Elgin Sports Hall of Fame has a busy summer
Remember when the teacher used to make you write a report on what you did on summer vacation? Well, I won’t go into my summer, other than to say it was healthy and fantastic, but instead today’s first report of the 2013-14 school year will catch you up on some of the happenings of the summer around the Fox Valley and take a brief look at what’s ahead.
The Elgin Sports Hall of Fame Foundation has been busy this summer preparing for its annual golf outing in September and then the annual induction ceremony and awards banquet on Nov. 3 at The Centre of Elgin.
The golf outing is on Thursday, Sept. 5, at The Highlands of Elgin. The event supports the foundation’s scholarship program and other activities. The cost is $125 per golfer, which includes golf, lunch, and dinner. In addition, there will be numerous raffle prizes and silent auction items. Items available in the silent auction include tickets for the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Blackhawks, items from the Chicago Cubs, golf foursomes at different courses, autographed baseballs, photos, and pucks (including Patrick Kane, Bobby Hull, Tony Esposito, and Brent Seabrook).
From its first golf outing in 2006, the annual scramble has helped the organization increase the number of $1,000 scholarships to high school student-athletes that live in and/or attend high school in Elgin from 15 to 25 yearly. For 2014, the foundation plans to increase the amount of money provided for scholarships an additional $6,250 so that scholarship recipients will be awarded $1,250.
Anyone interested in dinner only may attend the 5 p.m. dinner, auction and raffles for $35. Contact Dick Fitchie, chair of the golf committee at (847) 888-2939 for more information.
On Nov. 3, the ESHOF will hold its annual induction ceremony and awards banquet. There are seven new candidates on this year’s ballot. They are Larkin graduates Anton Kossakowski (wrestling), Lauren Moulton Marshall (volleyball), and Fred Versluys (basketball), Elgin High graduate Mark Michelson (swimming), St. Edward graduates Pat Sheehy (wrestling) and Doug Sanders (baseball), and Elgin broadcaster Jeff Myers (friend of sports). Ballots are now being sent out to voting members and must be returned to the Hall of Fame no later than 6 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 9 to be counted. Anyone interested in joining the organization and becoming a voting member may refer to the website at www.eshof.org for a membership form.
Russell will be coaching: Michelle Russell, curiously let go with little explanation as to why as Dundee-Crown’s girls basketball coach, has landed on the staff of one of the best up-and-coming programs in the area. She will be the head sophomore coach at Huntley this season. Coach Steve Raethz’s Red Raiders varsity squad is coming off a trip to the Class 4A Elite Eight and word has it the Raiders were awfully good over the summer. Raethz landed Huntley a good one in Russell, a coach who will surely groom young Red Raiders the right way.
Softball news: South Elgin hired Stephanie Katzenberger to replace Jason Schaal as head softball coach. Katzenberger has spent the last seven years as the assistant softball coach at Oak Lawn, where she was also the varsity volleyball coach. Prior to that she coached Walther Lutheran to three straight regional softball titles between 2004 and 2006. Originally from Saginaw, Mich., she played softball at Concordia University. She takes over a South Elgin program that is coming off its third regional title in seven years under Schaal, who left South Elgin for a department head position at Grayslake Central, where he is also coaching football and was recently named the head softball coach as well.
In other softball news, Dr. Nick Bumbales has been named the new head coach at Elgin High. Bumbales is also the Maroons’ girls basketball coach and formerly coached girls volleyball and was a boys basketball assistant coach. In softball, he replaces Chad Dahlman, who stepped down to spend more time with his family.
And in still more softball news, congrats go out to South Elgin senior Alyssa Buddle, who helped lead her Beverly Bandits 16U travel team to the PGF national championship this summer.
Golf news: It was a busy summer of golf, of course, but a couple worthy notes — Larkin graduate Carlos Sainz, Jr., finished third in the Illinois Open at the Glen Club in Glenview, losing a three-way tiebreaker for the championship. And congrats to the Eric and Brad Winters for finishing 1-2 at the Elgin Open. Eric Winters won the two-day event at The Highlands with a 149 and Brad had a 153.
And a final golf note that’s also kind of a sad one — due to scheduling conflicts and the IHSA moving the season start a week later, the Larkin Invitational won’t be played this season. Royals’ coach Tim Jones, who tried to work out dates at The Highlands and Bartlett Hills to no avail, estimated Larkin had been hosting a boys golf tournament to kick off the season for roughly 25 years.
And, now ...: Summer is over — at least in the high school sports department. Golf meets began this week, all other fall sports get going next week and Friday Night Lights return next week. Follow it all on the pages of the Daily Herald, at dailyherald.com, football.dailyherald.com, the Daily Herald’s e-edition, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pintrest and, I’m sure within a few weeks, a few dozen more social media outlets. Away we go ...
Follow John on Twitter @dhpreps