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Chicago Tribune
16-04-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Portage's Kyle Ketchum catches less often this season. But he's hitting much more, no matter where he plays.
This season has been one of adjustments for Portage senior Kyle Ketchum. A relatively new position, playing primarily first base instead of catcher. A retooled swing, keeping the mechanics simpler. A redefined body, having dropped about 50 pounds from his 6-foot-5 frame. But Ketchum is experiencing a new level of success too. 'Kyle has molded into a very good player, and his best baseball is in front of him,' Portage coach Shane Prance said. Ketchum, an Olive-Harvey commit, was hitting .476 with six RBIs, seven runs scored and four stolen bases before the Indians (7-0, 3-0) played Merrillville in their Duneland Athletic Conference series finale Wednesday. 'He really figured out his swing in the offseason to just keep things simple and just find barrels,' Prance said. 'Having that big of a body, it's going to supply its own power for him.' But with senior catcher Devon Ortiz also in the lineup, Ketchum is playing at first base much of the time. 'He's great defensively for us, playing both first and catching,' Prance said 'I have two senior catchers who are good, and I just have to find a way to keep his bat in the lineup.' Ketchum, who handled the bulk of the catching duties last season, doesn't mind the position change. 'I've been playing first base a lot, and it's actually new to me,' he said. 'I've never really been at first base. I've always been behind the dish most of my life. 'They just needed me in the lineup. That's our best defense, when I'm at first and Devon's behind the dish. That's the best spot.' Ortiz appreciates Ketchum's contributions no matter where he plays. 'He's going to have a quality at-bat, and he's going to help us defensively every play,' Ortiz said. 'He's going to put the ball in play and make something happen.' Ketchum, who hit .264 with a homer, 11 RBIs and four runs last season, explained how he has tweaked his approach at the plate. 'Hitting was definitely a big miss in my game last year,' he said. 'Last year, I had a bigger step and a longer swing. This year, I spread my feet out and I don't have much of a step. I just sit back on my back leg and short hands to the ball. Just look middle out. 'I'm not looking to pull anything this year. Last year, I was trying to go for the fences, big hits. This year, it's just working out so much better. I'm looking to go up the middle, hit it hard.' Ketchum put in the hard work in the offseason. He said he weighed as much as 255 pounds toward the end of last season and is down to 205 this spring. Ketchum also said he has been 'eating better' and has gotten into yoga, which has helped get his 'mind right' and improve his flexibility. 'I was on the bigger side last year, but we all grinded, hit the weight room a lot,' he said. 'I didn't want to lose the weight and not gain muscle, and I've gained a lot of muscle. My throwing velocity has gone up from 70 to 80 (mph). My exit velo has gone up — I hit 101, and last year I wasn't close to that.' Prance, a 2008 Portage graduate who is in his third season as coach, has emphasized the complementary nature of the Indians. 'We have a good core group of guys that have grown with the program since they were freshmen,' he said. 'They take turns on whose day it's going to be to be the superstar. I love that. I love the team baseball aspect of it. 'You're not going to be perfect every day, but if your teammate can pick you up and he can be the guy that day, it just makes it that much more fun. They're rooting for each other, and in that sense, it becomes more of a team game. That's been our success.' Ketchum agreed that the Indians, who went 12-15 overall and 4-10 in the conference last season, have developed an important connection. 'Everyone has trust in everyone else,' he said. 'Top of the order, middle, bottom — everyone in the lineup can do something. 'From the season we had last year, we just built off of it. This offseason, we just grinded, just focused on us and our game. We definitely know we can be up there with the big dogs. We're going to compete.'
Chicago Tribune
11-03-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Michael Wellman has wanted to win sectional title ‘ever since I could really remember.' But he's not done yet.
From the time Portage senior Michael Wellman started playing basketball, this is where he wanted to be. Family legacy and civic pride have fueled his pursuit of postseason glory. 'Ever since I could really remember, since I was just this tall,' he said, with his hand extended about waist high. 'It's all I could think of — winning a sectional title for this city.' Reaching that goal has motivated Michael Wellman day in and day out. 'Every time I'd get in the gym, it was on my mind,' he said. 'It pushed me every single time I was in the gym, thinking about winning that trophy and getting up on that ladder and cutting down that net.' Michael Wellman and his teammates finally experienced that thrill over the weekend. The 6-foot-5 guard/forward scored 17 points, exceeding his team-leading 14.5 average, as Portage beat Merrillville 83-62 in the Class 4A Valparaiso Sectional championship game on March 8. The Indians (20-5), who won their first sectional title since 2001, will play Crown Point (21-2) in the Michigan City Regional on Saturday. The two teams shared the Duneland Athletic Conference title after Portage beat Crown Point 64-40 on Feb. 6. 'Our goal every year has been to cut down some nets, and our goal is not just one net,' Michael Wellman said. 'It's multiple nets, and that continues to be our goal.' Portage coach Bryon Clouse said the adversity the team's senior quartet have experienced, including a loss to Chesterton in a sectional opener last year, enabled their success this time around. Senior guard Garrett Clark scored a team-high 19 points, senior guard O'Mari Evans had 17 points and Michael Wellman's twin brother Sam, a senior guard, added 15 points. 'Another year of maturity, another year in the weight room and another year working on their skills and talent,' Clouse said. 'They're good, man.' Michael Wellman, a Grace commit, said he wanted to make sure the early postseason exit last year didn't define this group. 'It was the way people talked about us, about how we were a letdown last year for not winning a sectional,' he said. 'It's been on our minds to prove people wrong and to not underestimate Portage.' Sam Wellman, a Bethel commit, noted the longtime connection they have to the program. 'This has always been a goal,' he said. 'For Michael and Garrett and me, we were all ball boys for the high school team when we were little kids. Growing up, we always wanted to be out on that floor and eventually win something.' Sam Wellman said their father Nick added some friendly banter to the mix over the years. Nick Wellman, an assistant for Portage this season, was the quarterback for the 1994 Class 5A state runner-up in football. 'He always told us that he never lost on a Friday night,' Sam Wellman said with a laugh. But there was no joking from Nick Wellman after the sectional championship game. He had to pause a few times as he talked about his sons. 'I'm super proud,' Nick Wellman said. 'They worked their tails off, but they're not the only ones. I'm just so happy for them, that they get to experience something like this. They'll remember it forever.'
Chicago Tribune
06-02-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Malika Jenkins has big dreams. ‘WNBA is the main goal.' Sophomore guard has Merrillville thinking big too.
Merrillville's Malika Jenkins didn't rest on her laurels. After making a splash last season, the 5-foot-7 sophomore guard has continued to progress, impressing Darian Straughter, who is in her first year as the coach at her alma mater. 'MJ has definitely grown a lot over the course of this school year, this season,' Straughter said. 'I'm definitely very proud of how far she has come along. She still has a lot of potential and a lot of growth that can occur in the next two years.' As part of that growth, Jenkins has been learning to control her emotions and have a short-term memory. 'Just moving on to the next play,' she said. 'Don't get so frustrated and just keep pushing.' Jenkins has pushed forward to average 13.8 points, 3.0 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals for the Pirates (15-6) this season. She posted 12.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.9 steals as a freshman. Jenkins holds herself to a high standard. But she entered last season with an open mind. 'I didn't put too much pressure on myself because I knew how young I was,' she said. 'I just played freely and how I usually play, and it worked out well.' That approach involves unselfishness. 'I'm able to pass,' Jenkins said. 'I'm a pass-first player. I like to pass and see my teammates score. I can shoot, too, but I like getting assists.' Jenkins and the Pirates will play a Class 4A Chesterton Sectional semifinal against the host Trojans (14-8) on Friday night. Merrillville defeated the Trojans during the Duneland Athletic Conference season on Jan. 10. The winner would advance to play either conference champion Valparaiso (16-7) or Portage (10-12) in the sectional final on Saturday. Last season, the Pirates lost in a sectional final to Lake Central, the eventual state runner-up. They last won a sectional title in 2021. 'The goal last year was to get a championship,' Jenkins said. 'I wanted to have a good season overall and learn something from the older people as a freshman, making the jump from eighth grade to a freshman. 'This year, it's mentally just knowing that last season is in the past. Just move on and we can get farther and work harder and make more of a push. I like how we get through tough moments. If we want something, we can definitely get it.' Straughter believes Jenkins has that ability to lift a team. 'I'm hoping she can lead us to a sectional title this season and take us even further with the help of her other teammates, the seniors, the rest of the team,' Straughter said. 'She's a great athlete, a great student in the classroom. We're just waiting to see what schools will come after her.' Jenkins has time to draw such attention. But she has those kinds of aspirations. 'I would love to play college basketball and see how far it could take me,' she said. 'The WNBA is the main goal.'
