Stars prepare for Lake County Senior Shootout

The first Lake County Senior Shootout is just three days away.

Some of the finest boys and girls basketball players from the county will be on the College of Lake County campus in Grayslake on Friday night.

The girls game begins at 6:30 p.m. followed by the boys at 8:30 p.m.

Admission is $5 and there will be a special presentation for Waukegan High School standout Jereme Richmond, who helped lead the Bulldogs to the state finals last month.

The game is being sponsored by the American Heart Association/Hoops of Heart program.

Representing the boys East team will be Quan Conner and Mike Springs from Waukegan, Demetrius Starks and Mike Simpson from North Chicago, Mitch Hopfinger and Josh Bruns of Lake Forst, Marin Kukoc (Highland Park), Jeff Levitt (Stevenson), Chris Morgan (Vernon Hills), John Androus (Lakes) and Patrick Cox (Carmel).

On the West team are Marquise Thomas, Craig Burton and Shahron Thomas of Warren, Tony Cofield and Cordarieus Craigen of Zion-Benton, Andrew Sipes and Cameron Wiggins (Grayslake Central), Matt Pucher of Grayslake North, Bill Meyer of Lake Forest and Marko Grcic (Lake Zurich).

On the Girls side, the East will be represented by Brooke Evans and Jessie Bjerning of Mundelein, Lauren Grant and Allie Anttila of Antioch, Lauren Kramer (Lake Forest), Alana Coy (Vernon Hills), Nigeria Patrick (North Chicago), Lauren Erickson (Grayslake North), Kate Martino (Wauconda), Heather Chapman (Grant) and Emily Harris (Barrington).

On the West team are Gabby Chapa and Audrey Bauer of Lake Zurich, Katelynn Jennings (Libertyville), Kelsey Simon Stevenson), Claire Dimario (Lake Forest), Asja Triplett (Lakes), Kristine Ruhl (Carmel), Nichole Monhait (Highland Park), Briana Buckingham (Waukegan) and Shanyell Jackson (Zion-Benton).

Softball

When freshman Kim Cygan from Barrington High School joined her University of Chicago teammates this spring, there was a familiar face.

It was another former all-area Fillie.

University of Chicago senior Kathleen Duffy also starred in coach Perry Peterson's softball program at Barrington. She pitched for the Fillies' Class AA state runner-up team in 2005 and state quarterfinalist in 2006.

Duffy underwent surgery for a torn rotator cuff and bicep tendon last June.

That procedure prevented her from pitching this season but she is still one of the team's top hitters. batting .404 with a team-high 14 RBI, 19 hits, 5 doubles and 3 triples through 14 games.

Cygan, the 2009 Daily Herald all-area honorary captain, credits Duffy with making her transition from high school softball to college a smooth one.

"She really made is easier for me to adjust to things," said Cygan, who is off to a 2-0 start with a 1.17 ERA. "Kathleen knew what it was like when she was new to the team as a freshman and she helped me a lot with that."

Duffy said when she got to Chicago, she didn't know any of her new teammates.

"I wanted to make sure Kim had every chance to make a smooth transition and would feel comfortable on the field right away," said Duffy, a history and international studies major who would love to work for a major league baseball team.

Duffy had a grand slam, 3-run homer and 8 RBI last week in a doubleheader with Wisconsin-Whitewater. She has 22 RBI in the team's first 18 games.

Cygan, who pitched for Barrington in East Peoria as a junior, belted the first home run of her college career last week.

Men's track and field

Illinois won three event titles at Georgia Tech's Yellow Jacket Outdoor Invitational and senior Mike Murray (Prospect) won the 5,000 meters. His winning time of 14 minutes, 55.93 seconds was a personal record.

Women's golf

Northern Illinois' Michelle Caporusso (Prospect) shot her lowest score of the 2010 season with a three-over par 75 in the final round of the Texas State Intercollegiate tournament in Victoria, Texas.

Caporusso will be playing in the Chicago area on April 11 and 12 when her team participates in the Loyola Invitational in Evanston.

Girls volleyball

Wheeling girls volleyball coach Jason Kopkowski will direct a clinic for fifth-to-eighth grade girls in the Wheeling High School gymnasium on Saturday, April 10 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The cost is $5 with a registration form that can be filled out before the clinic begins.

All volleyball skills will be covered by the Wheeling coaching staff and players.

Pro softball

The Chicago Bandits will be hosting a 3-day camp in early July.

The camp, scheduled for July 5, 6 and 7, will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will feature instruction from several Chicago Bandits players and coaches throughout the 3-day experience. The camp will cost $150 and will include four hours of instruction on each of the three days, two Chicago Bandits T-shirts, one Bandits poster and one ticket to the July 8 Chicago Bandits game against the Akron Racers.

Camp participants will also be announced and recognized during the July 8 game.

Registration is now open. Download the registration form from www.chicagobandits.com or call the Bandits office at 877-7BANDIT to register by phone. For more information on the 3-day Camp, call or email Hannah Michal at 877-722-6348 or hmichal@chicagobandits.com.

Bowling

Hey parents of high school bowlers, want to learn more about the college bowling experience?

How about bowling scholarships?

Then you will want to attend a College Information Day to be held on April 10 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Elgin Lanes, 401 Shepard Drive in Elgin.

The program is being conducted by Kyle Bault, head coach at St. Edward High School and will feature coaches from McKendree University, Clarke College, Robert Morris and others.

They will discuss the opportunities for both men and women and some top collegiate bowlers will speak.

Reservations are suggested but not required. For more information about this event, you may contact Bault at kylebault@yahoo.com or phone (847) 695-3777.

• Elgin Lanes will host a summer youth bowling program for youth ages from three to 20 years old.

The program will run every Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. for ten weeks from June 12 through Aug. 21, excluding July 3.

Every Saturday, bowlers will receive free games of bowling, shoes, hot dog and soda.

The cost for the program for Pee Wees, ages three to five is $50 (2 games) and $60 (3 games) for youth from ages five to 20.

They will also receive the same number of games free each day that Elgin Lanes is open during this ten week period. For more information, phone 847-695-3777. Registration forms are available at Elgin Lanes, 401 Shepard Drive, Elgin, 60123. Registration can be done online at www.elginlanes.com

• Send items to John Leusch at jleusch@dailyherald.com.