Showing posts with label Galvan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Galvan. Show all posts

Bulls season ended, offseason hoopla begins

Thursday, May 6, 2010 11:16 AM Chronicle
Labels: , , , , 0 comments

Salvador Galvan
Staff Writer 

          The Chicago Bulls 2009-2010 regular and off-season have officially come to a close.

The Bulls made the playoffs for the second straight year since drafting Derrick Rose, and hoped to make another great impression on the league and by defeating the NBA’s best, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The last time the Bulls and Cavaliers met in the playoffs, Michael Jordan was playing for Chicago. Jordan hit a game winning shot in 1993, similar to 1989.

This time the Cavaliers have a number 23 set to take the Cavaliers where they have never been before.

            The Cavaliers had the best record in the NBA, 61-21, and were ready to take on the eighth seeded Chicago Bulls, who finished the year with 41wins, 41 loses.

The last time the Bulls and Cavaliers met, it was the regular season and LeBron James was out and resting for the playoffs. The Bulls won the game.

This time, King James and his squad were back to full strength and with new faces including Shaquille O’Neal, and Antwan Jamison, to help them on their quest to the NBA Championship. Both Shaq and Jamison could take some of the load off of James.

In game one of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals, the Cavs played very well. LeBron had 24 points, along with three other players who scored in double figures. The Bulls weren’t getting it done on the boards and were out rebounded by the Cavs 50-38. They were dominated in the paint and were out scored 42-26.

In the third quarter the Bulls found themselves down by 22 points and it seemed as if the Cavs would cruise to a 1-0 series lead.

But the Bulls didn’t stop fighting. They eventually brought it back within seven points, but that was as close as they would get to the lead. James took over and helped put the Cavs ahead for good, winning the game 83-96. The Bulls saw Derrick Rose blossom again in the playoffs. He finished with a double-double, 28 points and 10 assists.

            Game two was more competitive and personal for the Cavaliers and the city of Cleveland.

Joakim Noah had some choice words for the city of Cleveland. He isn’t fond of the nightlife and expressed his dislike publicly. Adding fuel to the fire and trash talking while still in Cleveland probably wasn’t the smartest move, but it is the playoffs and anything goes.

The Cavs came out strong and were determined to take a two game lead into Chicago and inch closer to the NBA Finals. Noah was booed every time he got the ball, which was expected, but he did end up with a great night. He finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Bulls, but was no match for James who scored 40 points, 15 coming in the final quarter. The final score was 112-102. The wins weren’t blow outs, which many people expected from the Cavs. The Bulls needed to come home and get some wins in order to keep the series going.

            With a few days off to prepare for the Cavs at the United Center, the Bulls knew it was a must win game if they had any chance to get back into the series. The Bulls came out strong on both sides of the court.

            They played well on defense, despite some foul trouble, and were magnificent on the offensive side thanks to Rose’s 31 points, Kirk Hinrich’s 27 points, and Loul Deng’s 20 points. Noah once again had a double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds.

            They would take the lead into halftime and going into the third quarter, the Bulls clicked and pulled ahead by 21 points. Over the course of the third and fourth quarter the Bulls slowly saw the lead diminish to a one point deficit near the end of the game.

            The Bulls depended on free throw shooting to win the game for them, but they missed many. The Cavs would hit some big time three’s to cut a seven point deficit to a one point lead with less than five seconds remaining in regulation.

            Loul Deng took a pair of free throws and only made one, with three seconds left, giving the Cavs one last shot to pull off the impressive comeback.

            The Cavs’ Anthony Parker would launch a half court shot only to have it hit the side of the rim and give the Bulls the 108-106 win over the Cavs.

            The Bulls evened up the series, after escaping a game three loss, to give fans another memorable playoff series, as they did last year against the Celtics.

            LeBron’s 39 point effort wouldn’t be enough to defeat the Bulls this time around, but he would be back.

            Spirits up and positive attitudes, the Bulls looked to even up the series at two games when they hosted the Cavs on Sunday. However, James had no intentions of letting it happen.

             The Bulls were outplayed and dropped game four by a score of 121-98. Though history was made, thanks to Joakim Noah’s 21 points and 20 rebounds, making him the first Chicago Bull in history to ever record a 20 point, 20 rebound game, the Cavs would steal the show.

            Rose also added 21 points, but he could only watch James get a triple-double with 37 points, 11 assist, and 12 rebounds. Mo Williams scored 19, and Jamison 24.

            Halfway through the second quarter, the Bulls had a small four-point lead, but it was erased quickly and stayed that way.

            As the third quarter came to a close, James dribbled the ball up court to shoot a half court shot over Derrick Rose, just as time expired and drained it. Cleveland hit their shots and contained the Bulls the way they had been expected to.

            The Cavs looked to put away the Bulls in Cleveland for game five with a 3-1 series lead over the Bulls, and get ready to face the Boston Celtics, who already advanced by beating the Miami Heat in five games.

            It was win or go home for the Bulls and they did everything they could to keep the series alive. The Bulls were in foul trouble throughout the game, though some calls were questionable. Both Brad Miller and Taj Gibson fouled out and Noah had five.

            LeBron and Shaq were dominant the whole game and having them both drive into the lane, they would get fouled. James used it to his advantage and had a couple of add-on plays to pile on more points.

            LeBron finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists. He would have one of the most decisive plays down the stretch. Rose had just hit a tear drop over O’Neal and appeared to have been fouled but wasn’t called, LeBron then ran it back the other way and scooped  it in with a foul being called giving him the 3-point play.

            The Bulls were close until the final minutes, only trailing by four, but eventually lost by two points, 96-94.

            The most important story of game five was LeBron’s right arm, which appeared to have been injured on an earlier play. It was evident in his last three throw attempts, he shot the first one right handed and hit the shot to put the Cavs up by four, making it a two possession game with four seconds left.

            The second one he planted his left foot on the line and shot it lefty but held his right elbow after releasing the shot. The Bulls would get the miss and call a timeout, and James walked off the court with a look of discomfort on his face, holding his elbow. When asked whether he would be ready to play the Celtics, he assured everyone he would be fine and ready to go.

            Now that the Bulls season is over many questions remain: Will Vinny Del Negro still be the Bulls head coach next year? His job status has been questioned since reports leaked that he was involved in an altercation between himself and Bulls president of operations John Paxson.

            Who will the Bulls pick up in the 2010 free agency? Could it be hometown native Dwyane Wade? Reining MVP LeBron James? Chris Bosh?  Joe Johnson? Dirk Nowitzki, Carmelo Anthony, or Amare Stoudemire if they chose to opt-out of their final year under contract? Or even take a gamble and sign Tracy McGrady? No one is sure, but the list goes on for All-Stars who will hit the free agency this summer and the Bulls will be a much stronger team with the addition of another All-Star to join Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah.

            The Bulls have the third most spending money this year. If money is what the top free agents want, then you could see a Wade, Rose, and Noah line up or a James, Rose, Noah line up, either one would instantly make the Bulls a legitimate contender. With a few players to help out on the bench, Chicago could very well have a seventh NBA Championship banner hanging in the United Center. 

Women play strong in conference, break records

11:01 AM Chronicle
Labels: , , , , 0 comments

Salvador Galvan

Staff Writer


The women’s softball team is back to its winning ways and has broken their season-high win streak of five games.

On April 17, the Lancers started the weekend by playing South Suburban College on the road. The Lancers lost the first game of the two-game set by a slim margin with a final score of 7-6.

Looking to rebound from the loss, the Lancers came out strong in the second game. Both their offense and defense played well. The pitching and defense held South Suburban to two runs, while the offense came out swinging, putting up 11 runs to win the game 11-2.
 
With make-up games against Oakton on the 19, the Lancers looked to build off that win and string together more. The Lancers picked up the two wins against Oakton by forfeit. Adding those two wins, the Lancers had three wins in a row.

The Lancers wanted to earn every win by playing and were ready to host Moraine Valley Community College.

The first game was a low scoring affair, but the Lancers came out with the 2-1 win in game one. The second game was higher scoring and the Lancers edged out Moraine Valley and won 8-5, sweeping the two-game set against their conference rival and extending the streak to five games, tying the season-high win streak.

Looking to keep the wins coming, namely conference games, the Lancers hosted Waubonsee Community College for their next two games. The first game the Lancers won 8-5, and pushed the winning streak to six games, setting a new season-high win streak.

In the second game, they went on an offensive tear and won their seventh straight game with a score of 12-4.

The win also marked the sixth straight home win and, more impressively, their eight straight conference game win.

Since the start of April, the Lancers have won 11 out of their 12 conference games, a goal Coach Garcia had for her team. She wanted the Lancers to play well against conference opponents and finish with a good record to have a high seed once the playoffs start.

The Lancers have 15 wins and 15 losses and still have a few games left before the season comes to a close. As long as they keep playing hard and giving 100 percent, they’ll be ready for the post season where they could finish where Coach Garcia hoped they’d finish--first place and winning state. 

Softball team gets back to .500

Saturday, April 17, 2010 2:32 PM Chronicle
Labels: , , , , 0 comments

Salvador Galvan
Staff Writer


      With a rocky start to kick off the 2010 women’s softball season, Coach Susan Garcia hoped her team would pick it up on the defensive and offensive end and win more games. They did just that with some style by winning five games in a row. During the five game win streak, the Lancers bats were on fire and their pitching and defense were lights out. The women outscored their opponents 52-6 during the win streak. Coach Garcia said, “It’s good to have wins and be in a grove.”

      Dropping their first game in the Kankakee Tournament against Grand Rapids Community College by 8-6, the Lancers quickly put that loss behind them and prepared to rebound against South Suburban College. 

      With the women determined to comeback and end the tournament on a good note, they defeated South Suburban College 4-2 and didn’t look back. Only able to play two of the three tournament games, the third game cancelled due to weather, the Lancers were ready to build on their last win and have the momentum carry over when they hosted Harper College at home.

      The first game against Harper College, sophomore Heather Ruetsche took the mound and was absolutely dominant. She pitched five near perfect innings, limited Harper to two hits, one walk and no runs. She hit her spots and struck out seven batters. Ruetsche helped her own cause by going 2 for 3 at the plate. She had four RBI, coming off a double and a home run. She scored three runs. The Lancers won that game 14-0 and extended their winning streak to two games.

      In the second game against Harper College, freshman Monika Wedick, scattered six hits, one walk, six strikeouts and limited Harper to three runs in five innings. She won the game 12-3 and extended the women’s win streak to three games.

      The Lancers would go on the road and play Morton College for their next two games. Ruetsche, hoped to keep the momentum rolling and help her team win the first game against Morton College after an outstanding game against Harper College., Ruetsche was almost identical to her last game, near perfect, as she pitched five innings and only gave up one hit and three walks, while striking out seven and giving up no runs. She was perfect at the plate, going 3 for 3 by hitting three singles. She drove in three runs and scored two, herself. The Lancers won by the same score as Ruetsche’s last outing, 14-0, and extended the win streak to four games.

      Game two against Morton College, Wedick was ready to keep the streak going and win her second game in a row. Wedick pitched six superb innings, limiting Morton to zero runs off three hits, three walks, and 10 strikeouts. The Lancers would go on to win their fifth straight 8-0, but it came at a price. Wedick’s great pitching was cut short after a sharply hit line-drive hit off her arm and ended her game, which raised concern for an already hurt pitching rotation.

      Injuries seem to be a recurring part of the women’s season so far. Wedick’s arm injury, which later revealed no break to her arm or wrist, was only the latest injury to the Lancers this year. 

      Pitcher Becky Taylor suffered a concussion March 23 against Kishwaukee. She was playing first base and while making a play, she was run into by an opposing player’s knee to her head; she hasn’t played since the injury. Infielder and outfielder Melisa Ori has been dealing with a wrist injury, but it hasn’t kept her out of games this year. Charmagne Black, infield and outfield, had a sprained ankle but didn’t miss much time. Infielder Leslie Fletcher has been bothered by shoulder tendonitis which has limited her to hitting only. She hasn’t been able to play defense yet. Infielder and outfielder Maddie Riordan had a quad injury that slowed her down. 

      So far this year only four of the twelve women haven’t been injured and only one pitcher has been healthy, Ruetsche. Most of the girls are playing with a few nicks and bruises. 

      “We can’t chew gum and walk at the same time without getting injured,” Coach Garcia jokingly said. 

      She added, “When we are healthy and playing in the correct positions, spirits are up and we look good together,” which is something she stressed early in the year that she wanted to see improvement in.

      The Lancers were scheduled to play McHenry April 8, but due to the weather, the games were rescheduled for Thurs. April 26. The extra days to rest helped the women heal up and rest for a tough schedule that weekend. Putting the five game win streak on the line, the women were ready to play in the Highland Community College Tournament. The Lancers knew they would have a tough couple of games and they wanted to keep winning against tougher opponents.

      The woman had to play five games that weekend at the Highland Community College Tournament, their first of three games on Sat. April 10. They lost their game against Carl Sandburg College 6-2 and put an end to the win streak. The Lancers rebounded from the loss by beating their next opponent, Illinois Valley Community College 6-3 and winning the second game Saturday. The women played South Suburban College and hoped to end Saturday on a good note, but lost the game 4-1. They ended Saturday with a record of 2-1. 

      Sunday would prove challenging as well for the Lancers, as they dropped both games played. 

      The first game was against Sauk Valley College and ended with a score of 10-1. The second game was played against Highland Community College and ended with a score of 7-2. Injuries affected the team from playing at their best and the Lancers ended the tournament with a record of 1-4, not quite what they had hoped for, especially taking a five game winning streak into the tournament.

      The Lancers looked to start off the week on a high note on the road. They visited Elgin Community College Tues., Ruetsche pitched game one. She pitched well, giving up four hits, no walks, and two strikeouts. The score was close most of the game until the bottom of the fifth, when the Lancers starting hitting the ball. They scored seven total runs in the fifth, with two outs. The highlight of the inning was Taylor’s two run double. Taylor was playing her first non-tournament game since her concussion. Black contributed with two hits.

      In game two, the Lancers looked to take both games from Elgin. However, Taylor took the loss, as the Lancers lost by a score of 11-5. The Lancers committed six errors for nine unearned runs. The bats weren’t there, as the Lancers could only pick up three hits from Kellie Kraft, Ruetsche, and Riordan.

      Despite fighting through injuries this year, the Lancers had some outstanding players. Three of Coach Garcia’s players are currently placed in the top 50 National Junior College Athletic Association athletes list. 

      Although injured, Taylor is ranked 47 out of 50 in earned run average (ERA) with and ERA of 1.62 in two games as a pitcher. 

      Also ranked as a top 50 pitcher is Ruetsche, who is ranked 46 on the strike out list with 35 innings pitched and 33 strikeouts, an average of 0.94 strikeouts per inning. Ruetsche was also named athlete of the week for the week of March 29. During the week of Ruetsche pitched two games and posted a record of two wins, sporting a perfect ERA of 0.00. Both wins had scores of 14-0. She gave up three hits, three walks and struck out 14 batters. She played four games in total and had a batting average of .538, while scoring seven runs, driving in 11, hitting a double, a triple, and two home runs.

      Also on the strikeout leader list with Ruetsche, is Wedick. Wedick is ranked 43 of 50, with 25 innings pitched and 24 strikeouts, bringing her to an average of 0.96 strikeouts per inning.

      Also recognized for her outstanding play was freshman Valerie Brzezinski, who was named athlete of the week for the week of March 22. She had a batting average of .444 and sparked the five game win streak with the game winning hit March 27 against South Suburban College. She committed zero errors on defense.

      The Lancers were scheduled to play against Oakton Community College April 6 but, due to the weather, the game was rescheduled for Mon. April 19.

Softball team stays hopeful after rocky start

Friday, March 26, 2010 9:54 PM Chronicle
Labels: , , , , 0 comments

Salvador Galvan
Staff Writer
 

      The women’s softball season is underway and the women are working hard to get wins and get on their way to a successful season. 

      The team trip to St. Louis was cut short due to rain and the team headed home a day early. Only able to play one game out of six, the women dropped the game 6-3 against Meramec College. 

      Coach Susan Garcia said there were things she liked and things she wants to see improvement on. The offense looked good, hitting a few triples that helped them stay in the game and build confidence. The rainy field conditions didn’t favor the defense with errors in the infield giving up four unearned runs.

      Getting back to the field didn’t turn out the way the team hoped. On March 17, the Lancers played two away games against Kankakee, losing both games with scores of 19-4 and 8-0. 

      Coach Garcia saw problems in the defense, watching balls go through player’s legs. Sophomore Kellie Kraft said, “We weren’t there.”

      Coach Garcia was confident that all the things that went wrong for the team could and would be corrected for their following home games, March 19, against Triton College. Friday was better for the Lancers, as they split the double header against Triton, winning the first game 4-2 and losing the second in a close score of 6-5. 

      In the first game against Triton, Sophomore Becky Taylor pitched seven innings, while giving up eight hits, three walks, and striking out two batters, limiting Triton to one earned run. Giving support to Taylor’s pitching, Sophomore Heather Ruetsche went 2 for 3, with a triple and Kellie Kraft, a sophomore, added a double to help the Lancers take the first game.

      In the second game, Ruetsche pitched six innings, giving up seven hits, two walks, two strikeouts and one earned run. 

      Sophomore Melissa Ori had a good game offensively, going 2 for 4 and hitting a three-run triple to help the Lancers stay in the game. 

      Coach Garcia said game two was difficult because. “Players were playing out of position and, unfortunately, we are not yet comfortable on the field,” she said. “Right now we are looking for the consistency outside to get a good rhythm with both our offense and defense.”

      The team will play Kishwaukee on March 25 at 3 p.m. and will try to get a win streak started and get comfortable on the field with each other. 

      “Team chemistry is good, they just need to bring it to the field and respect each other’s talents and know they can get the job done,” Garcia said.

      With plenty of games left in the season, the team has a lot of time to get more wins under their belts and get comfortable on the field. 

      Freshman Monika Wedick, a pitcher for the Lancers who also plays the outfield and second base, talked about coming into her first season of women’s college softball.

      The change from high school softball to college softball made Wedick nervous but excited about change, and the chance to play alongside people with more experience.


      “It’s harder coming from high school into college because it’s more competitive,” she said.

      Wedick said her goals for the season are to improve her hitting, keep her attitude up and become a leader for the team. She said it’s harder to lead the team with sophomores who already have experience. She said that, although the St. Louis trip was cut short, she did enjoy team activities and said it was a good bonding experience with her teammates. Wedick pitched against Kankakee on March 17, but wasn’t satisfied with her pitching.

        “It was a tough game because my pitching wasn’t on and I was pulled to right field where the sun was in the way, but I was happy with my hitting offensively,” she said.

       For her next start Wedick said she hopes to hit her spots, make pitches on target and continue to hit the ball well.

Softball veterans set example for freshmen

Thursday, March 18, 2010 12:47 PM Chronicle
Labels: , , , , 0 comments

Salvador Galvan
Staff Writer
 
      With basketball season over and spring just around the corner, spring sports are coming and the girl’s softball team is preparing for the upcoming season.


      Head coach Susan Garcia said the team has been working hard this off-season and is ready for the season to start. The girl’s softball team is coming off a successful year last year finishing second place overall in the conference and fourth in the state.


      It wasn’t the first time the team had places in the top four in the state, in fact four out of the last five years, the team has finished second, third twice, and fourth place. This season they hope to win the conference and capture the state title, as they did in 2008.


      There is still time in the preseason for preparation and the team will be traveling to St. Louis for a preseason tournament. They will leave March 11 and will return March 14. They play a total of six games in two games.


      Sophomore Kellie Kraft said, “St. Louis should be fun. Florida was a blast and it’s always fun to be on the road with the team. It’s good bonding experience for teammates.”


      When asked if team captains had been named yet Coach Garcia said, “Captains emerge before season to see who leads the group.”


      With four returning sophomores and one new sophomore pitcher, Coach Garcia has high expectations and said with one year experience at the college level they need to step up and help newcomers to the team.


      Coach Garcia is excited for the new season to start and has talked about some of her players and their positions.


      She has three pitchers that also play other positions, including catcher. She said the pitcher-catcher match up really depends on who is pitching, since catchers call the games differently for each pitcher.


      She talked about incoming freshman Maddie Riordan, who plays second base but played short stop for Lakes High school, and described her as “an overall infielder, a contact hitter with good defense and offensive skills.”


      Monika Wedick, a freshman from Grayslake Central, is a pitcher and Coach Garcia sees good things to come from her. She also described Kelly Silver, Wedick’s teammate at Grayslake Central, as a feisty catcher and outfielder. Coach Garcia is looking forward to working with all her players and improving overall as a team


      Kraft, has a positive outlook on the upcoming season and goals this year, both on a personal level and as a team.


      Having played softball for a number of years including four years at Warren Township, Kellie plays catcher and third base. She said the team needs better communication on the field and plans on the team getting stronger and more familiar with each other. She likes the teams’ strong infield and said they need a little improvement in the outfield before the season opener March 19 against Triton College.


      This will be Kraft’s last semester at CLC, so she plans on enjoying her last season playing softball. Her goals are to have a higher batting average, commit fewer errors, and hit more homeruns than she did last year. She said her new teammates need to adapt to new situations because the level of competition in college is much different than high school.


      “Don’t give up on yourself, everyone makes mistakes so keep your spirits up, because if they’re down it will affect the team,” she said.


       She wants the team to have fun together and keep each other motivated setting a good example and sticking by it.


      Every year is a different team and she said the team gains new qualities. She said each year is a different experience and she really can’t compare them.


      With the season opener less than three weeks away, the team is excited to go to St. Louis and play together with two goals in mind: win and enjoy the experience together.

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

    Search
Powered by Blogger