Five return for Forrest’s Lady Apaches
By Ryan Dill
With spring right around the corner, the Apache women’s softball team is gearing up for the six-week season.
This year’s Lady Apaches include sophomores Beth Grooms from Ottawa, a catcher and outfielder; Shelly Obermiller from LaSalle-Peru, at shortstop; Megan Sluis of Princeton, at first or catching; Nicole Thompson also from Ottawa, as the number one pitcher; and Tina Wujek from St. Bede at third base.
Obermiller was First Team All Region and First Team Conference last years. Thompson won the Coaches’ Award and Second Team All Conference in 1998.
Freshmen on the team are Heather Fossum and Nicole Humphreys, both from Princeton, who will play pitcher and outfielder; Gina Hahn from Hall in the outfield and infield; Sara Kasperski from Putnam County at outfield or infield; Brianne Yarger from Putnam at second base; Narissa Strum from Princeton at outfield, infield or catcher; Katie Souba, from LaMoille, in the outfield; and Amery Ziel, from Ottawa, catcher.
"We haven’t even scratched the surface of the talent of this area," said head coach Bill Forrest explaining that the team is always looking for more players.
Forrest said the team’s strengths this year are a core of sophomores to help the newcomers, and a new assistant coach, Rykki Jung. Forrest said that Jung, who has four years of playing college softball under her belt, will be doing a lot of the recruiting in the spring.
Another strength is the way the team members get along.
"They have a better camaraderie than I’ve seen on other teams this early in the season," the coach said.
Noting that he didn’t want to make any predictions yet, Forrest said, "I think this year’s team, with Nicole Thompson pitching, is capable of being better than last year’s."
Last year the women were 14 - 25, but they beat College of DuPage, eventual winner of the National Championship in Division III, in the tournament and almost eliminated them. The Lady Apaches also won two games by the eight-run rule.
Forrest is predicting that the strong teams in the conference will again be DuPage, last year’s winner, and Joliet.
Over the spring break, and after press time, the women traveled to Florida to get a chance to play outdoors before the official season opens on March 16 at Spoon River.
Before the Florida trip, the team had been practicing mostly in the gym. The coach said one reason he was reluctant to make predictions about the season was that at press time, he had not seen them on the field.
The only real weakness the coach identified was a lack of players. Originally 30 women had signed up for the team, but of those, 13 remain.
"I am so disappointed because people are so reluctant to put in a little effort and enjoy the sport," he said. "You aren’t in this for the glory or the money. You do it because you enjoy the fun of the game."
Forrest remembered his first year at IVCC: "After the season was over, I had a bunch of girls come in with their uniforms in their bags, and they said ‘My name’s on this; I’ll be back next year,’ because they had such a good time."
Fans can expect to see the team in new jackets this year -- black with a silver interior, with IVCC in purple outlined in white on the left side.
And, according to the coach, "Win or lose, it will be a very enjoyable game to watch."
March 15, 1999 the Apache