The all-tourney team: 1B: Guy Goodman, Galesburg; 2B: Brett Plaskas, Barrington; 3B: Byron Bradley, Barrington; SS: Rich Robin, Marist; OF: Bill Chval, Marist, Adam Sobocienski, Barrington, Tony Mensik, Barrington; DH: Doug Sholtis, Galseburg; P: Adam Lynn, Edwardsville; Corny Stanley, Galesburg; MVP: Doug Sholtis, Galesburg.
– When Galesburg coach Gary Bruington goes on his next fishing expedition on Oak Run Lake in Galesburg, he`ll have plenty to talk about when he runs into the father of Cubs catcher Jim Sundburg. Bruington, who teaches a course called ”Outdoor Fishing and Recreation” at the school, said that Sundburg, the town`s only major-league ballplayer, still comes home and is a a town hero. But even Sundburg couldn`t bring his Silver Streaks team a state championship, as Bruington`s boys did Friday in a 21-4 slaughter of Barrington. Bruington wore a ”Galesburg, 1988 state champions” T-shirt to the postgame interview, and when asked when he knew the game was over with, he replied, ”When I got this T-shirt before the game.”
– Barrington`s 9-6 semifinal win over Edwardsville provided some of the best tournament drama in years. The Broncos had been held to only one hit in the first four innings and trailed 6-1 when they rallied to score six runs in the fifth to take a 7-6 lead and eventually increased it to 9-6 going into the bottom of the ninth. Edwardsville loaded the bases with no one out on two walks and a single, and Barrington coach Kirby Smith promptly called on his batting practice pitcher, Brett Plaskas, to come in and pitch relief. The senior said he had not pitched in a real game since his sophomore year. ”I was a little worried,” he admitted. ”I couldn`t figure out what he was doing.” Plaskas got Mark Little to bunt a popup back to him for out No. 1. Then, on a 2-1 pitch, Blake Hilla crunched a fastball well beyond the left-field wall, but about eight feet foul. It would have been a game-winning grand slam, but instead turned into a strikeout when Plaskas threw one by him on the next pitch. Tony Lockett grounded out to the shortstop to end the game. ”I thought it`d be interesting,” said Smith of his unusual move. ”A little surprise never hurt anyone.” Of course, the coach would have second-guessed if Hilla`s foul had been fair and Barrington had lost. Smith answered that by saying that ”it was a great pitch” because ”the law of averages says (Hilla) won`t do it again.”
– Although Plaskas played poorly in the title game, committing two errors, he still finished 5 for 9 in the three games and made the all-tourney team for the second year in a row. The Dartmouth-bound senior was 12 for 19 in six tournament games over the last two years, while teammate Adam Sobocienski, who also made the all-tourney team, wasn`t too shabby either, going 9 for 21 in the last two years.
– Oak Park coach Jack Kaiser was at the tournament to provide color commentary for SportsVision, and he had some strong feelings on the tournament`s single-elimination setup. ”I think they should think about going to double elimination,” said Kaiser. ”It would just take one more day down here, and I think eventually it will have a good chance to pass. I can visualize it in the near future.” In last year`s double-elimination summer league tournament, Oak Park lost its first game but rallied to take the summer league crown. ”We wound up winning it all, and we never would have had the chance to prove it in single elimination,” said Kaiser.
– Edwardsville coach Tom Pile will be taking a group of Southern Illinois players to Moscow over the summer in a government-sponsored clinic to help the Soviets learn how to play baseball in time for the 1992 Olympic Games. Pile, an emotional character to say the least, spent much of his time after Edwardsville`s quarterfinal upset of Joliet Catholic on Thursday, shouting within inches of reporters` faces that ”the cream always rises to the top.” But 24 hours later, 15 minutes after his team blew a five-run, fifth-inning lead and lost to Barrington in the semifinals, Pile was seen doubled over on the field, clutching his stomach and sobbing uncontrollably as his assistants tried to calm him down. When he eventually was able to speak, Pile said:
”This team was destined to be state champions, but something happened out there in the fifth inning. There`s worse things though-poverty, corruption, wars.”
– Retiring Joliet Catholic coach Jack Schimanski, who will take the director of development position at his alma mater, Lewis University, on his 10 years of coaching the Hilltoppers: ”Joliet Catholic is a magical place. There`s always some animosity because we`re a private school and all that garbage. But I feel like I`ve never had a job yet, because I loved it so much. I loved going to the school every day. This will always be my favorite group of kids. I coached the (Mark) Grants and the (Bill) Gullicksons, but this is a tremendous group that won the state football championship and went to the supersectionals in basketball. It was a great experience.”
– Hinsdale Central High School will host an eight-team baseball tournament on the 4th of July weekend.
In quarterfinal games on July 1, Glenbard West faces Downers Grove North at 3 p.m. and Naperville Central faces Romeoville at 5:30 p.m. at Downers Grove North High School. Hinsdale Central clashes with St. Joseph at 3 p.m. and Maine East faces Proviso East at 5:30 p.m. at Hinsdale Central.
The semifinals of the double-elimination tournament will be held on July 2 and the championship game on July 4 at Hinsdale Central.
– The Chicago Public League Baseball Coaches Association will stage its annual North vs. South All-Star Classic double-header Tuesday at Illinois Tech, 31st St. and Wabash. The first of the two seven-inning games will start at 11 a.m. Admission is free.
– The annual Public League vs. Catholic League All-Star game is 11 a.m. Saturday at Fenwick Field in Oak Park.
SOFTBALL
Most Valuable Player Martha Wendt (17-0) of state champion Moline headed the media`s all-tournament team. Teammates Lisa Hausman (left field) and Stacey Paller (third base) also made the team. Runner-up Maine South placed center fielder Karen Walker on the team. Pitcher Kim Kosinski, second baseman Jennifer Nardi and catcher Kelly Kavanaugh of third-place St. Francis de Sales also were selected. Semifinalist Joliet St. Francis placed four players-pitcher Peggy Staszak, shortstop Meg Reuvers, outfielder Kim Kubinski and designated hitter Maria Mikuska-on the team, more than any other team.
– Maine South coach Don Kerr has taken three teams to the state tournament and has seen softball improve in his nine years as a coach. ”I`ve watched Illinois softball grow,” he said after his team lost the championship game 6-2. ”Chicago-area teams have become very competitive with teams from the Quad Cities and southern Illinois. Maine South has learned a lot about the art of playing softball by playing here. More than in any clinic. You learn you have to play the best teams. The best teams are in the Quad Cities but we`re coming.”
– Look for Maine South, St. Francis and New Trier to have strong teams next year if for no other reason the return of pitchers Meg Lobitz, Kathy Staszak and Carrie Ramenofsky, respectively. Lobitz is a hard-throwing right- hander who pitched the Hawks into the semifinals and finished with a 20-3 record. Lobitz also excelled in the classroom. She ranks fifth in her class. Staszak pitched two outstanding games before running out of gas in the third- place game. She shut out Centralia 1-0 in the quarterfinals and lost a tough 2-1 decision in 11 innings to Moline in the semifinals. Ramenofsky, in her first full season as a pitcher, finished with a 19-4 record and improved dramatically as the season went on. ”At the beginning of the season, I just tried to throw strikes,” said Ramenofsky, who also plays basketball. ”The last couple of games, I started to move the ball around. I could throw strikes when I wanted.”
– New Trier assistant coach John Caldwell will replace retiring Jack Benson. Benson`s last game in his 12-year career, which featured five trips to the state tournament, ended with the winning run scoring on an error in the ninth inning. ”That`s a tough way to end it,” Benson said. ”But we made a good comeback. We played tough. Somebody has to lose, though.”
– Moline pitcher Martha Wendt played for East Moline last year. She played at Moline as a freshman and then spent two years at East Moline. ”My family has gone throught some tough financial times and we had to move,” she explained. ”It wasn`t for softball.”
– Some of the top players in the Chicago area will play in the fourth East-West all-star softball game at Lambert Field in Glen Ellyn at 7 p.m. Friday. The nine-inning game will feature 30 graduating seniors from the Du Page Valley Conference and West Suburban Silver Division.
– De Sales catcher Kelly Kavanaugh set a tournament record with three triples.
– Thornton Community College will play host to its fifth annual all-star softball game at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. Players from 22 high schools will take part in an East vs. West format, including Michelle Coleman and Pam Palmore of Thornwood, Tracy Meade of Marian Catholic, Kim Kosinski and Kelly Kavanaugh of De Sales and Kristin Scott and Dawn Stavitzke of St. John, Ind., Lake Central. East coach is Ray Kosinski of De Sales. Coaching the West will be Gary Lagesse of Thornwood. For information, call Gary Lester at 331-0895.
BASKETBALL
Nazareth Academy will play host to the Ron Felling Basketball Shooting Camp for players in grades 7-12. The camp will take place July 11-15 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Speakers will include Illinois-Chicago coach Bob Hallberg and Northern Illinois coach Jim Rosborough. For information, call Tom Richardson at 482-6470 or Ron Felling at 812-335-2794.
– Illinois-Chicago will conduct a basketball camp Aug. 1-12 for boys 7-17. The camp will have two sessions. Session I, from 3 to 5 p.m., will cover skills and team play. Session II, from 5:15 to 7 p.m., will emphasize shooting skills and fullcourt games. Cost is $35 for one session, $65 for both. Attendance in Session I is mandatory for enrollment in Session II. Call 996-2772 for more information.
– Fenwick is offering a basketball camp for boys entering the 5th through 8th grades. The camp will be June 27-July 8. Cost is $55. Call head coach John Quinn at 386-0129 for information.
MISCELLANY
The Tribune`s high school Athlete of the Year will be announced in next Monday`s editions. Previous winners were Eric Kumerow of Oak Park in 1983, Nancy Reno of Glenbard West in 1984, Katie Meier of Wheaton Central in 1985, Mike Morrison of Deerfield in 1986 and Kent Graham of Wheaton North in 1987.
– The first Chicago Public League boys` soccer tournament will be Aug. 29-Sept. 1 at Hanson Park Stadium. Clemente coach Paul Rojas has organized the event, which will bring together all teams in the Public League. Games will be played from 10 a.m. until approximately 6 p.m. each day, with a championship match scheduled for late afternoon Sept. 1. Admission will be $1. For information, call Rojas at 966-2623 or 292-5068.
– Todd Occomy of Chicago, a senior competing for Wayland Academy in Beaver Dam, Wis., recently completed an undefeated season by winning the No. 1 singles title in the Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association state tennis tournament. Occomy, who will attend Northwestern, did not lose a set this season and finished with a 21-0 record. His brother, Noel, won the WISAA singles title playing for Wayland in 1984. Noel, a senior-to-be at Brandeis University, recently won the NCAA Division III singles championship.
– Holy Cross will sponsor a football camp for 7th- and 8th-grade boys July 5-8. Fee is $20. Call 456-5110 for information.
– Northern Illinois University will conduct two football camps this summer for boys ages 10 to 17. Both the NIU Football Technique School (June 19-22) and Wishbone School (June 22-26) will feature instruction by football coaches such as Arkansas State quarterback coach Phil Davis. Campers will be housed in university residence halls. Call 815-753-0277 for more information. – The Alumni Association of Notre Dame High School will sponsor its annual golf outing July 25 at Chapel Hill Country Club in McHenry. Cost is $75 per person. Call Father Joseph Stroot at 965-2900 for information.
– A volleyball camp for boys and girls ages 12-18 (except high school seniors) is July 24-28 at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha. Registration deadline is July 15. Cost is $200 per resident camper, $160 per commuter camper. For an application, call 414-553-2245.
– Summer camps in basketball, volleyball and gymnastics will be held at Maria High School, 6727 S. California Av., in July and August. The basketball camp will be held in two sessions July 11-15 and July 18-22 from 9 a.m. until noon for fifth through eighth-grade girls. The fee is $45. The volleyball camp will hold three sessions: The July 25-29 session from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. will be for setters only. Fee is $20. The July 25-29 session from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. will be for incoming Maria freshmen. Fee is $30. The Aug. 1-5 session from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. will be for girls in sixth-through-eighth grades. Fee is $30. For additional information regarding the basketball and volleyball camps call Deb Graham at 925-8686. The Aug. 8-12 gymnastics camp from 9 a.m. to noon will be for girls 7-14 years of age. The fee is $50. Call Sue Moran Henry at 925-8686 for additional information.
– Ken Ricci and Eugene Dammerman were selected as the 1988 Class AA and Class A Athletic Directors of the Year, respectively, by the Illinois High School Athletic Directors Association. Ricci is the athletic director and boys` basketball coach at Round Lake. Dammerman is the AD and boys` basketball coach at Cobden.
– Holy Cross High School in River Grove is screening qualified applicants for head coaching positions in soccer, golf and baseball, as well as assistant openings for football, soccer, basketball and track. Any interested candidate is asked to call Holy Cross Athletic Director Robert Koleno at the school at 456-5110 or write to him at Holy Cross High School, 3000 N. 80th Avenue, River Grove, Ill., 60171, as soon as possible.
– St. Xavier College will conduct volleyball camps for girls this summer through the athletic department at the college on 3700 West 103d Street. Coaches Niels Pedersen and Bob Heersema will direct the volleyball camp. Sessions are offered as follows: July 25-28: grade school, 9-11:30 a.m.;
advanced 8th grade/high school, 12:30-3 p.m. The session August 1-4 is for intermediates (those entering 7th and 8th grade), 9-11:30 a.m., and for beginners (6th grade or younger), 12:30-3 p.m. Participants in the camps will be grouped according to ability levels as well as age. For information, call 779-3300, ext. 230.
