When Valerie Jisa became Fenwick High School softball head coach, she was optimistic about having a successful debut. But little did she realize how successful the season would be.
“I did have a plan and a goal,” she said, “but no, I didn’t think it would get as far as it did.”
Fenwick finished the season on June 8, with a 4-2 victory over Waterloo in the IHSA Class 3A third-place game at the Louisville Slugger Complex in Peoria. It’s the best state finish in program history for the Friars (18-10).
“I am proud of getting [to Peoria] and bringing home some hardware. I’m proud of the way they finished,” Jisa said.
Against Waterloo, Fenwick scored all its runs in the bottom of the third inning. With one out, Gabrielle Simon doubled. Bella Bigham brought home Simon with a single but was out trying to reach second base on the play.
Undeterred, the Friars went back to work as Kailey Janda walked, then scored on a double by Madelyn Entler. Leah Lowery plated Entler with a RBI single. Following a Waterloo passed ball, Gianna Pescatore walked, then Teresa Nevarez’s RBI single scored Lowery.
Jordan Rossi, a freshman, started in the circle for Fenwick, allowing five hits — but no runs — over two innings. Senior Sophie Stone relieved Rossi to begin the third and went the rest of the way. In five innings she allowed two runs on three hits. While Stone issued six walks, she also had 10 strikeouts.
“Sophie is bold and challenges things,” Jisa said. “She waited the last two seasons, and in the big moments this year, she shined.”
An itinerary snafu before the game probably helped the Friars.
“Friday, I didn’t fill out an itinerary for the bus driver because at the time we didn’t know when we were going to play on Saturday,” she explained. “I didn’t confirm to the driver what time we were leaving the hotel on Saturday, so we were running late and didn’t have a lot of time to warm up. But it forced us to focus and not think about all the things that could go wrong.”
“This year’s team was truly determined to make history,” Entler said. “I think the win against Waterloo summed that up.”
The victory also atoned for Fenwick’s 10-0 five-inning loss in the semifinal, June 7, against eventual 3A champion Pontiac. The Friars managed only one hit — a Nevarez single — off of Pontiac pitcher Elena Krause, who also posted 12 strikeouts.
Jisa believed the big stage affected her team against Pontiac.
“They were so nervous that first game,” Jisa said. “They made errors that they never make, and [Pontiac] taught me so much. They’re the number one team.”
Entler was proud of how her team bounced back from the loss to finish the season on a high note.
“We went into the state finals as the underdogs, and coming out as third-place finishers truly proved to ourselves and others that we did deserve to be there,” she said.
Entler and Stone were varsity players as freshmen in 2021. That season, Fenwick had two victories. Entler admitted she didn’t envision having a state trophy three years later, but she also was encouraged by watching some friends on the Oak Park and River Forest High School team take third in last season’s Class 4A tournament.
“Words are not enough to express how proud and happy I am to end my career with a win, a state trophy, and my name along with my teammates in the history books at Fenwick,” she said.
Three Fenwick players garnered Class 3A All-State honors: Simon (First Team), Lowery (Second Team), and Entler (Third Team). Lowery, Simon, and Stone were named to the Girls Catholic Athletic Conference All-Red Division Team.
Entler, Stone, and Fenwick’s other seniors (Mary Barganski, Gianna Bonano, Rylee Graves, and Ellie Kolb) will be missed. But Bigham, Janda, Lowery, Nevarez, Pescatore, Rossi, and Simon will be among 11 returning players for the Friars next season.
Although it’s unlikely Fenwick will be able to sneak up on teams like this season, Jisa is confident about what’s ahead.
“This experience was a beautiful moment for them, to see what it looks like,” she said of the returnees. “My hope is that next season they set the standard and hold the new players accountable.”
Upcoming camp
Fenwick coach Valerie Jisa informed Wednesday Journal of an upcoming softball camp. It takes place June 24-27 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each day at the Fenwick Priory in River Forest and is open to girls between fourth and ninth grades. For more information, email Jisa at vjisa@fenwickfriars.com.