We kick off this fall week with a request for you, the softball community, to share any thoughts, anecdotes or insights around a coach who’s battling the last stages of cancer as well as profile one of the top club teams in the Midwest, a New Englander who’s Big Ten bound, a handful of new commits and spotlight of our contents from last week…

 

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PHIL MUMMA TRIBUTES

Earlier today we posted an article detailing the health decline of former Sorcerer Gold coach Phil Mumma, who according to those close to him is at home in the last stages of esophageal cancer.

We’re gathering thoughts, memories and quotes from those in the softball community—if you’ve been around Phil or crossed (base)paths with him, we’d love to get your comments so we can compile and put in a tribute to him this week.

E-mail to: brentt@studentsports.com… thanks.

 

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TEAM PROFILE: ILLINOIS CHILL

It’s interesting to see how teams and organizations take on the persona of their manager or head coach.

One of the truest examples of this is in the Midwest where the Illinois Chill program attracts players similar to head coach/tax attorney Gerry Quinn: talented, cerebral,  competitive, driven and aspiring for academic and athletic success.

Look over the Chill alumni roster over the last decade and you’ll see players going to SEC and Big Ten schools (Georgia, Kentucky, Illinois, Purdue, Northwestern) as well as Ivy League and other top academic programs (Yale, Colgate, Georgetown, Dartmouth, Bradley).

Simply, the Illinois Chill attracts athletes who tend to be excel on the field and in the classroom.

But don’t think that the program isn’t about winning.  Quinn thinks this next year’s team could make some waves.

“I believe this year’s team has a chance to be one of the best in the history of the organization,” the head coach begins. “We are returning a lot of players who have been with the organization for some time so it should not be difficult for us to get everyone on the same page.”

“We have excellent speed, depth, and have increased our power. If our pitching develops to its potential we should finish well in all the major tournaments we enter.”

Last summer, the Chill finished in the top 10 at the talent-laden Boulder Tournament before ending up struggling late.

“We had a string of really unusual injuries and the season did not finish as well as we had hoped. Despite our injury problems we still managed a 9^th place finish at Boulder, but we had a very disappointing finish at PGF Nationals despite playing reasonably well there.”

“I don’t feel our finish at PGF was reflective at all of where we stand nationally and this year we look to make amends. If things fall into place as I hope and the kids do the work we should be able to compete with anyone this coming year.”

The Chill has also made a big change that should pay dividends in the near future.

“We started a fully integrated 16U program this past year,” Quinn continues, “and we practice our teams together with the net result being that the players who move from the 16U team to the 18U team already know what we expect from them and they know what to expect from us.”

“I am excited about this development as we will see three exceptional players from our 16U team move on to our 18U team this year. In addition, our 16s did a great job this past year winning a PGF National Qualifier and representing themselves well at PGF Nationals.”

Like many successful organizations, the Chill is starting to widen its geographical net to get talent.

“A by-product of starting the 16U team,” explains the coach, “is that it has allowed us to start cultivating some talented athletes from the Wisconsin. Most of the Wisconsin kids in the program live within an hour or so of our home base in north suburban Chicago so it really is just a way of us extending the Chicago suburban area further.”

“Right now, of the 26 players rostered on our 16U team and 18U teams, nine of them come from Wisconsin.”

***

Here is the Illinois Chill 2013-14 roster with quotes from Coach Quinn:

— OF/2B Chloe Howerth (2014, uncommitted)
“Chloe comes to us from one of our other Chill 18U teams. We picked her up for PGF Nationals this past summer due to our injury problems and we like her so much we kept her with us. Chloe is a speed player who can bunt, slap and hit away and is equally proficient at 2B and the OF.

— SS Marissa Panko (2014, Northwestern)
Marissa is an excellent defensive shortstop and anchors our infield. She too can slap and bunt, but she has steadily added power to her game and led our team this past summer in extra base hits.

— CF Sabrina Rabin (2014, Northwestern)
Sabrina is the fastest player to ever play in our organization and is one of our five lefty triple threat offensive players. She has never hit less than .400 for us during any fall or summer season and now consistently approaches .500 at the plate. She stole 40 bases this past summer without being thrown out.  When she sat out some games this summer with an injury it really short-circuited our offense.

— C Angela Schmieder (2014, uncommitted)
Angela has played 18U with us since she was a freshman in high school so this is year four for her on our team. She is a vocal team leader and possesses all the characteristics that you look for in your catcher. She does an excellent job behind the plate and our pitchers love to throw to her.

— OF/3B/1B Maria Schroeder (2014, Bradley)
Maria is a versatile defensive player and a top offensive threat for us. She hits for average, drives in runs, and steals bases. She does an excellent job using the entire field when she hits and has gap to gap power. Her defensive versatility allows us to move her around so we can keep her bat in the lineup while we move other players in and out.

— P Kiley Jones (2015, uncommitted)
This will be Kiley’s second year with us.  Despite last year being her first pitching at our level she went out and competed very well every time we gave her the ball. She led our staff in innings pitched, she throws strikes, has excellent command of her off-speed pitches and is very athletic. She also is a proven winner that pitched her high school team to the Indiana 4A state championship as a sophomore this past spring.

— OF/3B Kristin Koepke (2015, uncommitted)
Kristin is an athletic power hitter with an exceptionally strong arm (66 mph overhand). She gained valuable experience last year with us and we look for her to be a dependable run producer in our lineup the next two years.

— 1B Stephanie Lombardo (2015, uncommitted)
Stephanie is coming off an excellent summer for us at 16U, leading that team in batting average and homeruns.  As a 6’2 left handed hitting first basemen she is going to add an imposing presence to our batting order.

— P Kelsie Packard (2015, uncommitted)
Kelsie joined us this fall after playing for one of our other Chill 18U teams this past summer.  Kelsie throws hard and we look for her to be a key part of this year’s pitching rotation.

— OF Ryanne Rokos (2015, uncommitted)
Ryanne is the only newcomer to the Chill organization on this year’s team. She has excellent speed and a strong arm. She too goes from the left side of the plate and can execute the short game or drive the ball into the gap.

— P Maddison Shaffer (2015, uncommitted)
Maddie is a hardworking athletic pitcher looking to make her mark at 18U after pitching well for our 16s this past summer. She also is an effective 5’11 lefty slapper at the plate with excellent speed.

— 3B/OF Alexis Solak (2015, uncommitted)
Alexis was a steady glove at 3B for us this past summer and demonstrated good power at the plate.   I look for her to be a significant offensive power threat for us the next two years while continuing her exceptional work on defense.

— 2B/SS Alex Martens (2016, Kentucky)
Alex had a great summer for us at 18U even though she was just a 2016 jumping up from 14U the prior summer.  She will be a pure hitter the next three years and continue to add power as she matures. She is another tall (5’11) left handed hitter that opposing pitchers will not enjoy pitching to.

— C/3B Kayla Konwent (2016, uncommitted)
Kayla is a hard working young power hitter with a very strong arm (68 mph overhand). She was a leading hitter and run producer on our 16U team this past summer and we look for her to continue her good work at 18U.  Kayla’s exceptional physical tools and great work ethic give her a chance to be a special player.

 

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RECRUIT PROFILE: TORI DUBOIS

When we spoke to Tori Dubois, the talented catcher from New Hampshire, Sunday evening, she was just coming in the door Sunday after her club team, the Rhode Island Thunder, hosted a 30-team tournament in Plainville, Mass. about 90 minutes away.

“It’s good to get playing again,” Dubois, a junior at Bishop Guertin High in Nashua, New Hampshire, said.

It’s been an exciting fall already for Dubois, who committed to Penn State two weekends ago.

Dubois, who batted .500 with a 1.031 slugging average and slugged seven home runs with 23 RBI for the Cardinals, is one of the top 2015 prospects in the Northeast and told StudentSportsSoftball.com about her commitment to the Nittany Lions, about life as a catcher and some of her likes off the field…

What’s the good and bad about being an athlete in New Hampshire?
I live in a pretty small town, Mont Vernon, which has under 2,000 people and isn’t really known as a sports town. My sister, Jacklyn, plays at UConn as a catcher so we’re known as the two kids that play Div. I softball.  Being from New Hampshire, the only bad part is I have to travel pretty far for practice—about an hour an half—but it’s worth it to play for Dave (Lotti of the RI Thunder).

How did Penn State first find out about you?
Our team went to a one-day tournament in New York, the Frozen Ropes Tournament, on July 17.  Megan Gibson, who was coaching at the Univ. of Texas-San Antonio, saw me and two weeks later texted my coach (Dave Lotti) and said she was now one of the Penn State coaches and wanted me to come for a visit.

When did they make the offer?
I went to see the school on Sept. 14 – they had made me an offer that morning, before touring the campus.

What was it the Penn State staff said they liked about you enough to offer?
They said they liked that I was a versatile athlete who could make an impact on their team. They’ve recruited me as a catcher and outfielder. 

When did you decide that Penn State was where you wanted to go and why?
The moment when I knew was when I stepped on their softball field.  The facilities are absolutely amazing and I just had this feeling that it’s where I want to play.

How far is it from your home in N.H. to the university?
It’s eight hours by car.

How did you commit?
I actually went to a football game that night (Sept. 14), Penn Sate was playing Central Florida, and I committed to the softball coaches at the game.  They asked me if I had any more questions and I said, “I’m honored to verbal to Penn State because I can’t imagine myself playing at any other school.”

What is it you like best about being a catcher?
I like being able to help everyone on the field; you’re the only one that can see everyone each play.  I also like helping run the game.

Quick hitters…

Favorite food: lobster
Favorite musician: Taylor Swift
Favorite movie: Cheaper by the Dozen
Favorite pro sports team: Red Sox
Place you want to travel to: Paris
Thing you wouldn’t be caught dead doing: modeling
If you were stranded on a deserted island, what’s the one thing you’d want to have with you: my sister

 

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RECRUITING NEWS

*** Two more players from the Beverly Bandits program have committed:

— UT Brittany Anderson (2017, James Madison)
— 3B/OF Lynsey Meeks (2017, James Madison)

No, that’s not a typo: both athletes are freshman who play on the Bandits Team Premier 16U squad and both are going to James Madison.

Both are righties with 4.0 GPAs as well, but Bandits head man Bill Conroy says that’s where the similarities end.

“Lynsey doesn’t pass the eye test,” he explains.  “She’s a small kid who looks younger than she plays, but she plays with all her heart and goes all out with more grit than anyone I’ve eve coached.  She always leaves it out on the field.”

“Brittany, on the other hand, is a physical beast of an athlete and is a high-end athlete.  She can play any position on the field including pitcher and catcher.”

The latest pair of verbals gives the Bandits 44 players in their program who are now committed to colleges.

 

*** Thanks to Kim Leonard who sent us verbal news from the Connecticut Charmers Gold team.  Here are three new ones to add to our list (we update on Thursdays):

— OF/SS Erika Leonard (2014, Maine)
— 3B/2B Hannah Ford (2014, Sacred Heart)
— C/SS Katie Petroski (2014, Penn)

 

*** More on Erika Leonard, the Maine commit from the CT Charmers.  The senior hit .519 this spring with 17 RBI and 8/8 on steals for Rocky Hill (Conn.) High School.  She was a 1^st team All-State pick in 2013 after helping lead her team to the Class M State Championship and No. 1 ranking in the state in ’12.

Here’s more on her commit from her mom:

“Erika verbally committed to Maine in January of this year.  She is going into the Nursing program there and Head Coach Lynn Coutts has made that possible for her.”

“Erika loved the positive energy the coach and team had.  She attended the Maine winter clinic and toured the campus. Maine has come highly recommended as one her previous assistant coaches, Ashley Waters, is an alumni.”

“Everything was just a great fit and Erika is very proud to become a Black Bear!  She will be the first girl from Rocky Hill High School to play Division I Softball and has worked very hard to achieve this goal, both academically and athletically.”

 

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WE HAVE A WINNER!

If you remember from Friday’s e-mail we had a contest that ran over the weekend… the question:

Q: Seven states play high school softball in the fall… name the seven!
A: Colorado, Georgia, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

What made the question tricky was Mississippi plays slowpitch softball in the fall; fastpitch in the spring!

We had 112 entries with 45 of them correctly having all seven states… and the winner is (random drawing out of a baseball cap): Jeff Filali, who wins a pair of Nike shoes!  Yea!

And, no, the funny guy who put “state of despair, state of confusion, state of the union, state of matrimony, state of disbelief , state of chaos and state of decay” didn’t get in the random drawing… yeesh.

Thanks for playing, all who did!  More contests to come down the road…

 

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If you’d like to submit information, forward to brentt@studentsports.com.  Also, follow us on twitter at @SS_Softball.