Andrews relishes national championship

Lizzie Andrews was still living the dream Wednesday afternoon.

While watching her former Jacobs softball teammates stay alive in the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division race with a 2-0 win over Crystal Lake South, Andrews was also busy accepting congratulations from many for becoming a national champion.

Andrews had just arrived home from a weekend most athletes can only dream of. She was the starting center fielder and a powerful bat in the lineup for Heartland Community College, the Normal-based school that last weekend won the NJCAA Division II National Championship.

"I still can't feel it," Andrews said. "We all can't feel it. It's just amazing."

Andrews, a former Daily Herald All-Area player who was named to the national finals all-tournament team, finished the season hitting .432 with 5 home runs, 22 doubles and 54 RBI for the 50-8 Hawks of coach Shae Wesley, who twice beat No. 1 ranked and five-time national champion Phoenix to win the title. Heartland won the national title in just its second year with a softball program.

"Ever since our first practice all (Wesley) talked about was us going to the championship game," said Andrews, who will take classes at Heartland this summer, play for the Bloomington Hearts major women's team, and then return to Heartland for her sophomore season. "Our whole goal all year was to beat Phoenix.

"Shae was just an amazing coach and all of our girls were so driven to get to where we got to. It's just really weird. I just can't feel it yet. We all talked about how it will hit us when we get our rings fitted."

Also a member of the Heartland team was third baseman Sarah Waylock, the 2007 Daily Herald All-Area co-captain from Cary-Grove. Waylock hit .355 with 55 RBI for the Hawks this season.

"Sarah had an amazing season and an amazing tournament," Andrews said.

Also in attendance at Wednesday's Jacobs game was Lauren Arceneaux, the former Golden Eagle standout who was the Daily Herald All-Area co-captain last season. Arceneaux, now playing on scholarship at Loyola University in Chicago, was named to the all-newcomer team in the Horizon League this season.