Big season for Wauconda's Wedl
She muscles pitches past hitters. Whips them wickedly fast, actually.
She muscles pitches over fences.
Funny, because Wauconda junior Kayla Wedl is, at first glance, scrawny, efficiently packing 125 pounds on a 5-feet-7 frame. She barely weighed 100 pounds her freshman year, her dad said. Her body fat is lower than her ERA.
"No muscle," she said of herself, smiling.
There are no scales that measure killer instinct and the ability to elevate performance in high-pressure situations.
That's what Wedl uses to her advantage. And that's why, after dominating in the circle and in the batter's box, she is the captain of the Daily Herald's all-area softball team for Lake County. She went 20-9 with 3 saves, striking out 381 batters and walking just 22 in 191 innings. The ERA was 0.73, aided by 12 shutouts. There were 4 no-hitters, including a perfect game.
And then there was what she did offensively: 61 hits, including 18 doubles, 5 triples and 14 home runs; 48 RBI; 53 runs scored; .517 batting average; .568 on-base percentage, 1.110 slugging percentage. She struck out jut twice.
With their skinny kid in the pitching circle, Wauconda's Bulldogs have fattened up on wins the last three years. The physical stature of the ace still seems to cause spectators to shake their heads.
"I get that a lot from umpires that haven't seen her," Wauconda coach Tim Rennels said. "They're shaking their head after the first inning. I'm trotting out to third (to coach) and they're like, 'How fast does she throw?' Or 'Is she going somewhere?' "
"I know people notice it," Wedl said of her less-than-intimidating frame. "But I really don't think about it. I get (coaches asking) 'How fast does she throw?' Because they're surprised."
Wedl says she throws 62 mph consistently. Hitters likely won't argue. An all-area player for the third time in as many years, she continues to get better. She struck out a career-high 19 batters in a game this season and then duplicated the feat the following week in a nine-inning loss to defending Class 4A state champ Warren in the North Suburban Conference championship game.
Wauconda won a Class 3A sectional title for the third year in a row, beating top-seeded Carmel 10-0 in the final. Wedl did it all. She struck out 15 batters in a six-inning 2-hitter, while also hitting a pair of 2-run homers.
She belted 9 homers as a sophomore. Keith Wedl says it was with the encouragement of assistant softball coach Dave Mills - who's Wauconda's head football coach - that his daughter started hitting the weights.
"She's not getting big," Keith Wedl said. "But just the working out gives her extra strength. She's solid as a rock. No body fat at all."
Keith and his wife, Kim, both attended Buffalo Grove. He played soccer before quitting sophomore year to work. She played a little softball. Kendra, a former softball star for Wauconda, and Kayla are their only two kids.
"We kept them involved in sports right from the get-go so they didn't have time to sit down and watch TV or anything like that," Keith said. "Kayla watched Kendra for so many years, and I think she just got the itch to play. She started at 7 and said, 'I'm not stopping.' You didn't have to teach her anything. She just picked up by watching."
And she continues to soak up the game.
"I'm not going to take any credit, because I didn't do anything," Keith said with a laugh. "I just drove her to practice every time."
More drives are in his future.
Last off-season, Kayla verbally committed to UIC, which finished first in the Horizon League during the regular season this year.
After her great 2015 season, will interest in her pick up? Will she remain committed to UIC?
"It all depends on the situation," Wedl said. "How much (scholarship) money? Am I going to hit? Am I going to just pitch? At UIC, I'm hitting, pitching and (playing) utility."
Here's the skinny, so to speak: She wants to do all of that in college.