Fremd state softball preview
What: Class 4A semifinal / Fremd (33-4) vs. Loyola (35-2), 7 p.m. today
Where: Eastside Centre in East Peoria
Advancement: Winner plays in Saturday's state championship game (7 p.m.) against winner of today's 4:30 p.m. semifinal between Naperville Central (31-6) and Edwardsville (35-4). The losers will play for third place at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.
How they got here: Fremd beat Prairie Ridge 3-1 to win the Barrington supersectional. Loyola blanked Mother McAuley 3-0 in supersectional play.
Pitchers: Fremd junior Lena Brottman is 20-3 with 258 strikeouts and an 0.70 ERA in 159 innings. Loyola senior Devin Miller is 25-2 with 350 strikeouts and a 0.52 ERA in 189 innings.
In the pen: Each team's backup pitcher has an impressive record and serves as a key offensive player. Fremd senior Casey Latal (12-1, 0.48 ERA, 86 strikeouts) has 23 hits, 16 RBI, 16 runs and 5 doubles. Loyola junior Caitlin Desmond (8-0, 1.50, 61 strikeouts) is batting .302 with 18 RBI, 22 runs, 4 homers and 4 doubles.
Top hitters: Fremd has six .300 hitters: Junior left fielder Jenny Schneider (434), junior third baseman Kelly Voigt (. 389), senior first baseman Jessica Tackett (. 382), junior second baseman Lauren Zaworski (.374), junior catcher Kristine Werling (. 328) and junior right fielder Alexa Cinquegrani (. 352). The Vikings .329 team batting average is the best in coach Jim Weaver's eight seasons. Loyola has five .300 hitters: Senior catcher Teresa Aguilar (.467), junior third baseman Dana Trotter (371), junior left fielder Maggie Mullen (. 317), junior second baseman Jenny Edwards (.306) and junior first baseman-pitcher Caitlin Desmond (302.). The Ramblers are batting .311 as a team.
The sluggers: Fremd senior first baseman Jessica Tackett has belted a team-high 7 home runs this spring and has a school record 10 for her career. The Vikings have 13 total home runs. Loyola, which has 15 home runs, is led by junior Maggie Mullen with 5.
The coaches: Fremd's Jim Weaver is 206-75-1 in eight seasons. He is making his second appearance in the state finals. His 2002 team (28-11) lost 1-0 to state runner-up Normal in the Class AA state quarterfinals. Loyola coach Marty Jennings is in his second season and has a record of 60-6.
Helping hands: Jim Weaver has often credited his assistants with making decisions this spring. They are T.J Valacak and Christine Vlaming, a former Barrington and Rhode Island standout pitcher. Contributing on the underlevels are Josh Teschner, Rob Higgins and Dina Bosco.
Past state success: Fremd is making its fifth appearance (1997, 2000 and '01 under coach Rob Harris and 2002 under Jim Weaver) in the state finals. The Vikings' best finish was fourth in the Class AA 2000 state tourney. Loyola's only other appearance was in 1997 under coach Jon Cohn.
Coach Jim Weaver's outlook: "Loyola's pitcher throws hard and they are a good club. They play a quality schedule and we'll have to play hard to win. I think this is my best team in eight years (school-record 32 wins). I'd say it's the best in my 14 years in the program (former assistant to coach Rob Harris). If we defend and pitch well, we'll be in good shape. Lena (Brottman) has been throwing well and is on a good roll in the playoffs and the defense has played well behind her. I'd like to see better offense than recently, but at this time of the season that is a tall order. You've just go out and execute. Our game plan will be no different from what it was on March 16 for our first game."
The losses: Fremd's 4 defeats are 5-4 to Lake Zurich, 3-2 against Barrington, 1-0 to Conant in eight innings and 2-0 to Elk Grove in 13 innings. Loyola's 2 losses are 2-0 to Barrington 3-0 to Sandburg.
Local official: Dan Krueger, a Mid-Suburban League and DuPage Valley Conference softball umpire who resides in Hoffman Estates, will be umpiring the 3A-4A state softball finals for the fourth time in his 25 years as an IHSA official. Krueger graduated from Lake Park in 1981 and Bradley University in 1985. He was the 2007 IHSA softball umpire of the year and the 2008 3A-4A state umpire-in-chief. Krueger is a state softball rules interpreter and has been an IHSA certified softball clinician since its inception in 1998. He has been an NCAA softball umpire for the past 15 years and in May worked the D-II central regional in Winona, Minn. "It is once again an honor to be selected as one of six 3A-4A state final softball umpires," he said. "Some of the best IHSA softball umpires officiate in the MSL, DVC and Upstate Eight and I will give my best efforts to proudly represent the Northwest Suburban area softball officials."