Latest news with #State-bound
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Addie Way sings and sways to ‘Sweet Caroline' as Lockport reaches state for first time in 20 years. ‘Always up.'
BLOOMINGTON — After four intense scoreless innings with a trip to state on the line, Lockport broke the ice in the fifth inning Monday. And it was time for Addie Way to have some fun. And, boy, did she ever have fun. The junior third baseman laughed it up with her fellow infielders before the start of the sixth. Then before the seventh, while senior pitcher Kelcie McGraw warmed up, Way and junior first baseman Alexis Vander Tuuk were singing and swaying to Neil Diamond's 'Sweet Caroline.' Yes, good times never seemed so good. 'We felt the pressure going into the game,' Way said. 'But as the night went on, we trusted our teammates and we trusted each other. It's just fun all of the time. 'We're always up. We're always cheering.' There was plenty to cheer about at Inspiration Field at Carol Willis Park after Way scored the second run in a two-run fifth inning, helping the Porters beat Bradley-Bourbonnais 2-0 in the Class 4A Illinois Wesleyan Supersectional. Way and Rheanna Slavicek scored the runs for Lockport (31-9), while Taylor Lane hit a sacrifice fly and the Colgate-bound McGraw singled home a run and struck out 10 in a two-hit shutout. Loyola recruit Lydia Hammond allowed four hits for Bradley (22-12), but back-to-back walks to Slavicek and Way in the fifth helped start the Porters' rally and send them to the state semifinals. Lockport will play at 3 p.m. Friday in the final four at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria against Barrington (34-3-1), a 4-1 supersectional winner Monday over St. Charles East (23-16). And for the close-knit Porters, that means everything. 'I really feel like we are a family,' Way said. 'We are a family on the softball field and off the softball field. We really trust each other.' The trustworthy Way, meanwhile, has been dangerous this spring with her bat. She's hitting .344 with 33 runs and 18 walks, but she also helps the Porters in other ways. 'She brings so much energy to the field,' McGraw said of Way. 'She's a great person and a great teammate. Everybody loves her. We wouldn't be the team we are without her. 'She makes great plays on defense. She hits. We wouldn't be here without her.' Lockport's Marissa Chovanec, who in her second year as coach won the Class AA state championship in 2004 but last reached state in 2005, appreciates what Way brings to the table. 'Addie brings energy and is one of our leaders,' Chovanec said. 'She stepped in at third base when we had an injury earlier in the season. She's done a great job hitting in the No. 2 spot, just keeping the spark in the lineup going. 'She helps not only with her body language but with her performances.' To even get to the supersectional wasn't easy for the Porters. After a 17-0 win over Thornwood to open the playoffs, Lockport topped Shepard 2-0, defeated Lincoln-Way East 3-0 and slipped past Lincoln-Way Central and Florida State-bound pitcher Lisabella Dimitrijevic 2-0 in 10 innings. Way is generally positive, but there was a time in the season that she wasn't so sure the Porters would get this far. They were 3-6 during a stretch in late March and early April, but things turned around and now Lockport has won 17 straight. 'They way we started, we were down on ourselves,' Way said. 'We knew we had to pick it up. We talked to our coach. We talked to our players. 'We all came together in our locker one day and said, 'We really gotta pick it up. We were good last season and shouldn't be playing like this.' Ever since then, it's been great.'
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Finally healthy, Kentucky recruit Nolan Ramoley legs out triple as Brother Rice downs Providence. ‘Pretty cool.'
A leg injury forced Nolan Ramoley to have surgery in October. The junior outfielder recovered quicker than expected, making it back for the start of the season for Brother Rice. But he hadn't quite felt like himself. Spending most of the early part of the spring as the team's designated hitter, the leg was still slowing him down a bit. With a trip to state on the line, however, Ramoley was ready Monday night. Legging out a triple. Beating out an infield single. Making big plays in center field. What injury? 'It was pretty cool,' Ramoley said. 'Running for that triple, I feel like I got all my speed back there. It feels good to be back from injury and be able to produce runs for my team. 'I haven't had a game until this one where I really felt 100%.' Ramoley, a Kentucky recruit, went 2-for-4, drove in a run and scored another as the Crusaders knocked off defending state champion Providence for an 8-5 win in the Class 4A Crestwood Supersectional at Ozinga Field. Eastern Michigan commit Aidan Nohava finished 3-for-4 with a triple, two RBIs and a run for Brother Rice (37-3), while Gavin Stanislawski went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Brady Cunningham allowed three earned runs over 4 2/3 innings for the win and Illinois State-bound Jackson Natanek earned the save. The Crusaders clinched the program's sixth state trophy and will play at state for the third time in four years starting at 7 p.m. Friday with a semifinal against McHenry (33-4-1). 'This is an unreal feeling,' Nohava said. 'I've been here before my sophomore year and it's the same goosebumps I got then again, but there's a different feeling because I'm a senior.' SIU-Edwardsville recruit Cooper Eggert went 2-for-4 with three RBIs to lead Providence (27-13). Cincinnati commit Enzo Infelise ended up 2-for-3 with a solo homer and a double, while Minnesota recruit Nate O'Donnell went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. O'Donnell also pitched five innings, allowing four earned runs. But Ramoley's RBI triple in the fifth inning broke a 3-3 tie and put the Crusaders ahead for good. It was the kind of moment Ramoley has been working toward the last several months, making all the rehab worth it. 'I'm still going to physical therapy once a week,' Ramoley said. 'Earlier in the year, I was going three times a week. It's definitely been a grind and it's taken a long time for my speed to come back, so it's just been patience.' Brother Rice coach Sean McBride felt Ramoley was holding back a bit when a blooper fell in front of him for a base hit in the second inning. He tried to fire him up. 'I said, 'Look, Nolan, you've got to play aggressive. I'm not mad at you, but you have to let that athleticism show,'' McBride said. 'I just wanted to challenge him to kind of let it loose. I feel like at times he's a little tentative. 'But, man, that was a big hit. He really let it loose there.' The Crusaders added three runs in the seventh to take an 8-3 lead. The Celtics did not go down easily, though, scoring twice in the bottom of the inning before Natanek got a double play to end it. That brought on the celebration. Brother Rice is going back to state and Ramoley is back. 'I guarantee I'm as excited as his parents are to watch him play like that again,' Nohava said of Ramoley. 'We're all a close, tight-knit family, so any time a guy like that comes back from a big injury and gets it done for us in a big game like this, I can see the whole team is super happy for him.'
