(Page Title) - edit me
By JAY SCHWAB
-
jschwab@kcchronicle.com
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Andrea Dimmig-Potts, So., C, Kaneland
What she did: Dimmig-Potts homered in last Tuesday’s win against Yorkville, and continued her impressive sophomore campaign on Saturday, going 5-for-6 with a pair of doubles in a doubleheader sweep against Minooka.
Dimmig-Potts says: “I’ve just been trying to relax and make solid contact. I don’t go up expecting to hit [a home run] but I know that I can.”
HIGH FIVE
1. St. Charles North (18-8). A doubleheader sweep against Batavia on Saturday was a strong sendoff into the final week of the regular season.
2. Kaneland (22-7). Kaneland is playing excellent softball lately, which is no luxury, considering powerhouse Burlington Central looms in regionals.
3. St. Charles East (19-7-1). The Saints have found all kinds of thrilling ways to win close games, including a power-driven comeback against Streamwood last week.
4. Batavia (14-12). The Bulldogs have a solid offense but haven’t needed much of it lately the way Brooke Nelson is pitching.
5. Geneva (15-15). Postseason softball is often low-scoring, and the Vikings have plenty of experience trying to scratch out wins in those kind of games.
NOTEWORTHY
St. Charles matchup: A St. Charles East setback to South Elgin on Saturday put St. Charles North in a position of power in the final days of the Upstate Eight Conference title chase.
The Saints and North Stars, due to meet on Wednesday, both led the conference with two conference losses each going into the weekend until the Storm tripped up the Saints, 8-4.
East had games scheduled with Bartlett and Lake Park leading into Wednesday’s showdown with North, while the North Stars had Larkin and East Aurora on the slate.
East coach Kelly Barnett wasn’t too hard on her team for its loss against a formidable South Elgin team.
“They beat us,” Barnett said. “We didn’t lose, they just beat us. They’re a good team, and we knew they were a good team.”
This is the last week of the regular season before regionals begin next week. Barnett said her team is focused – but not overly so – on winning the UEC championship.
“It’s important to be playing well a week and two days from now,” Barnett said. “Obviously the regular season and conference is a big deal but we’re strictly focused on taking it game by game and hopefully getting in the best playing shape for a week and two days from now.”
When the St. Charles rivals met the first time in April, the North Stars defeated the Saints, 6-4, handing East its first conference loss.
WSC race: It’s make-or-break time in the Western Sun Conference this week, with Batavia and Kaneland in striking distance of first-place Glenbard South.
Glenbard South beat Batavia, 3-0, on Monday.
The Knights, who thumped Batavia 9-0 when the teams met in Maple Park, will pay the Bulldogs a return trip on Thursday.
“We’re expecting a good game but we just have to keep playing how we are,” Kaneland catcher Andrea Dimmig-Potts said.
Kaneland then heads to Glen Ellyn to face the Raiders on Friday for what could be a huge game.
The Knights (22-7) have been the hottest team in the area after a hot-and-cold start, and now find themselves playing for a conference title in the final week of the regular season.
“It’d be great [to win the WSC],” Dimmig-Potts said. “I know it’s really important to everyone. It’s everyone’s goal.”
Tri-Cities meeting: Geneva and St. Charles East are set to square off in a meeting of local interest on Saturday.
The rescheduled game will cap both teams’ regular seasons. The game is scheduled for 10 a.m. at East.
– Jay Schwab, jschwab@kcchronicle.com
COACH SLY SEZ
Last week of the regular season, and between the Tri-Cities teams and Kaneland, four of the five still have a legitimate chance to win a conference championship. Coach Sly can’t wait to see how the blockbuster games this week turn out, namely East against North on Wednesday and Kaneland against Batavia on Thursday. All of these four are solid teams, but Coach Sly isn’t sure any of them are state-material, so Sly hopes these young ladies really gear it up for a realistic chance at what would be an excellent achievement: winning a conference championship.
• You can respond at kcchronicle.com/blogs/sly.
