Engel keeps firing en route to CCIW's top honor

Ever since my oldest daughter played in the St. Charles Girls Softball League, I've known that Christy Engel could pitch.

Back then, one of my duties as an assistant coach was to warm up pitchers between innings. I still remember having to pay closer attention when Engel took the mound due to the simple fact that she could fire a mean fastball to the plate.

More than 10 years later, Engel can still be found on a softball mound, firing mean fastballs on the collegiate level.

The 20-year-old St. Charles native recently completed her sophomore season as a member of the Illinois Wesleyan women's softball team, where she helped lead the Titans to a 30-11 record and NCAA Division III Regional Tournament berth.

Engel, a 2006 graduate of St. Charles North, turned in a record-breaking sophomore season, compiling an 18-6 record with a 1.34 ERA.

Making 28 appearances, the right-hander made 24 starts and recorded 21 complete games, tying Kelly Murray (2003) for the team's single-season mark. While tossing a school-record 167½ innings, Engel allowed just 41 runs (32 earned) and 124 hits.

In conference play, she posted a 7-1 record, completing 7 of her 8 starts.

Earlier this month, Engel was selected as the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin's Pitcher of the Year for the 2008 campaign.

"It was a great season," said Engel, who posted an 8-7 record with a pair of saves during her freshman year in 2007. "My award really is a credit to my teammates. I throw a lot of drop ball pitches so opposing teams hit a lot of ground balls. The defense behind me was fantastic."

After pitching 86 innings as a freshman, Engel nearly doubled her workload this spring.

"It was a big change," she admitted. "But I looked it as a challenge. Sometimes it was more of a mental game, trying to be up for every game."

Illinois Wesleyan head coach Steve King was not surprised with Engel's success despite the increased work.

"Christy's a smart pitcher," said King, who guided the Titans to a 12-2 CCIW record in his first season at the helm. "She throws a great drop ball and keeps the ball down. Her mistakes are singles, not home runs, so she always kept us in the game.

"I did expect Christy to carry a much bigger load this year. Her delivery is smooth, and I think her stamina was much improved."

Despite racking up 152 strikeouts, nearly recording a strikeout every inning, Engel does not consider herself to be an intimidating force on the mound.

"I wouldn't classify myself as a power pitcher," said Engel.

What were the reasons behind her success this season?

"Christy's mental toughness and ability to hit her locations were contributing factors to her success," said King. "She rarely gave opponents good pitches to hit."

At St. Charles North, Engel pitched the North Stars to back-to-back Class AA regional titles in 2005 and 06.

At Illinois Wesleyan, Engel quickly found out that the competition got tougher.

"College softball is a huge change," said the secondary education major. "In college, they're all great hitters, 1 through 9, and they all can hit it over the fence."

After the Titans earned their second consecutive NCAA Division III Regional at-large berth, Engel proved she was up to the challenge, allowing just 2 runs in 3 games.

While Illinois Wesleyan posted its second straight 1-2 tournament mark, Engel's impressive stats included a minuscule 0.72 ERA. Sandwiched around a pair of 1-0 defeats (to Simpson College and 14th-ranked University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh), Engel tossed a 2-hit shutout during the Titans' 3-0 victory over Ripon May 9.

Engel, whose older sister Melissa was a starting pitcher at St. Charles North before competing in track and cross country at Augustana, also has a pair of younger softball-playing sisters -- Amanda, who recently completed her sophomore year as a varsity pitcher for the North Stars, and eighth-grader Danielle, a left-handed pitcher.

Losing only 4 seniors to graduation, Illinois Wesleyan figures to be a formidable foe once again in 2009.

"We had sophomores win the Conference Pitcher of the Year (Engel) and Player of the Year (Allison Ward), so there's good reason for optimism moving forward," said King.

Whatever happens, Engel will make sure she enjoys it.

"Hanging out with the girls and playing softball -- it's a blast," she said.