Northwest Indiana Top-10

Week-3, 2010 High School 'Renegade' Poll

4-12-2010

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

CROWN POINT (4-15-2010) A slice of mid-summer weather let everybody play in the first 10 days, giving watchers a good idea where the season is headed. At first glance, I think we actually are seeing a slight increase in runs scored, which is something high school softball desperately needed. When Lake Central beats Lowell 7-6 and loses to Portage 11-10, it suggests that the ball is being put into play more, which was one of the goals of expanding the distance between the pitcher and batter from 40 to 43 feet.

Except for games involving Wheeler, you may not see the shutouts and no-hitters you've seen in the past and nobody's going to miss them. Eventually, the distance between the bases is also going to have to be lengthened as well. Players in every generation are bigger and faster and that must be recognized.

Normal spring weather created a two-day break (April 7-8) for most teams but abnormally warm weather is quickly set to return.

1. CROWN POINT (2-1)
2009 (24-5), 18-11 (2008), 16-14 (2007), 13-14 (2006), 12-14 (2005)

CROWN POINT: The Bulldogs won three of their first four, but a 6-4 loss to Penn (4-0) will bother them. The Lady Bulldogs led that game 3-2 and lost when the Kingsmen scored two in the sixth and two more in the seventh. CP exhibited some defensive problems, but I have a theory. If you can't pitch in March, you can't pitch in June. If you can't hit in March, you can't hit in June. There's just not enough time to create pitchers and hitters. But if you are bad defensively, as CP was against Penn, you can correct that in eight weeks. The season is so short, defense is one of the few things you can change. Early on, the DAC competition for CP figures to be Lake Central and Chesterton, but CP is still the favorite. Nobody should be discouraged by a loss to Penn. CP faces every team in this poll except Wheeler (who they played last year anyway) and Bishop Noll.

2. LOWELL (3-2)
23-11 (2009), 20-10 (2008), 30-7 (2007), 23-7 (2006), 21-10 (2005), 20-9 (2004)

LOWELL: The Red Devils lost two games early, 3-1 to Chesterton and 7-6 at Lake Central. The seven runs scored was more than Lowell allowed in any one game in 2009. I am inclined to write those two games off as Lowell was the better team both days and found a way to lose. They led LC 6-1 and shut out Chesterton after the first inning. The only problem with this thinking: Its logic can't apply too many times. Lauren Wells struck out 17 in a 4-2 win over Kankakee Valley, but the Devils still want to alternate seniors Wells and Jacki Fletcher (1-2) so as not to wear either out for the playoff push in eight weeks. Lowell faces every team in this poll except Wheeler.

3. Wheeler (2-0)
2009 (27-3), 2008 (20-7), 2007 (25-4), 2006 (14-16)

UNION TOWNSHIP: Wheeler pitcher Lanay Parks dominated the first two games, starting in a win over River Forest and coming on in relief in a 4-0 victory over North Newton. Parks, who was 20-2 last year, pitched a five-inning perfect game in the opener. Wheeler received eight walks against North Newton, but scored just four times. Still, the increased distance between the pitcher and the batter should help the Bearcats because it may help their weaker hitters and it won't bother their pitcher. 2A is strong this year. Hanover is off to a good start and Bishop Noll and Boone are formidable. But until someone in 2A in NW Indiana scores more than one run off Lanay Parks, it does not matter.

4. ANDREAN (2-0)
28-8 (2009), 18-10 (2008), 29-3 (2007), 26-4 (2006), 32-3 (2005)

MERRILLVILLE: Andrean started well, including a 6-0 win over Munster as senior right-hander Alyssa Moseley pitched a three-hit shutout with catcher Kelly Ryan and outfielder Julie Hoolehan hitting home runs. Andrean is another of the very experienced teams (Wheeler, Lowell, Hanover, CP, Boone) that peak in 2010. Their good fortune is: they are the only one of those schools that's in the 3A bracket. As was the case last season, this is the best bet to reach the state finals due to the players and the schedule. The 59ers have four weekend (Marian, CP, LaPorte & Twin Lakes) tournaments still to play.

5. BOONE GROVE (2-0)
24-8 (2009), 22-6 (2008), 16-11 (2007), 14-16 (2006), 9-19 (2005)

PORTER TOWNSHIP: Boone hasn't played a lot of games yet, but they did record an 8-5 victory over Valparaiso on April 1. Morgan Doeling had eight hits in the first two games and Lauren Johnson was 5-for-9. Boone can't afford to miss games. They are better off playing and losing than they are not playing. The Wolves rescheduled a game at Lowell for Saturday (4-10-2010) morning. Boone should be looking for a few extra games like Andrean and Lake Central. It might make them stronger. There's no reason to believe Boone isn't as good as they were in 2009. And Boone gets the 'Butler University' yellow-brick road path to the regional. While Noll, Hanover and Wheeler battle it out, Boone just has to beat Hebron.

6. HANOVER CENTRAL (2-1)
22-5 (2009), 20-10 (2008), 20-10 (2007), 16-4 (2006), 26-5-3 (2005)

CEDAR LAKE: Hanover's off to a decent start with wins over Rover Forest and Chesterton in front of a 6-2 loss at Highland (4-0). Kelsey Jankowski smacked out eight hits in her first three games, but HC may have trouble scoring runs until some of the next people at the low end of the batting order start getting on base. HC has many tests including Griffith, Wheeler and Bishop Noll, and a potential of two games with CP, Lowell, Andrean, and Munster. Here's another team that should benefit due to the extended pitching distances. That should help some of their inexperienced hitters. Hanover plays every team in this poll except Lake Central.

7. Chesterton (3-2)
2009 (14-15), 2008 (17-10), 2007 (20-6), 2006 (30-2), 2005 (27-3-1)

CHESTERTON: Reading between the lines here, when right-hander Taylor Harlow (3-1) pitched, Chesterton is 3-1 with a 4-3 loss to Mishgawaka. Are the Trojans the team they are when Harlow pitches or the team they appear to be (that lost 8-3 at Hanover and 4-3 to Mishawsaka) when someone else does? In a softball, you are not a combination of the two. Let's judge them when they pitch their No. 1 girl. In that case, Chesterton is in the top-10 and rising.

8. LAKE CENTRAL (3-2)
25-2 (2009), 25-7 (2008), 21-6 (2007), 25-8 (2006) 32-1 (2005), 29-3 (2004)

ST. JOHN: Lake Central is a team we simply need more information on. They have scored a lot of runs, beating Munster 11-2 and Lowell 7-6 but they lost 11-10 to Portage. Pitcher Bridget Boyle (3-0) is undefeated, but she's given up more runs than you want to see. LC led undefeated Penn 3-0 in the first inning and lost 4-3. They have shown the ability to score, but softball teams that play a lot of high-scoring games won't win any championships. We have a lot of first-time starters here in key roles.

9. (2A) Bishop Noll (1-1)
2009 (20-14), 2008 (19-10), 2007 (9-19), 2006 (16-16)

HAMMOND: The Warriors seek offense and it may be a long search. Noll had nine hits in the first two games, a 1-0 loss to LaPorte and a 5-0 win over River Forest. Pitcher Vanessa Hartzell (1-1) struck out 30 batters in two games (14 innings) and that's great, but she can't do that to everybody. Noll has to find some runs. They are in the Top-10 on the basis of one player. The nonconference schedule includes Andrean and Hanover and the league schedule lines them up against Wheeler twice. You can't tell about Noll's defense until someone hits the ball into the field. We're going to need more time here.

10. (4A) Highland (4-0)
2009 (16-14), 2008 (11-15), 2007 (17-13), 2006 (0-0), 2005 (20-9)

HIGHLAND: Staying with the theory that you are what you are when your best pitcher pitches, Highland should be in the Top-10 with Megan O'Day, who allowed six hits in a 6-2 win over Hanover Tuesday (4-6-2010) and gave up seven hits in a 7-4 win over Lake Central on April 2. The Trojans have not been perfect defensively (3 errors vs LC) but they have that offense. Brooke Fowler has seven hits in four games. They are in a tough league (they'll see Lowell and Andrean twice) and a tough sectional (they'll see LC, Munster and Lowell) but 4-0 is 4-0.

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