Softball Standouts Reunite on Route 47

Recent Yorkville graduates Allison Haskins, Nicole Hersam, Megan Kuhn and Devin Turner helped the Lady Foxes win a regional softball title this spring. It was the second straight regional title for the Lady Foxes and just the third title in school history.

The four haven’t completely gone their separate ways this summer. While only Haskins and Hersam played on the same travel team, they all remain close and will soon resume being teammates by simply heading north on Route 47, where they’re enrolled at Waubonsee Community College in Sugar Grove.

“I played last summer (2010) with the Northern Illinois Thunder and Perry Clark (Waubonsee’s head coach) was my head coach,” Haskins said. “He convinced me. Money is tight, and it’s a great idea to play for him. They seem to love playing there, and it’s a good transition for me because I love the sport.”

Haskins appeared in 32 games for the Lady Foxes in the spring, hitting .259 with 10 runs. She led the team defensively with 79 assists.

She was teammates this summer with Hersam for the Aurora Raiders 18U team. Hersam hit .313 in the spring with a .430 on-base percentage.

You’ll find Turner playing for the Wheatland Spikes this summer. She’s bounced around a bit during her high school years, playing for the Aurora Raiders for a couple years before moving on to the Kane County Explosion for a season last summer.

“It’s been kind of overwhelming with how much I’m playing,” Turner said. “We’re playing a lot of weekend tournaments and then some doubleheaders during the week. Its seems like we’re playing softball games or practicing or having batting practice just about everyday.”

Turner has no reason to complain about spending most of her summer in cleats. She’s still been able to visit Six Flags and Raging Waves Water Park a few times, and she believes she’s playing some of the best softball of her life.

“I think the success I’ve had has carried over from the high school season,” she said. “I’ve definitely picked it up. I don’t know what my batting average is but it’s got to be one of my highest.”

Turner hit .321 for the Lady Foxes during her final season with 4 home runs, 17 RBIs and 28 runs.

“My confidence has really been strong and it really helped to have a good high school season to boost me this summer,” Turner said. “I’m just going out there and trying to have fun and not think too much about things but just enjoy the game.”

While many high school students remain indecisive about their college plans until their final year, Turner remembers her thoughts about attending Waubonsee dating back to her freshman year.

“It’s better financially and I have never known what I want to do major-wise,” she said. “So I get to discover myself and I get to continue playing softball which is a big perk.”

Haskins and Hersam’s Aurora Raiders faced Turner’s Wheatland Spikes team a few times this summer, giving the friends and former teammates a chance to have bragging rights.

“It’s good because we’re good rivals and good competition,” Haskins said.

Kuhn led the Lady Foxes by playing in 33 games last spring. She scored 18 runs and had 17 RBIs with a .304 batting average. As tough a hitter you’ll find to strikeout, Kuhn fanned just twice in 115 at bats. She spent her summer playing for the Northern Illinois Thunder and recently returned from a tournament in Chattanooga, Tenn.

“This was probably my favorite summer season of all,” Kuhn said. “Most of the girls on the team were all-conference, and we were in championships games in like every tournaments and then went to the World Series and had a lot of fun there.”

After a strong senior season at Yorkville, Kuhn saw her strong play continue this summer.

“Defense hadn’t been a strong point, but it’s gotten better,” she said. “Competition was much stronger. We faced some tough pitchers that I think helped me too, we had to play some D1 people which was a little intimidating.”

Kuhn’s excited to be reunited with several of her teammates in Sugar Grove this fall. She knew Turner was planning on going to Waubonsee but wasn’t sure about Haskins and Hersam.

“Allison came on at last minute and then Nicole changed her mind at the last minute too,” Kuhn said. “I’m excited to go to good organization and play a higher level of softball. It’s going to be a good way to meet people and I’ll know a bunch already.”

The four incoming freshmen won’t be the only Yorkville graduates on the team. Emily Adam and Brianna Conaway, both 2010 graduates, played for the Chiefs last year, posting a 42-17 record and advancing to the Region IV Div. II District C Tournament Championship.

The Chiefs had a large roster of 16 in the spring, but lost 11 sophomores to graduation. Clark anticipates a roster of 14 this year and it likely will include six former Lady Foxes.

“I think is helps us when they get to the collegiate level and there’s that familiarity,” Clark said. “At first you’re trying to unify a team and get to know the tendencies on and off the field. We’ve been fortunate to get these players who have been teammates for four years and it takes away some of the learning curve, brings them on board and makes my job a lot easier."

Clark praised the work of Yorkville softball coach Kathi Dockstader in developing a successful program that’s produced some talented players, especially in the past couple season.

“(Dockstader) waited and put in her dues and if you look at her roster, most of her varsity players play some kind of travel softball and that’s a pretty good talent pool to work through,” Clark said. “I want our kids to be three things. I want them to be coachable with no issues on or off the field. Do they hustle? I want blue-collared kids who hustle. And, most important, are they respectful to their teammates, to the coaches and to the parents? I can see talent and (Dockstader's) done a nice job with them so we have nice players to recruit.”