The way she swung the bat and handled the glove at third base answered the question of whether she was ready.
The smile on her face after the game covered the rest.
Sandburg’s Irene Travis has put the scariest moment of her softball life behind her.
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“It’s good to be back,” she said after Thursday’s 13-6 win over Stagg.
Travis, a sophomore third baseman, had just finished a day in which she reached base in her first three at bats to raise her average to .374. It was her third game back in the lineup and her second playing third since suffering a hairline fracture to the left side of her face on April 20.
Travis was all in on defense. When the situation dictated playing in, she played in.
“Well… I’m a little more careful now,” Travis said. “I don’t come in quite as far. But I honestly thought I was going to be more scared than I actually am. I feel normal out there.”
Travis will be wearing a mask at third base for the remainder of the season.
“I’m not really a fan of it,” Travis said. “I feel like I can’t really see out of it. It’s kind of uncomfortable, but I’m getting used to it. I’ll be wearing it until I’m fully healed, probably until travel season.”
Travis, who was struck by a line drive off the bat of Lincoln-Way East power hitter Christine Malito, was fortunate to get her glove up in time to cause a deflection.
“The bases were loaded and I had to go for it,” Travis recalled. “I saw the ball hit to me and I honestly thought I had it. Then I just remember going down.”
Two weeks later, only a slight redness under her left eye remained. The gleam was much more noticeable.
“It’s healing up well,” Travis said, pointing happily to her face. “It’s all good.”
Emotional win: There was only one way for Lincoln-Way Central pitcher Marina Esparza to describe how she felt Friday after shutting out Lincoln-Way East 2-0.
Or maybe there wasn’t.
“Oh, my gosh… it’s indescribable,” she said.
Esparza was one of the key players last season who led East (26-8) to a Class 4A supersectional. In her final game as a Griffin, she allowed five hits in a tough luck 1-0 loss to Normal West.
She became a Knight after the closing of Lincoln-Way North resulted in a boundary shift for some students in District 210.
“Being in the blue jersey (at East) was awesome,” Esparza said. “It was great there to have people around me who believed in me. It’s the same thing at Central.
“Playing this game I was nervous. There was definitely pride on the line.”
Esparza fired a two-hitter at the Griffins, recording four strikeouts. She also delivered an RBI double.
Central coach Jeff Tarala didn’t hesitate in going with Esparza.
“We’re very fortunate to have three pitchers, but this was Marina’s game all along,” he said. “She’s from East and she’s a senior. She pitched in some big, big games for East last year, so this was her day and she rose to the occasion. It was the best she’s pitched all year.”
Battery charged: The pitcher-catcher combination of juniors Dani Callahan and Abby Baez is making more than just an impact as batterymates for Lincoln-Way West..
Callahan is hitting .468 and Baez .464. They are 1-2 in hits, singles and doubles. Callahan has five home runs and leads the team in RBIs. Baez is third in RBIs. Both hit home runs in Wednesday’s 8-0 victory over Glenbard West.
“Abby and I work really well together,” Callahan said. “If one of us is down, we pick each other up. We both have fun playing the game, too.”
Lincoln-Way West (15-10) entered the week with a seven-game winning streak.
Twitter @tbaranek
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TOP 10
Won-loss records included through Sunday, with last week’s rankings in parentheses.
1. Lincoln-Way East 17-3 (3)
2. Lockport 24-3 (1)
3. Tinley Park 16-1 (5)
4. Lincoln-Way Central 17-5 (6)
5. Sandburg 19-7 (4)
6. Marist 15-5 (2)
7. Providence 18-8 (7)
8. Beecher 19-5 (8)
9. Oak Forest 15-5 (9)
10. Mother McAuley 14-10 (10)
Player of the Week: Senior catcher Gabby Smith went 4-for-5 with two home runs, eight RBIs, two runs and 10 total bases as Mother McAuley defeated Queen of Peace.