Little A-H ready for big postseason

Harvard's Sam Hereby throws the ball to second base against Crystal Lake Central at Lions Park on April 6, 2010. (Hollyn Johnson - hjohnson@nwherald.com)

E-mail this story

Print this story

Share

All the pieces were in place for Jerry Lagerhausen to have a successful softball season this year at Alden-Hebron.

As the coach at one of the state’s smallest schools, some could see “successful” as a relative term since the Giants are forced to play teams from schools that dwarf A-H’s modest numbers.

But an 18-7 season against schools with at least triple the Giants’ enrollment – which tops out at just over 100 – certainly indicates success.

It also makes A-H poised for a nice run in the IHSA Class 1A South Beloit Regional, which begins at 4:30 p.m. today with a play-in game between fifth-seeded South Beloit and No. 4-seed Kirkland Hiawatha.

Second-seeded A-H plays No. 3-seed Dakota at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday in a regional semifinal.

“We’ve kind of ironed out some of the things that at the beginning of the season were causing some problems for us, and we’re optimistic about our chances,” Lagerhausen said. “We’re one of the smallest schools in 1A, and we play a lot of 2A and 3A teams, so to get to 18 wins, that’s a big accomplishment for us.”

The Giants went 8-2 in the Northeastern Athletic Conference to close out the season, and rode the arm of senior pitcher Hayli Lagerhausen through much of the season. She is 15-7 overall, and has thrown four no-hitters and five one-hitters. Hayli Lagerhausen has been one walk shy of a perfect game three times.

The Giants have fixed their mistakes, too. After committing at least one error in every game to start the season, A-H has committed one in its past eight.

The Giants haven’t played for one since 2007. Should they beat Dakota on Wednesday, the Giants could face top-seeded Orangeville in a regional final at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Orangeville is ranked No. 3 in the state by the Illinois Coaches’ Association, but Jerry Lagerhausen is confident in his team, which is batting .325 with an on-base percentage of .504.

“I feel like the way we’re playing right now, we can play with anyone,” Jerry Lagerhausen said.

Coincidentally, one of the teams that sparked the Giants’ season turnaround begins its state tournament journey this week as well.

Harvard – which beat A-H early in the season – begins its IHSA Class 2A Durand Regional with a semifinal game at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday against the winner of today’s play-in game between fifth-seeded Rockford Lutheran and No. 4-seed Rockford Christian.

The Hornets are 13-10 overall, and are focusing on one game at a time instead of looking to last season’s regional title as a marker for this season’s goals.

“We are just focusing on the game in front of us,” senior infielder Sam Hereley said. “We understand that we can’t play one game ahead, but we want to show our town we are still a team, and we want to bring home another regional title.”

Freshman pitcher Maty Brincks has taken over full-time pitching responsibilities and she is backed up by senior Brittany Finke and sophomore Randi Blazier. Hereley, junior Carlie Gabrys and senior Michaela Binz contribute substantially from the plate.

“We’re playing pretty solid,” Harvard coach Will Benson said. “We’ve gotten better at coming back from mistakes, and we’re hitting well. ... We’re just focusing on one game at a time.”