Asked what junior Lindsay Zdroik does well on a softball field, St. Edward coach Jaci Corn laughed.
“Everything,” she said. “She’s strong defensively and offensively. There really wasn’t a pitcher she struggled with last year and she hit over .500, and pitching-wise she was one of the leaders in the area.”
As a sophomore, Zdroik batted .530 with 32 RBIs and only struck out seven times in 83 at-bats. As a pitcher she went 13-11, striking out an impressive 232 batters in 145 innings and giving up a mere 19 walks in posting a 2.17 ERA.
Zdroik went 8-8 on the mound as a freshman, and while her ERA was lower at 1.83, she walked 24 and only struck out 110 in 100 innings. She also only batted .277 in in her first varsity season.
But Zdroik improved her speed and control in the circle and nearly doubled her batting average between her freshman and sophomore seasons.
“Her hitting and pitching has developed even more and as she improved, I think she knew that even more would be expected of her,” Corn said. “She’s even stronger mentally and physically this year and she’s one of our captains.”
Zdroik — who has verbally committed to pitch for Valparaiso University — has no problem shouldering heavy hitting, pitching and leadership responsibilities for the Green Wave.
“It makes me better,” Zdroik said. “I don’t want to let me team down so that pushes me more.”
Ryan Scully caught 75 percent of Zdroik’s starts for St. Edward. Scully, a senior, will see more time at shortstop, with junior Allison Stratman getting more starts behind the plate. But Scully has been invaluable in helping Zdroik to negotiate her first two varsity seasons.
“I love (Scully) behind the plate,” Zdroik said. “She calls pitches really well and even if I don’t hit my spot I know that she’ll back it up and stop it.”
Scully has watched Zdroik take incremental steps forward in each season, and if St. Edward’s 2015 season opener is any indication, Zdroik is ready to pick up where she left off last year.
In a 6-6 tie Tuesday against Chicago Christian that was called because of darkness, she went 3-for-4 with a triple and an RBIs. She also struck out 14 while allowing three earned runs in a complete-game effort.
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“I’ve seen loads of improvement from her. She has gotten a lot faster, she has more control, and the one thing I tried to help her with is confidence,” Scully said. “As a freshman she was understandably a little shier and as she has opened up, she has gotten better.”
Corn expects St. Edward’s competition in this year’s Metro Suburban Conference to have their hands full with Zdroik in the circle.
“She’s speed, and the nice part about it is that she still has movement,” Corn said. “She has all the pitches and the movement works. She can pinpoint spots. To me, she’s got it all.”
Gary Larsen is a freelance writer.
Top 5 Teams
1. St. Charles East: Defending Upstate Eight River champs won 30 games last year and will lean heavily on veterans Alex Latoria, Olivia Cheatham, Katie Kolb, and Kelly Rinker.
2. St. Charles North: Depth and leadership should carry North Stars, along with a group of five college-bound players in Abby Howlett, Kaitlyn Waslawski, Erin Nemetz, Alex Millett, and Jordyn Wolfe.
3. Bartlett: Hawks graduated a ton of talent to the college ranks and look to third-year varsity players Katie Fornoff and Alyssa Nowak to lead, along with Elyse Hickey and pitcher Danielle Kirby.
4. Huntley: Red Raiders return seven starters from 20-win team, led by seniors Shannon Walsh, Megan Baczewski, Haley Spannraft, Megan Larson and Jessica Knutsen, and sophomore pitcher Kateri Conklin.
5. South Elgin: Quality competition in the UEC Valley and a strong nonconference schedule that includes Downers Grove South, Benet and Conant will battle-test Storm, who feature team leaders Cassidy Westlund and Rachel Ziemba.
Top 20 Players
Megan Baczewski, Huntley, Jr., 3B; Emily Borg, Jacobs, Jr., 1B; Olivia Cheatham, St. Charles East, Sr., SS; Peyton DeChant, Hampshire, So., 1B/3B; Katie Fornoff, Bartlett, Jr., 2B; Abby Howlett, St. Charles North, Sr., 1B/OF; Danielle Kirby, Bartlett, Jr., P; Emily Kisch, Burlington-Central, Jr., OF; Katie Kolb, St. Charles East, Jr., OF; Alex Latoria, St. Charles East, Sr., 3B/P; Sarah Murray, Jacobs, Jr., SS; Courtney Neubauer, Burlington Central, Sr., OF/P; Jessica Rago, Elgin, Jr., P/OF; Ryan Scully, St. Edward, Sr., C/SS; Shannon Walsh, Huntley, Sr., OF; Cassidy Westlund, South Elgin, Jr., C/OF; Haley Widmayer, Hampshire, Sr., P; Jordyn Wolfe, St. Charles North, So., OF; Lindsay Zdroik, St. Edward, Jr., P; Rachel Ziemba, South Elgin, Sr., OF.