Naperville Central takes third straight DVC title

There might have been a time early this season when a little doubt crept into the minds of Naperville Central softball players, but that time has long since passed.

The Redhawks are playing a mighty impressive brand of softball, and on Monday they notched their 20th of the season. The 5-1 defeat of Wheaton North also helped the program claim its third straight DuPage Valley Conference championship.

After starting the DVC slate 0-2, Naperville Central (20-8) has won 11 straight league games. The Falcons' loss coupled with a loss by Naperville North on Monday secured another title.

"I really like the way we're playing, and we're playing this way at the right time," Redhawks coach Andy Nussbaum said. "We've gotten better and I think we were a good team at the beginning."

While the team as a whole has gotten hot, it helps to have pitcher Julie Kestas at her best as the Redhawks prepare for the playoffs. The Bradley University-bound pitcher improved to 16-4 on the year with her 11th straight win. When Wheaton North (10-20, 8-5) scored an unearned run in the sixth inning Monday, it snapped a string of 26 scoreless innings by Kestas.

The senior pitcher, who is always quick to credit her defense, has been spoiled of late by an offense that jumps quickly on opponents. On Monday Lisa Tassi's RBI double brought home Lindsay Gonzalez in the first inning, and Naperville Central added two more in the second with Abbey Place belting an RBI double off Wheaton North starter Sarah Gorzak.

"It's not how you start. It's how you finish," Kestas said of the team's "rocky" start this spring. "I'm glad it's all coming together now. We're all working so hard. Today was a perfect way to spend senior day trying to get that championship."

Tassi, a senior shortstop who was part of the team's last two DVC titles, went 2-for-4 at the plate and also made a nice grab of a high, hard liner off the bat of the Falcons' Natalie Shirley to leave the bases loaded in the top of the sixth.

"We were just taking the first couple weeks to try and figure things out, how the new players worked and how we all worked together," Tassi explained. "I think it all came around nicely and it also helps when you've got Julie pitching for you. I think it's a good time to peak. If you remember two years ago we won our first 29 games and then (lost in) regionals … so I hope we keep this going."

Gonzalez added an RBI triple in the fourth and then scored for the third time on the day as the hosts went ahead 5-0. Place, meanwhile, had two hits and a walk while batting, and the Naperville Central catcher also made a pair of sparkling catches on foul balls.

For the Falcons it was the third loss this spring to the DVC champs, yet coach Danielle Soraghan likes to see the continued strides her team has been making.

"Obviously they've got a tough pitcher. When she throws she throws hard," she said. "I thought we did a little better job working the counts. We're working hard. This team has really done a tremendous job of just staying together. The trust has been awesome and they've got each others' backs."