Just contemplating the softball playoffs on a rainy day

Want to know the biggest surprise this softball season?

As I write this column on May 13, this is the first day this season that I am home with no games to cover because of rainouts.

Mother Nature always makes the spring season the most unpredictable, but she has thrown us a welcome curveball this spring (although I'm ready to shed the light jacket for mid 70s temps).

I'm not the only one caught off guard. West Chicago, with an overbooked nonconference schedule, was forced to cancel games this month with St. Charles North and Glenbard South. They're not alone.

You knew we were in for a different kind of season when the pitching rubber was moved back to 43 feet.

I braced myself when I covered a 12-9 game wearing a short-sleeve shirt and shorts on April 1. No foolin'.

But I knew I was watching a different type of softball game three weeks later when I watched a DePaul-bound Division I pitcher give up 9 earned runs. In an inning.

Now that I've provided my Cliff's Notes version to the regular season, let's ponder five burning questions as the playoffs get under way the next two weeks.

1. Can Glenbard South make it a three-peat to East Peoria?

With nearly its entire lineup returning from last year, the Raiders have looked more than capable of making their third straight trip to the state tournament. The Raiders, led by ace pitcher Jess Wilkes and a balanced lineup, won their first 15 games and have rolled through the Western Sun Conference. The IHSA didn't do Glenbard South any favors, though. The Raiders are packed into a sectional with Trinity and Riverside-Brookfield, two of the better teams in Class 3A that don't play in Glen Ellyn or Oak Forest.

2. Can Neuqua Valley win a regional?

The senior class led by Division I recruits Jenna Marsalli and Colleen Hohman have been the program's heart and soul for four years. But the girls are still searching for the elusive first regional championship, which would be Neuqua's first since 2003. This year could be the Wildcats' best shot; they drew a No. 4 seed in the 4A Bolingbrook sectional. But Neuqua will likely have to get by regional host and always tough Plainfield Central. Neuqua beat No. 5 seed Plainfield Central 4-3 in 14 innings on April 26 - but that was in Naperville.

3. Who comes out of the Bolingbrook sectional?

Everybody has beaten everybody this spring. Downers Grove South, led by .546-hitting leadoff hitter Marissa Mersch, is the No. 1 seed with probably the best lineup. No. 2 Downers Grove North beat its cross-town rival earlier this season and is bolstered by the return from injury of freshman pitching sensation Elaine Heflin. Neuqua might have the best combination of offense, pitching and varsity experience - and also beat Downers Grove South. Naperville Central has perhaps the sectional's best pitcher in Alyssa Wunderlich, and postseason experience from last year's run to state. And in a low-scoring playoff game, few players can generate offense all by herself quite like Naperville North's leadoff hitter Sammy Marshall. In a nutshell? It's wide open.

4. Who will be this year's Natalie Wunderlich?

Naperville Central's ace, now at Eastern Illinois, put the Redhawks on her shoulders last year, throwing five straight shutouts in the playoffs to get her team to the Class 4A tournament. With the mound now at 43 feet, it's hard to believe a pitcher will duplicate Wunderlich's feat. But there are pitchers who could carry their team far in the playoffs, starting with West Chicago's Mary Connolly. Others capable include Alyssa Wunderlich, Wilkes of Glenbard South and Heflin if she's 100 percent healthy. Keep an eye on Glenbard North sophomore Lilly Fecho, pitching her best softball of the spring her last nine starts, and Downers Grove South's Katie Talbot, 16-1 this spring in returning from an arm injury that cost her her junior year.

5. Who are the dark horses to watch?

Naperville Central is a No. 7 seed, but feeling good about its position. The Redhawks, who meet No. 10 Benet in the regional semis, already beat the Redwings once this season. Like its DVC rival, Wheaton North is a No. 7 seed that bears watching. The Falcons swept their first-round opponent St. Charles East in a doubleheader in St. Charles last Saturday. Wheaton North has had its share of ups and downs since an 11-game winning streak was snapped April 19 but showed what it's capable of with a 2-1, nine-inning win at Glenbard North a week ago.