More Top Picks Best Weighted Pencils For Handwriting
player ready...Clarendon Hills nabbed its first state championship when the girls 11 and under team went 3-1 in the State tournament to take the top prize in Brookfield.
The girls clinched their victory during an 18-7 win over Brookfield on July 23, just one day after being defeated 9-8 by the same team.
The victory arrived a mere five years after the Village first added girls softball to its Little League in 2017.
“Brookfield finished third at State last year, and we knew they were going to be our toughest competition, especially given they were hosting the tournament,” Clarendon Hills head coach Rob Goeckel said. “The girls played the Brookfield kids three times during the travel season and all the games were very close and competitive.”
The girls weren’t the only Clarendon Hills Little League Baseball squad from the organization to claim a state title this summer. The boys 10 and under team also won the state championship during an Aug. 3 game in La Grange Park, securing their first state title since the league began in 1953.
Along with the games against Brookfield at the girls State tournament, Clarendon Hills defeated Moline twice, 23-4 on July 22, and 13-1 on July 23.
Goeckel said his team played a rigorous schedule of 13 games in 17 days leading up to winning the State championship.
“The girls sharpened their skills by playing non-Little League games against advanced 11U and 12U travel teams, including five games in a tournament in Bloomingdale the week before the State championship,” he said.
Clarendon Hills finished fifth in the 10 and under State tournament a year ago, and Goeckel said the coaches this summer were aware of the talent on the roster from having coached or played against all of the girls during the regular Little League season this summer.
“We weren’t sure how they were all going to come together as a team, but after the first few practices and nontournament games, the pieces started to fall into place,” he said. “Roles on the teams were solidified with steady positions in the field and a defined batting order.”
Goeckel said a major strength for the team was being well-rounded.
“We had several power hitters who could clear the bases with big hits, solid play in the infield and pitchers who induced a lot of weak contact from the competition,” he said. “The strongest attribute of the team was the camaraderie and close friendship between the girls.”
That camaraderie was easily seen when coach Michelle Speziale hosted a pool party at her house the night before the first practice that allowed all of the girls to hang out in a casual space off the field. Goeckel said the girls on the team often would ride their bikes to meet up for ice cream in downtown Clarendon Hills or Hinsdale.
“They had the most fun when they all went to see the “Barbie” movie as a team and got to dress up in pink and hang out at the theater,” he said.
Top pitchers in the State tournament were Charlotte Goeckel, Emmy Havens and Gin Sikorsky, Goeckel said. He said top hitters were Abby Przyzcki, Olivia McEwen and Anna Makstenieks; and top fielders were Emma Campos at shortstop, Ellie Brankin at second base, Despite Patos at third base and catcher Grayson Contreras.
Goeckel said he is hopeful that the girls from this team will return next year and make a run at the 12 and under level.
The winner of the State tournament at that level advances to represent Illinois in the regional tournament, and the regional champion advances to the Little League Softball World Series in Greenville, North Carolina.
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.