Softball notes: Piento swinging hot bat for Fremd; Hersey heats up heading into stretch run

Taylor Piento has found a groove in May.

Since the first day of the month, the Fremd senior centerfielder has led the Vikings offensively.

In her first seven games in May, Piento is hitting .524 with an OBP of .593 while scoring 12 runs, five more than the next Viking.

Additionally, senior pitcher Hailey Lucas (Southern Illinois commit) has been dominant in the circle, striking out more than two hitters per inning while putting together a 5-1 record.

Her only defeat was a 2-hitter to Bradley-Bourbonnais. She did not allow an earned run in the 1-0 loss.

Sophomore first-baseman Anna Montella (.438) and junior second baseman Amanda Poniecki (.412) have also stepped to help lead the Vikings (22-3), who edged Palatine 1-0 on Monday.

Run-producing outfielders: They prevent runs with their catches but the Barrington outfielders also know how to score runs.

This spring, the three starting outfielders — junior left fielder Nina Brebach, senior centerfielder Mimi Cline and junior right fielder Maddie Van Ryn — have scored 100 runs in the first 27 games of the season.

The trio has collected 109 hits and driven in 73 runs for the Fillies (25-2-1).

"We are lucky to have three dynamic athletes roaming the outfield turf at Fields of Dreams,“ said Barrington coach Perry Peterson. "They have made a big difference to our successful season."

Hersey rolling: Coach Molly Freeman's squad put together a terrific stretch winning seven of its last nine games to move into a first-place tie in the MSL East.

"It is a true accomplishment for our seven seniors (Anna Baroud, Lilly Cosgrove, Grace Grabowy, Reese Izenstark, Payton Kee, Ellie Lindberg and Ariya Patel)," Freeman said. "We are playing our best softball at the perfect time. There are a lot of games still to play, but we are seeing the strong defense combined with the dynamic bats we had expected from this group. We are very excited about what this group will do in the back half of play."

20-win season: Prospect got to 20-7 on Monday with a 4-3 win over Buffalo Grove. The Knights have been led on the mound by Lina Calvacca, who owns a 10-5 record. "We are still battling some injuries but hoping to make a strong finish in the remaining East conferences games," said Prospect coach Krystina Mackowiack, whose team is tied for first with Hersey at 9-4. "Gabby Dilan (sophomore second baseman) has made some phenomenal plays for us in the field and Gina Falls (senior centerfielder) and Liz Aicher (junior shortstop) are leading our offense right now. This team has a lot of fight in them and plans to help Lina out offensively this week."

A Gem from Gemmell: A standout performance came from Conant junior Dani Gemmell, who threw a no-hitter against Hersey in a 1-0 victory, striking out seven.

Over her five appearances in the last two weeks, Gemmell has posted a 1.81 ERA and is holding opposing hitters to a .162 batting average.

At the plate, Northern Illinois bound Ava Falcone has powered the offense with 3 home runs during the two-week stretch.

Additionally, sophomore Jenny Ryan and Gemmell hit the first home runs of their high school careers.

"Despite numerous obstacles, injuries, and challenges, we continue to show resilience and compete every day, with different teammates stepping up each game," said Cougars coach Allie Jay. "Their ability to adapt and fight through adversity has been a key factor in their recent success."

Falcone belts 3 HR: Conant senior Northern Illinois pledge Ava Falcone (3-for-3) belted 3 home runs in the Cougars' 6-1 win against Schaumburg on Monday. In four at-bats, she had 3 home runs and an intentional walk.

The last time a Cougar hit three homers in one game was Kim Jacobson against Niles West. Current Conant coach and former Cougars/Illinois standout Allie Jay was Jacobson's teammate.

Coincidentally, Falcone and Jacobson wear jersey No. 3.

Conant has won six of its last eight games, with the losses coming against state-ranked Barrington and Fremd.

Warm-weather Hawks: The weather has warmed up and so has Maine South.

Over the last two weeks, South has gone 5-1 and is playing some of its best softball of the spring.

"We are looking to keep the momentum going as we finish the regular season and get into the playoffs," said Hawks coach Emmy Pasier whose team began the week at 8-8.

Feisty Leyden: Leyden (9-13 at the start of the week) has had close losses to several ranked teams, including a 5-3 loss to No. 5 Glenbard North at the Harmon Invite.

Leyden has four seniors committed to playing in college: Ari Gallo and Gianna Olan are headed to Triton, Carmen Richardson to Judson and Abigail Cortez to Loras.

Gallo threw a perfect game against Proviso East on April 30, and top offensive producers currently are Cortez (.385, slugging .712 with 3 HR, 21 RBI, 23 runs), Bertsche (.378, slugging .662 with 9 doubles, 3 triples, 2 HR, 24 runs) and Gallo (.348, 5 doubles, 2 triples, and 14 runs).

"We hope to get some momentum during the second half of West Suburban Gold Conference play," said veteran Eagles coach Kurt Schuett.

West surging: Maine West (15-1) went 6-0 the last two weeks and won the CSL North championship for the second straight season.

During the two-week stretch, the Warriors had key wins against Niles North (11-0), Vernon Hills (4-0), Maine South (2-0), Evanston (5-0), Hampshire (3-2) and Maine East.

During that time, helping lead the team were Kaitlyn Marsh (all 6 wins, 61 strikeouts, 5 walks, ERA of 0.19 while hitting .684), Abi Garcia (.522, 6 singles, 3 doubles, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 9 runs), Kara Linenmuth (.450, 5 singles, 2 doubles, HR, 7 RBI, 4 stolen bases) and Ily Nathavinh (.450, HR).

"We have been playing very well all year and look to continue to get better heading into regional play," said Warriors co-coach Chris Addante. "We need to continue to execute in key areas. We have been getting great running off the bench with Zoe Cardona and Grace Hoff swiping bases and putting pressure on the opposing teams defense.

"We're also getting key pinch hitting from Brooke Mattson and Megan Claussen who have been clutch in big situations this year helping us win some big games."

Other key contributors to the Warriors' success have been first baseman McKayla Garnett (.377), CF Alondra Contreras (.372), LF Georgia Herman (.341), 3B Sammi Mattson and catcher Ava Robach — all of whom have been excellent defensively.

Young Wildcats: Wheeling coach Mike Caringella features five freshmen who are getting regular playing time. Among that group are Alaina Costello, who has been solid at shortstop, and Viansa Pollina who had a triple and a game-saving catch at the 200-foot marker in center field when the Wildcats defeated Buffalo Grove last Friday.

In a 5-3 loss at Conant , senior Ava Shrake threw a complete game with 6 strikeouts and went 2-for-2 with 2 runs.

She had another complete game in the win at Buffalo Grove, tossing a 4-hitter with 1 earned run. Caitlyn Fitzgerald was 3-for-4 with a home run, double, 2 runs and 2 RBI. She has caught 18 of the Wildcats' first 19 games.

Caringella said junior Mia Smith has shown her versatility playing first base, right field and pitching this spring.

Tops in steal: Rolling Meadows sophomore Caylee Del Boccio became the career stolen base leader in program history with 32.

Also at the start of the week, Mustangs senior Ashlyn Ferguson has 107 hits for her career.

Busy Bison: Buffalo Grove played all six days last week going 3-3. Sophomore Brooklyn Edler led the team with a .500 batting average while driving in 5 runs. Classmate Erin Ryan followed with a .350 batting average and led the team with 7 RBI and 7 runs.

All three Bison pitchers secured a win: senior Sammie Kosnoff vs. Schaumburg, sophomore Brooklyn Edler vs. Hoffman Estates and sophomore Natalie Whitson vs. Vernon Hills.

Lions prepare for postseason: St. Viator coach John Scotillo said the last two weeks have been a difficult stretch (1-9) but the Lions have five games left and most of their injuries are behind them.

"We look forward to a strong finish leading into the playoffs," Scotillo said.

This season, the Lions have been sparked by the top of their lineup with Maggie Ratzki (.446), Mia Lund (.408), Alexis Horn (.474) and Ava Moreno (.450).

"And they have stayed consistent, even these last two weeks," Scotillo said.

Scotillo said it's been fun to watch sisters Alexis Horn (Sr., OF) and Lia Horn (Fr. C) challenge each other. They have a combined batting average of .437 with 60 hits.

Also Lia and her freshman battery mate Carley Heiden have worked well together. They have a combined average of .327 with 40 hits.

100 K for Asien: Maine East senior pitcher Emma Asien recorded her 100th strikeout of the season during Senior Night. She is now No. 2 in the conference with 101 strikeouts while batting .364, which is currently 10th in the conference, and she is fourth with a .697 slugging percentage.

Blue Demons coach Kyle Eller also said that freshman Samantha Isho, who has switched from second base to centerfield, has done an amazing job. "I'm so proud of her," he added.