Latest news with #Pasqualini
Chicago Tribune
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Aurora Central Catholic's Corina Miller wears sunflower in her hair. For her grandfather. ‘It's my superstition.'
Junior right-hander Corina Miller finds herself in good company these days as Aurora Central Catholic tunes up for the Class 2A playoffs that are looming next week. Hard work as a dedicated student of the game has put the ace pitcher in this spot, possibly with an assist from her very own flower power — a lucky sunflower she sports in her hair each game. More on that later. 'She's a real bulldog,' Chargers coach Mark Pasqualini said of the 5-foot-3 Miller. 'She does a good job when she's locating her pitches well. She's not going to strike everybody out, but she gets the pop-ups, gets hitters to reach on the change-ups. 'She gets the batters out, doing what she needs to do. As long as we play a little bit of defense behind her, we're in good shape.' Struggling with that change-up in the first inning Tuesday, Miller got it under control in her three innings of work during a 17-5 nonconference victory over host Geneva that took only five innings. Miller (15-2) was supported by a 15-hit attack for ACC (22-8) that featured seven doubles. She's tied for the program's single-season record for wins with Dani Brown, who had 15 in 2019. The Chargers led 3-2 after one inning before erupting for eight runs in the third. 'My change-up has been pretty good all year, but in the first, I didn't have it,' Miller said. 'I threw two in the dirt. I went into the dugout, figured it out, went back out there and everything was fine.' First baseman Charlotte Brummel and designated player Ashley Moore, both seniors, produced two doubles apiece for ACC. Brummel finished with four hits and Moore totaled six RBIs. Sophomore relief pitcher Kylie Gates hit a three-run homer in the fourth for Geneva (7-18). Pasqualini said he prepares scouting reports for his team but Miller takes it a step further, doing her own homework to prepare for opponents. 'I basically go online and see if I can find highlight videos of them hitting to prepare how to throw to each batter,' Miller said. 'I like to stalk and look them up.' Take Geneva, for example. 'Their No. 5 hitter has 11 home runs,' Pasqualini said of sophomore catcher Clara Lyons. 'We had a plan, not wanting to leaving anything out over the plate that she can hit 250 to dead center, so we stayed tight on her hands and managed to get the outs we needed.' The Chargers wrap up the regular season Thursday at Kaneland before opening the postseason on Wednesday, May 21 against Winnebago in the Class 2A Marengo Regional. 'I like that we're a small school and we can survive with some of these teams,' Miller said. 'I really like pitching against the bigger schools, seeing how I match up against them. 'I feel like we can beat anybody if we put it all out on the field.' This spring, ACC has wins over bigger schools that include Metea Valley, Providence, Joliet West, Lyons, West Aurora and Waubonsie Valley. And the flower? 'It's my superstition,' Miller said. She wears it to honor her maternal grandfather, Mike Waldsmith, a longtime baseball umpire in Aurora who died in 2016 after retiring to Florida. There, he became a fan of the Florida softball team that won national titles in 2014 and 2015 and regularly sported sunflowers in their hair since 2009, when they started having a pediatric cancer patient become an honorary member of the team for each season. 'I wear a sunflower in my hair for him every game,' she said. 'I haven't played a game without it.' Last winter, Miller committed to NCAA Division III Illinois College in Jacksonville. She was recruited by assistant Kiwi Moran, a New Lenox native who was previously an assistant with Miller's Chicago Cheetahs travel team. Miller would take the ball every game if he let her, according to Pasqalini. 'I feel like when I pitch more, my performance is better,' she said. 'I just like having the ball in my hand.'
Chicago Tribune
08-04-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
When it comes to clutch hits, Ashley Moore keeps Aurora Central Catholic covered. ‘Know what you're gonna get.'
With the game on the line and your team in need of a big hit, who you gonna call? For Aurora Central Catholic, a team boasting a lineup that's loaded with a handful of good options, the answer is pretty easy — and it's not Ghostbusters. For the Chargers, it's senior first baseman Ashley Moore. 'She's been our steady, No. 1 consistent hitter all three years on the varsity,' ACC coach Mark Pasqualini said. 'It's not just the hits and production. It's everything like keeping total strikeouts down, total contact and having good at-bats. 'Very rarely does she go up there where, if she doesn't hammer the first pitch, she'll run 5-6-7 pitches deep in the count. It's been nice to have one hitter you know what you're gonna get.' Moore has been Ms. Reliable at the plate since settling in on the varsity as a freshman and batting .425 with 34 hits that included her two career home runs. Pasqualini marveled at Moore's consistency Monday as ACC prepared to start an indoor workout in the school's gym. A nonconference home game with Sandwich had been postponed as dropping temperatures and a strong wind sent the wind chill into the low 20s. 'She's generally going to regress to her normal,' Pasqualini said of Moore. 'She's gonna be right around .400, a little above, a little below. We can roll with that. 'It just shows in the stats. She's had 30-plus hits every year, and that's about one hit a game.' It led to an offer from Hannah Tomasko, Waubonsee Community College's first-year coach, that Moore accepted earlier this school year. As a sophomore, Moore hit .367 with 33 hits and earned all-state recognition. She followed that up with a .371 batting average last season on 34 hits, giving her exactly 100 hits for her career. ACC (9-2) has had good luck with weather this spring, getting an area-best 11 games played without making a spring trip to a warm weather locale. Moore's team-high 15 hits for the Chargers from the third spot in the batting order have her batting .385 with four doubles, one triple and eight RBIs. She's driven in 84 runs during her career. She credited good friend and senior teammate Kate Gambro with helping convince her parents to choose ACC. 'She's really the reason I came here,' Moore said. 'I played softball with Kate and her younger sister Abby on a team coached by their mom at like age 7.' Moore lives in Montgomery and attended a grade school in the Yorkville district. Kate Gambro, a Yorkville resident, attended another grade school in the district. Their bond continued to grow through summer softball, however, continuing up to still playing travel for the Wheatland Spikes. With only 17 players in ACC's program, Moore and Gambro were two of the four freshmen who received considerable playing time from Pasqualini, along with four sophomores. 'We have to have her in the lineup,' Pasqualini said. Moore also can handle the designated player role and sees some time in the outfield for the Chargers, giving her coach options with his lineup. 'I've batted her third since she was a sophomore,' Pasqualini said. 'I put her in there and said, 'I'm gonna let you do your thing. I'm never gonna take you out unless you ask me to take you out. I know what I'm getting. I'll ride that out.'' Gambro pointed to her best friend's consistency, remembering a big hit during a 6-4 win in 10 innings at Joliet West. 'I was on second, and I just know she's either gonna get on or get a hit,' Gambro said. 'She hit one to the fence for her second double to score me with the winning run.' And so it goes. 'If she was a big home run hitter, I would think about moving her,' Pasqualini said of Moore's spot in the batting order. 'But her swing is always on and it's line drive, line drive, line drive.'
Chicago Tribune
24-03-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Quiet Charlotte Brummel, recruited as a pitcher, lets bat do talking for Aurora Central Catholic. ‘I do like to hit.'
The strong suit of Aurora Central Catholic senior Charlotte Brummel is definitely her pitching, but the North Central College commit swings a pretty mean bat, too. Brummel actually throws left-handed and hits right-handed. In fact, she brings Teddy Roosevelt to mind for Chargers coach Mark Pasqualini. Speak softly and carry a big stick. 'She's picked up her offense,' Pasqualini said of Brummel. 'She's committed — one of our hardest-working kids. She's just so quiet. She doesn't get all the big attention.' That could change very soon. Brummel, who played first base Saturday afternoon for the Chargers in 11-1 nonconference win over visiting St. Edward, definitely left a mark with her hitting. Her rocket-shot single to left field in the bottom of the fifth inning was misplayed into a three-base error, allowing her to round the bases for the game-ending run. It was the third time Brummel, who also beat out out an infield single and hit a one-hopper triple off the fence in left, scored. It all came in support of winning pitcher Kate Gambro, a Benedictine recruit. The senior righty threw a one-hitter with 10 strikeouts and one walk, giving up one unearned run for ACC (4-0). Losing pitcher Alaina Nolan, hurt by several unearned runs, had a hit for the Green Wave (0-1). And for Brummel, that was the big thing. 'I do like to hit,' she said. 'I don't like when I don't get to hit. I work hard at it, so I want to be able to show it off.' That work includes lessons the past three years with John Van Gennep, an instructor with Brummel's GenuWin Reign Fastpitch travel program. 'I like to swing early so my whole mojo, I guess, is trying to figure out where I'm going to get better,' Brummel said. 'I've been trying to stay back on the ball and actually leveling out my swing because I don't get the full extension otherwise. 'I've definitely worked hard at that, and I think all my hits have been good. (NCC coaches) want me to pitch, and I'll have to earn my spot for hitting.' She struggles to explain why she bats from the right side. 'My parents tried to teach me to hit left-handed and they couldn't do it,' Brummel said. 'I write and throw left, but I can't swing from the left. You would think it would be really easy but I can't. 'There are some other things I can do better with my right, too.' In the circle, Brummel provides balance for Pasqualini's talented three-pitcher starting rotation that includes ace Corina Miller, a junior right-hander, and Gambro. 'The movement is different on my pitches, coming from the left side, and can give some batters trouble,' Brummel said. Her lone start, earlier in the week at Newark, provided a fun challenge. Newark coach Jon Wood has been Brummel's travel coach since she started playing with GenuWin Reign. She was matched up against his daughter, Dottie, who is a good friend. 'I've known her since I was 12,' Brummel said. 'I knew I had to pitch well. I was really excited when I saw that I was pitching that game. She pitched great, too. It was a good game.' Brummel struck out six in a three-hit shutout for a 1-0 squeaker. Gambro drove in the lone run. 'Charlotte was outstanding — lights out,' Pasqualini said. 'Every ball was a weak grounder or a lazy pop-up. Everything was moving.' Moving the ball in and out and changing speeds are key for her success, according to Brummel. 'My change-up was going a long way and my screwball, which breaks outside to right-handed hitters, was definitely working that day,' she said. 'I've been working hard over the winter and it showed.' Miller, who finished with an 11-3 record last season, is slated to pitch every other game with Brummel (5-2) and Gambro (7-1) alternating starts. 'We've been lucky these first four games,' Pasqualini said. 'We haven't made a pitching change yet. If one tires out, we'll go to the next one. 'Corina is the workhorse, but Charlotte and Kate are equally talented. It's a good challenge to have, plus they can all play in the field and provide offense.'
