Softball: Havel, Downers Grove North shoot past Wheaton North
Downers Grove North's Nicole Havel wouldn't dream about calling her own shot.
That hasn't stopped her teammates from doing it for her.
Havel stepped up to the plate in the first inning of Monday's game against Wheaton North after hearing teammate Kelsey Bernhard predict she would hit a home run.
Havel did just that, belting a 1-1 fastball over the center field fence for a 3-run homer.
That got the party started for the visiting Trojans, who racked up 12 hits in beating the Falcons 15-0 in 5 innings.
"I just focused right on the ball and did my mechanics to hit it right," Havel said. "It definitely gave us a lot of energy to keep on hitting the way we did."
Havel, a sophomore first baseman, has given Downers North (2-0) some instant offense this season. She also homered in her first varsity at-bat, which also was foreshadowed by Bernhard.
"I think it was Kelsey who called it," Havel said. "They did the same thing in the last game."
Havel, who singled and scored on senior catcher Madi Greenaberg's 2-run home run in North's 7-run third inning, finished with 4 RBI. She has been a major surprise.
"She's done nothing but impress us," Greenaberg said. "It's great, especially because she wasn't initially on varsity. She proved herself and made her way up onto the team."
Indeed, Downers North coach Eric Landschoot originally planned to have Havel play JV before changing his mind.
"We decided to bring her up and it makes it look like I'm making good decisions," Landschoot said. "She's making me look good.
"She looks real comfortable at the plate. She's working the count, she's seeing pitches real well and she's off to a really nice start."
The same can be said of the Trojans, who figured out Wheaton North sophomore pitcher Elyse Bucheit. Jade Mejia-Wick and Melissa Manzo led off with walks in front of Havel's home run.
"Downers North has always got a good team," said Wheaton North coach Zach Peterselli, whose team fell to 0-3. "We knew coming in that their 3-4-5 hitters were going to be good. We left the ball up a little bit and (Havel) took care of it."
Greenaberg did the same thing in the third as her home run made it 5-0. That was followed by an error, a walk and 4 more hits, including a 2-run single by Karly Bernhard and a 2-run double from Manzo.
Greenaberg, who like Manzo went 2-for-3 with 3 RBI, knows something about making a statement early. She was pulled up to varsity for the playoffs two years ago and hit a pinch-hit home run against Geneva in the regional final but sat out last season with a torn hamstring.
"Madi has always been a leader on and off the field," Landschoot said. "She's very comfortable. Her teammates look up to her and she's a great kid to coach."
Junior pitcher Audrey Gusel pitched a 3-hit shutout for the Trojans, allowing 1 walk and striking out 8. Downers Grove North did not commit an error.
"Infield did their job, outfield caught the fly balls and Audrey did her job, which was awesome," Greenaberg said. "I think our offense has been the best it's been in the past couple of years and that's going to help us stay with a bunch of the good teams and hopefully we'll go pretty far."