn Ruitenburg struck out four North Stars and Caprile made two impressive catches in center field before the fifth-inning miscue.

"Overall we played well," Geneva coach Greg Dierks said. "If [Caprile] dropped those they'd have had two, three bases."

Geneva attempted a rally in the final inning. Ciran had kept the Vikings to a single hit in the first inning until Rachel Hunter and Dori Rogers hit back-to-back singles with two outs. 

But Ciran forced a groundout from Kelly McCaffrey to wrap up the win.

Dierks said that even though the Vikings couldn't prevent the shutout, he appreciated the late-game effort.

"I liked the fact we went down fighting," Dierks said. "Unfortunately, that's the way it turns out sometimes."

Trio of freshman leads Bulldogs

Published: April 24, 2009

Kane County Chronicle

Photo by John Langham

GENEVA – As far as varsity tennis goes, if you're a freshman on the team, you're bound to be noticed.

But if you're a freshman and the No. 1 singles player – and a key factor in winning a close dual meet against your archrival – the glare is all the more magnified.

"You kind of get funny looks when you walk out," said Josh Cogan, Batavia's No. 1 singles player. "Especially against a big senior."

No one was giving him a funny look after he made fast work of Geneva senior David Ta, going 6-0, 6-0 in his match and leading the way for Batavia's singles to sweep en route to a 4-3 match win against the Vikings.

But while Cogan was especially dominant, the other two Batavia freshmen on the court also helped the Bulldogs (6-2, 1-0 Western Sun Conference) pull off their victory.

Freshman Kyle Stiffler and junior Ethan Carlson won their first match at No. 4 doubles against Geneva juniors Cooper Sartel and Peter Legrand. It was the only doubles match Batavia won, as the Vikings (8-3, 0-1) continued to show off their doubles strength.

"I thought their doubles would come out hard today," said Batavia coach Bob Kummer, who was proud of how Stiffler and Carlson dug in to take the match in three sets, 6-2, 4-6, 6-1.

The freshman with the most pressure was Bulldogs No. 3 singles player Drew Demars in his match against Geneva's own freshman, West Adelman. By the time their match was ending, Batavia had managed to come back and tie the meet at 3.

As their three-set match wore on into a tiebreaker, the two began to look weary and beaten. Demars had the wound to prove it – a scraped knee from diving for a save.

But Demars said he tried to cool things off and capitalize on his opponent's fatigue. 

"Toward the end of the third set, I thought I could push through and went for it," he said.

You'd think that the pressure of a meet-winning match might be new for a freshman. 

"Actually," he said, "it's happened three times now."

Kummer praised Demars' perseverance. 

"He won't quit," Kummer said. "He's got good strokes and good hits." 

Kummer added that a big day for the freshmen could mean great things for his program now and in the years ahead. 

"If we can develop them ... they'll be great," he said. "And the best part is they can deliver for us now."

Vikings coach Peter Burkhardt praised his doubles teams, which showed their aggressiveness in their first three matches. The No. 1 pair, seniors Rich Michaels and Wes Kappel, said they took that strategy to heart in their 6-2, 6-1 win against junior Mick Collins and senior Adam Yingst.

"We definitely decided to be aggressive," Michaels said, to which Kappel added, "Go big or go home."

Still, when it came to the last three, three-set matches, Geneva struggled.

"You have to end those kind of matches strong and those kids get tired," Burkhardt said. "Batavia converted on big points and we didn't."

North rested, but too rusty

Published: April 21, 2009

Kane County Chronicle

WHEATON – After a six-day break following a thrilling win against Bartlett, the St. Charles North boys volleyball team became its own worst enemy Monday, falling to St. Francis, 25-11, 25-14.

As the North Stars (2-2) walked off the Spartans' court, a few players even went to the referee, trying to clarify some of the calls that favored St. Francis.

"They saw some things the ref didn't see," North coach Guy Lum said, "I always tell them that refs make mistakes and we make mistakes. You just have to go with the flow."

Unfortunately for North, the flow ended up going in the Spartans' direction. Both games started out evenly, with both teams trading points back and forth. But once St. Francis started edging toward a double-digit lead, the Spartans began stringing together points as North's volleys either went out of bounds or into the teeth of St. Francis blockers.

St. Francis (14-2) scored 15 of its points off North hitting errors and also found ways to find the cracks in North's defense.

"They knew how to hit our block really well," Lum said.

North did put up a fight in Game 2, led by senior Kegan Haeseli. In Game 1, he scored the match's first kill and was able to score half of North's points in Game 2. 

Overall, he had twice as many kills as St. Francis' leader, junior Steve Howe, who had four.

But experience seemed to be the game's deciding factor, as the Spartans, fresh from a weekend win against Neuqua Valley at Streamwood's Sabre Invitational, proved themselves to be superior.

"Last time we played North," Spartans coach Mike Lynch said, "we lost 29-27 ... so a lot of [this win] had to do with our added game experience."

Lum said that the mistakes probably were just early-season growing pains that could be worked out in practice. But there's a catch.

"The problem is we have no practices," he said. "We've got games tomorrow and the next day."

North is hoping that its homecourt advantage against Elgin today will inspire a better showing.

"I kept saying to my assistant coach, 'This will be a good learning experience for them,'" Lum said. "I hope that home support will help."

Coachella 2009: The Daily Swarm Recap... Read Reports From All Over The Web...

Published: April 20, 2009

The Daily Swarm

By Andrew Flanagan and Andrew Mitchell

Coachella, the venerable West Coast festival, kicked off the season with its tenth incarnation this weekend, proving once again that music, heat and celebrity sightings can still exist in these harsh economic times.

Can nearly 65,000 people a day over three days be wrong? Paul McCartney and his two-and-a-half-hour set, Leonard Cohen, The Cure, X, MIA, and a billion other medium-to-legendary acts ate grapes and fanned in their (air-conditioned?) tents and RV’s until they had to go on stage this past weekend in Indio, California. Take a look at any photo set of the festival; a lot of pasty sunburns and drunks an old(er) people wanting to catch a threefer from The Moz, McCartney and Cohen on Friday, then milling about confused and deranged from heatstroke and gut rot on Saturday and Sunday.

Several reports on horrible soundbleed made some of the bigger shows sound frustrating, leaving attendees sweating and cramped and standing and without even a clean mix (Thievery Corp bleeding all over Fleet Foxes, Morrissey vs. Leonard Cohen) to show for it.

The New York Times reports that the festival was a financial success despite our shitty economy, good news for the upcoming summer festivals, of which Coachella is the first biggie of the year.

Final attendance figures will not be available until Monday for the festival, which ran from Friday through Sunday and featured Paul McCartney, the Cure, Morrissey, Leonard Cohen, the Killers and Franz Ferdinand. But organizers said this year would probably be its third largest. (The most popular was in 2007, with Rage Against the Machine, Bjork, Red Hot Chili Peppers and attendance of 186,000.)

Though promoters around the country report strong early ticket sales for festivals and summer tours, the recession is causing jitters. This year Coachella, which has the most glamorous reputation of all American festivals, began selling tickets on layaway, and 18 percent of its customers took that option, Mr. Tollett said

The L.A. Times’ music blog Pop & Hiss, featuring updates throughout the weekend noted the number of arrests, mainly for alcohol and drug-related incidents (47 in the first two days) and took a guess on how much the festival was charged for going past curfew.

The Beatle performed for nearly three hours, delighting fans with a career-spanning set, and one that went well past the midnight curfew imposed by the city of Indio. Once the clock strikes 12:01 a.m., the charge is $1,000 per minute, said Indio police spokesman Ben Guitron. He estimated that McCartney went “50-plus” minutes after curfew.”

More on McCartney from Blurt:

Macca’s appearance was notable for being preceded by a DJ set that remixed the very tunes that Macca was to soon after perform. A strange opening, but the baby boomer heavy crowd didn’t mind, and the sing-a-long atmosphere was fitting for what was to come. McCartney kicked off his set with a handful of Beatles / Wings tunes – Jet, Drive My Car, and Got to Get You Into My Life – before he went into an extended run of songs from his last few albums that nobody really seemed to know, nor really care about. The second half of the set was Beatles intensive, and exactly what you want to hear when you see an ex-Beatle (that’s not Ringo) perform. Songs included Paperback Writer, Something, Yesterday, Helter Skelter, Can’t Buy Me Love, Long & Winding Road, Let it Be, Day in the Life, Get Back, Sgt Pepper and the final festival sing-along Hey Jude.

Meanwhile The L.A. Times saved their most heartfelt praise for the “victory-lap” set of their hometown heroes, Silversun Pickups.

When they played “Lazy Eye,” the whole audience sang along and was thanked prolifically by Aubert. “You’ve been so good to us, and I don’t know when you’re going to realize how lame we are, but you haven’t yet.” No Brian, not lame, just achingly real.

Rolling Stone on Morrissey:

Back in 1999, Morrissey delivered a powerful and memorable set at the very first Coachella, with fans and performer in equal states of ecstasy and sorrow, peaking with an emotional reading of the Smiths’ “Meat is Murder.” The singer didn’t perform that song at this year’s festival, but its message was very much on his mind, as he practically gagged onstage from the surrounding food merchants. “I smell burning flesh,” he said dramatically, “and I hope to God it’s human.”

The Daily Swarm’s David Prince covered Sunday for Billboard:

The 10th annual Coachella Music and Arts Festival concluded Sunday with a series of challenging, dissonant sets that saw the avant-garde take center stage on the event’s final day of music. From My Bloody Valentine’s wall of noise and Public Enemy’s sonic sculptures to Devendra Banhart’s rollicking reimagining of classic rock and Throbbing Gristle’s industrial revolution, Coachella flew its freak flag high while the delighted crowd went along for the ride.

My Bloody Valentine, the 1990’s U.K. shoegazers whose return to music in 2008 after a lengthy hiatus was spurred by an unrequited offer to play Coachella last year, made the wait more than worth it. Playing just before The Cure on the main stage, MBV‘s insanely loud layers of feedback were only enhanced by the open-air setting, with the vocals of guitarists Kevin Shields and Bilinda Butcher perfectly centered in the mix for maximum effect. By the time the band finished the nearly 15-minute earthquake-like feedback jam at the end if its set, Coachella had witnessed the most radical, difficult and unforgettable hour of music in its decade-long history…

With a program of music that demanded more than simple casual listening in an unparalleled setting, Coachella retains its place as the premier venue for seeing and hearing live music in the United States.

Passion of the Weiss went after the VIP section:

I’ve made this analogy once before, but after sunset, the VIP section turns into a terrifying place, undercut by a river of foul pink slime oozing beneath the verdant sprawl. Think the hermetic bubble that covers the New York City museum of art in Ghostbusters II. Raw uncut malevolence, Carpathians, people launching bolts of lightning from their eyes. I think I saw Vigo there. He was wearing a pair of $1,000 sunglasses, his lank hair worn in a windswept comb-over, leering at 19 year-old girls in floral print vspring dresses. To get even triter, the place was one big pose, except no one knew that the cameras were off. But who am I kidding? I like clean bathrooms as much as the next neurotic.

Some Twitter highlights from Stereogum:

• The Cure continue the jams but we’re happy with Throbbing Gristle as the tramsgendered exclamation point on our Coachella.
• Belinda Butcher. I’ll have what she’s having. Ageless as Loveless
• DONE. 15 minutes. Going to dinner with My Bloody Valentine must be the loudest conversation ever.
• Wasn’t sure they’d do “You Made Me Realise” but here it is! Brandon and I are taking bets on the noise duration. Over/under 10 mins? 
• MY BLOODY VALENTINE. Putting Coachella’s new sound system (and their two semis full of custom speakers) to work.
• “We’re trying something different today.” Antony’s doing a set w/ violins, keys, and electronic beats by Matthew Herbert.
• As far as desert sunset soundtracks go, you could do a lot worse than “Staring At The Sun”
• “I wrote this next song for my friend John.” (“Here Today”) This is what you call an applause line.
• “May I serenade you?” “Are you standing uncomfortably?” Morrissey, whatever you ask the answer is “yes.”

And from Pitchfork:

• mbv is turning indio into a smoking crate
• there’s a guy next to me with a 4-year old with no earplugs. parental epic fail
• lykke and robyn brought up for “nothing to worry about”- crowd seems to have no idea who robyn is :( 
• included in the list of questionable sartorial choices for a hot #coachella day: lacy suede boots, polar bear costume
• it’s pronounced “awk-ervill river.” thanks, will! 
• upset alert! no age inspiring more dancing than supermayer 
• all the vivian girls switch instruments- it sorta sounds exactly the same
• upset alert! tvotr: bigger horn section than calexico
• glasvegas gets in touch w/ their inner crystal castles- their set axed at the last minute 
• here’s one you don’t see every day- perry farrell’s talking to other people about himself! and damn if he doesn’t look all sorts of 50
• ida maria might’ve drawn a greater % of dudes than mastodon will
• meanwhile, pb wolf rocks sabbath and wu’s “triumph.” just call him “guy talk” from now on
• i guess coachella could’ve got the pumpkins, but every penny counts these days- hence, silversun pickups 
• morrissey at #coachella is heaven to southern california fans. so much love from the latino/chicano community
• girl talk proves that anyone other than asher roth sounds ill over the “say it ain’t so” beat
• oddly enough, the only 21-year old who doesn’t know that “beirut” is a variation of beer pong is in a band called beirut
• n.a.s.a. wants to party. the 12 people in their tent half-heartedly oblige 
• cc already running 20 mins. late. that better be one hell of a kick drum

'All-day tennis' kind to Vikes, Cadets

Published: April 18, 2009

Kane County Chronicle (online only)

Photo by Marcelle Bright

GENEVA – Lincoln-Way East proved itself to be the school to beat at Saturday's Geneva Boys Tennis Invitational.

Just ask Vikings Rich Michaels and Greg Adelman. As Geneva's No. 2 doubles team, the pair developed a chemistry based on their loose style of play. And it served them well in their first two matches, as they coasted past Crystal Lake Central (6-2, 6-1) and Lemont (6-1, 6-3.)

But when they got to their bracket's finals match against Kevin Wickham and Eric Biro of Lincoln-Way East, they started second guessing their confidence. Lincoln-Way East won the match and the bracket, 6-3, 6-0.

Michaels and Adelman said they got hung up trying to adjust to the added skills of their opponents.

"The other matches were not on par [with Lincoln-Way East] competitively," Adelman said.

Michaels and Adelman weren't alone in that sentiment, as the Griffins took first in both doubles brackets as well as the No. 2 singles, easily giving them the tournament title with 20 points overall. Oswego won the No. 1 singles bracket, putting the team at second, with 10 points

Geneva tied with IMSA and Marmion for third thanks to their doubles teams, including the Vikings' top pair, Wes Kappel and Colin Rapp, who lost only to Lincoln-Way East and took third in the bracket.

At first, Kappel and Rapp let the first few games of their final match against Oswego slip by them, but the duo recovered for a 6-3, 6-2 victory. Kappel said it was the work of an extended break between matches.

"We took a 2 1/2-hour break," Kappel said, "so it took us a while to get into things. But once we [did], we took five games in a row."

Also placing for Geneva was freshman West Adelman, who beat St. Charles East's Nick Maze 6-2, 6-1 to take fifth in the second singles bracket. Vikings Coach Peter Burkhardt said a general lack of experience, both in singles and in the doubles combinations, cost his team points.

"These are new combinations," Burkhardt said, "That hurt us a little bit, [but] we just come in with high expectations and play it out."

Marmion and St. Charles East also cited growing pains as signs of improvement. While the Saints didn't have any placers, first doubles pair Sam Leopardo and Nick Romano put up a good fight in their fifth-place match against Marmion's John Mason and Bubba Weiler.

"A lot of those games went to multiple deuces," Saints coach Sena Drawer said. 

Drawer added that having a team without seniors means East has real potential for growth.

"We didn't really place well, but we're not embarrassed at all," she said.

For Marmion, the fifth-place doubles finish was a breeze after a Mason and Weiler's lengthy first round against IMSA, which they lost, 4-6, 7-5, 4-6.

"That ... was difficult for them," Marmion coach Pat Maurer said, "but after they got through it, they were stronger."

Marmion also made a dent in singles play as Austin McWethy took fifth in No. 1 singles and freshman Chris Paterman placed second in the No. 2 bracket.

"[Paterman] had a lengthy day of tennis," Marmion assistant coach Dave Webster said, "but he performed well. ... They have to learn to play long, all-day tennis though."

Ta da! Ta leads Vikings to victory

Published: April 15, 2009

Kane County Chronicle

Photo by Rob Winner

GENEVA – No matter what is said about Geneva senior David Ta's tennis skills, one thing is certain: he knows how to keep his cool under pressure.

While his teammates joked about his stoic facial expressions from the sidelines, Ta kept his consistency and focus, finding himself on the winning side of a close match with Marmion's Austin McWethy on Tuesday, 7-5, 7-6.

Ta's demeanor picked up exponentially after the win. He joked that he keeps calm simply by intimidating his opponents. Or, when that doesn't work, relying on his reflexes.

"I just don't think really," he said.

Ta's was the sole singles match the Vikings won on their way to a 5-2 meet victory against the Cadets.

Geneva was able to dominate in doubles play, with Geneva's third team, Mike Tourte and Mike Fellicelli, making quick work of Marmion's Mike Hughes and Yoto Yamanaka, 6-1, 6-3.

Things were closer for first doubles team Rich Michaels and Wes Kappel, who found themselves trying to figure out their opponents, Shane Ausman and Brian Vasquez. The Geneva duo won, 7-5, 6-4.

"They were shooting down the line a lot," Michaels said, "but once we figured that out, it was a lot easier." 

Geneva coach Peter Burkhardt said the meet was a good example of the competitive potential of his doubles teams.

"Our doubles is fairly strong," Burkhardt said. "We have a lot of depth."

For the Cadets, coach Pat Maurer said his team simply was having an off day, thanks in part to this week being the school's spring break. Four of his players were away, either visiting potential colleges or on family vacations.

"When you're missing four guys," he said, "it's difficult."

Still, Maurer said he was not discouraged, thanks in part to his singles players. Bubba Weiler's No. 2 singles victory was one of the most confident ones of the meet, a triumph against Geneva's Colin Rapp, 6-2, 6-3.

But perhaps Chris Paterman's three-set match against Geneva freshman West Adelman was the most satisfying victory for the Cadets. 

As if to counter Ta's calmness, the two had their share of fist pumps and exacerbated looks as they traded volleys back and forth in their 3 1/2-hour match.

Paterman was able to take the first set smoothly enough at 6-3, but Adelman clawed his way back in the second set, winning a tiebreaker. 

The third set also was decided by tiebreaker, which Paterman finally overcame and won to take the match, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6.

For both sides, the victories could be short-lived. They will meet again Saturday, along with a handful of other schools, for the Geneva Invitational.

Bulldogs settle in, shoot down Rockets

Published: April 9, 2009

Kane County Chronicle

BURLINGTON – Some games are won in the first inning, and some aren't won until the very last. 

The Batavia softball team found itself in the latter category as it pulled together a 5-4 comeback victory against Burlington Central.

The Bulldogs struggled offensively in the first three innings, unable to get a hit off of Rockets pitcher Juliette Kein. But from the fourth on out, Batavia managed to get runners on base and string together some runs.

Batavia coach Lee Padraza said his team had to calm down and focus after it loss to Yorkville on Tuesday.

"I think we were just overexcited and pumped up, so it took us a couple of innings to calm down and relax and realize we can hit this girl," he said. 

Christine Lynam got Batavia's first hit of the game off Kein in the fourth, and after a stealing second and advancing to the third off Avery Vivian's ground out to first, crossed the plate via Emily Dorjath's first of two RBI-singles.

Lynam (2-for-3, two runs) also was crucial in taking the lead from the Rockets in the seventh. She helped Batavia (3-3) tie it at 4 with an RBI single. Vivian did the same right after Lynam, putting the Bulldogs ahead. 

"[Kein] was pitching a lot on the inside, so I backed off the plate to get a nice base hit," Lynam said, adding, "I knew I had to score that runner home. ... No pressure."

Pedraza also singled out his defense for keeping a lid on the Rockets (4-2) late in the game, singling out starting pitcher, freshman Katie Coleman, saying that even after she let the Rockets get a two-run lead in the fourth inning, she didn't lose her composure, throwing five strikeouts in the game.

"It's a team victory all the way around," he said. "We had a pinch-runner come in. We had girls at the bottom of the order getting on base. ... Look how far Katie Coleman was able to go [in her second game starting]."

Closing pitcher Brooke Nelson echoed her coach's team-first sentiments, as she secured the win with two strikeouts in her two innings in the pitching circle. 

"It was a rush," Nelson said of her save. "My defense helped a lot, so it wasn't just me. Everyone had each others' back."

Rockets coach Scot Sutherland said he team started off well, but made some easy mistakes late in the game; in the sixth inning, Vivian's base hit with runners on second and first, caused some confusion as the Rockets hesitated whether to get the force out at first or third.

Offensively, the Rockets also couldn't capitalize on their hits the way Batavia could, despite Lindsay Lange's perfect day at the plate, which included a triple to start the second inning. She scored the game's first run later on a wild pitch. 

Still, Sutherland said they started to relax too much at the end. "We had every opportunity to win the game," he said. "We're just not hitting the ball well right now [and] we didn't make some right choices defensively."

Rockford Police unveil surveillance camera system

Air Date: April 6, 2009

Northern Public Radio

Intro:

Have you ever run a red light? The Rockford Police now have a way of finding out.

Click blog title for audio.

Saints split softball doubleheader

Published: April 2, 2009

The (Kane County) Chronicle

WEST CHICAGO – West Chicago pitcher Mary Connolly made herself known to St. Charles East with the first three pitches in the team's doubleheader Wednesday.

With Saints pitcher Katie Stengler at the plate, Connolly threw three very fast strikes inside and got her first of 16 strikeouts for the day within minutes.

The rest of the Saints (2-1) struggled to overcome Connolly's power, not just offensively. The sophomore also scored the first game's only two runs, as the Wildcats shut out the Saints, 2-0.

East coach Kelly Barnett said the team needed to intensify its attitude if it wanted to make a bigger stand in the second game.

"I definitely think we were taken aback," she said of her players' reaction to Connolly, "and we shouldn't be because we faced a pitcher just as good as her ... in our first game [of the season]."

So the Saints made sure to fire back just as early in the second game – this time with junior Bethany Carrignan's (2-for-5 for the day, one run) single off the first pitch from Wildcats pitcher Katie Olsen.

The Saints capitalized on the less-refined pitching and won the second game, 5-3, thanks to an RBI double from senior Rebecca Reinbold (2-for-7 overall, two hits) that sent Carrignan home and started the Saints' comeback drive.

Junior Jenny Niemic's RBI double in the fourth brought in two runs, and helped widen the Saints' lead. She was 2-for-7 at the plate.

Reinbold said one of the hardest parts of the game was simply waiting for it to come. The Saints canceled their two previous games because of inclement weather, and that very doubleheader got pushed back four hours.

"Coach always stresses that you need to be ready no matter what," she said, "but when you actually think there's going to be a game and there's not ... all that adrenaline comes up."

Not that the Wildcats made the victory any easier, as Connolly came back to the mound in the fourth inning to keep the Saints from scoring any more. Offensively, West Chicago put East in many tense situations, none more so than the second game's final inning.

West Chicago trailed 5-3 and had the bases loaded with one out. But the next two plays found catcher RaeAnne Payleitner getting a force out at home and East's left fielder catching a fly ball to end the game.

"It's always very nervewrecking," pitcher Gaby Moe said of the moment, "but it's also... kind of fun. ... It feels great to pull it off."

Barnett says she hopes her team can maintain its intensity throughout the season.

"There were definitely some pressure-packed situations today." she said. "We try to make practice as intense as possible. Obviously you can't simulate [what happened] in practice, so it was nice to see the kids perform when they were under pressure."