IHSA needs to nix predetermined regional mayhem
I think this happens every year.
It's the Friday of track sectionals, so Mother Nature conjures up rain and lightning and thunder and rain and lightning and ... well, you get the picture.
Actually, this gives us an opportunity to catch up on some things, and first and foremost is the subject I've been bantering around with area softball coaches since the postseason pairings came out.
Let it be said about every IHSA sport - this whole collar county thing has to go. Basically, if you're a Class 4A team in the Fox Valley corridor, you're on an island. While the rest of the state is operating under the sectional complex system, you get stuck into a predetermined regional just because we get lumped in with the Rockford schools. It's an IHSA rule that came about with the expansion to four classes and follows the IHSA's "geographical principle".
Bunk. There's no geographical principle to Classes 1-2-3A, why should 4A schools get stuck with it?
What it does is cause some pretty unbalanced competition in those predetermined regionals. And two of them within the Woodstock softball sectional are a prime example of just how unbalanced.
The Streamwood regional has five teams - South Elgin, Elgin, Larkin, Streamwood and Dundee-Crown - with a combined record of 33-76 while the McHenry regional has five teams - Prairie Ridge, Crystal Lake South, Jacobs, Cary-Grove and McHenry - with a combined record of 100-41. McHenry, a 20-6 club, has to play a play-in game.
If that's not enough proof that this predetermined regional system has to go then I don't know what is. When a team with a 7-19 record can get a No. 2 seed in a regional, something's wrong.
A conversation with IHSA assistant executive secretary Beth Sauser about the subject recently came to one conclusion - for IHSA postseason assigning purposes, we just live in the wrong part of the state.
Sauser said the predetermined regional concept was formed with the expansion to four classes to help schools avoid excessive travel and ease the load on transportation budgets.
But in reality, the move to four classes has strained the travel budgets of smaller schools who, of course, have smaller budgets to begin with. All four classes is doing is awarding teams more trophies and costing school districts and taxpayers more money on travel.
Sorry, IHSA, but this system stinks. And I hope coaches and athletic directors who have told me they agree speak up to their advisory committees and school principals and get it changed - soon. We're not going to see four classes go away, but we sure do need to get rid of this predetermined regional setup. It's just not fair and it never will be.
Rainy day changes: The Class 3A girls track sectionals scheduled for Friday night at Huntley and Streamwood were postponed due to the weather, as was the Class 2A sectional at Sterling involving Burlington Central and Hampshire. All three will run at 10 a.m. today. In softball, the key Upstate Eight game between St. Charles East and South Elgin that was rained out Friday will be played at 11:30 this morning. Then, the Storm will play Crystal Lake South at 1:30 p.m. and Schaumburg at 3:30 as part of their quad - provided of course fields are playable this morning. One other Friday cancellation will play today - Woodstock at Cary-Grove. And out in Freeport, Elgin Community College's game against Kankakee in the Region IV baseball tournament that was rained out Friday will commence at 10 a.m. today. All the rest of Friday's postponements have either been rescheduled to next week or canceled all together, depending on their importance in conference standings and availability of days to play. Yes, it's been a wet spring.
Judson plays host: St. Edward is scheduled to have its softball Senior Day game at Judson University at 9:30 this morning against Chicago Christian. And, South Elgin will use Judson for its Senior Day festivities next Tuesday with a 6:30 p.m. game against Streamwood.
College news: Our two local college softball teams - ECC and Judson - both had good springs. Coach Anne Vogt's ECC club won the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference title and had several individuals earn postseason awards. Streamwood grad Barb Posinger was named all-conference, all-region and the ISCC Player of the Year. Hampshire alum Amanda Price, St. Charles East grad Casey Holtz and Larkin products Sophie Sterricker and Jessica Schue were all named to the all-conference team. Vogt was also selected the ISCC Coach of the Year. At Judson, coach Becky Stenning guided the Eagles to a school-record 25 wins. Burlington Central grad Carrie Sensor was an all-CCAC first-team selection after leading the conference in runs scored (54) and coming in second in hits (65). Sensor finished the season hitting .380 with 15 RBI. Other Judson all-conference awards went to Nicole Dimiceli (Lake Park) and freshman Virginia McAndrews (Wheaton Warrenville South), who was named the CCAC Freshman of the Year.
In other college news, Judson announced Friday that South Elgin senior Brittany Boelter will play tennis for the Eagles.
Bandits Fan Fest: The Chicago Bandits season is near and the club will hold a FanFest at Judson's Lindner Fitness Center on Saturday, May 23. The fifth annual Bandits FanFest will begin at 2 p.m. and will include a Q & A session as well as autograph and photo opportunities with Bandits players, including Olympic standout Jennie Finch. The National Pro Fastpitch league was dealt a bit of a blow this week when the Washington Glory folded for financial reasons. This comes on the heels of the same thing happening to the New England Riptide but instead of trying to operate a four-team league, the NPF has now partnered with USSSA to form a team called the USSSA Pride, which will be based in Kissimmee, Fla., at the Osceola County Sports Complex. Team members will include former standout Tennessee pitcher Monica Abbott and former Arizona star Caitlin Lowe, among others. That team will make a visit to Elgin to play the Bandits June 10-14. The Bandits home opener is set for June 3 against the Philadelphia Force.
jradtke@daiilyherald.com