UI plays catch-up on softball scene

When Ron Guenther set out several years to add two women''s sports programs to his University of Illinois athletic menu, the athletic director did some numbers crunching.

Working up a budget to accommodate two more teams was, of course, part of this process. But Guenther also poured over some other figures that would figure prominently in his selection of sports.

Specifically, the Illini AD studied participation rates of all high school sports across the state. What he found was that two of the five most popular sports for girls  soccer and softball  were not offered by the UI Division of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Armed with that knowledge, says Guenther, the decision on which sports to add virtually made itself.

"My philosophy here is we represent the state of Illinois," he said. "We will recruit on a national basis, but we want to certainly reflect the sports that represent our state.

"These are two sports that have a high participation rate for the state of Illinois."

Soccer, No. 5 on the high school participation list, made its Illini debut last fall. It preceded softball  third on the same list  at the UI for pragmatic reasons.

"We opted to go with soccer first simply because the soccer fields already existed here," Guenther said. "In terms of equipment and field space, it looked as if it would be a bit easier to start."

The first steps to add softball will be taken in the next few months. Guenther hopes to have a coach hired by the fall. Construction of a playing facility, he said, could begin late this summer but no later than next spring. The site hasn''t been decided, but Guenther''s preference is on land immediately east of Illinois Field and north of the Atkins Tennis Center.

Guenther doesn''t expect the stadium to be fully completed until the spring of 2000.

"But the field certainly will be in place, along with some temporary seating, hopefully, for spring of ''99," he said.

While the UI jumped feet first into varsity soccer competition, it plans to ease into softball. The first Illini team, comprised of walk-ons, is scheduled to take the field in the spring of 1999. That group won''t play a Big Ten schedule, although it may square off against a few league members in nonconference games.

The first recruited players will join the team the following fall, with Illinois officially joining the Big Ten ranks in the spring of 2000.

"There''s going to have to be a phasing in," Guenther said. "The reason for that is you don''t want to put a noncompetitive team together."

In taking this deliberate approach, the Illini are following the lead of the two most recent additions to the Big Ten softball ranks. Purdue, which began league play in 1995, and Wisconsin (1996) each went through a similar test-run season before joining their Big Ten brethren.

That tact makes sense, says Purdue coach Carol Bruggeman, because a program just starting up must necessarily rely on walk-ons in those early years.

"Our first year we used two scholarships and had 15 walk-ons," Bruggeman said. "It certainly takes time. It takes patience."

Although NCAA Division I schools can offer as many as 12 softball scholarships, Guenther says the future good of the UI program dictates that those be phased in over four years.

"You can''t use all your scholarships up in one class," the Illini AD said.

As it did with soccer, the UI will hold open tryouts for its first softball team and expects to draw from the club program on campus. Veteran members of the club team have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of varsity softball.

"I''m very excited," said junior Melissa Morgan of Villa Grove. "I hope it will give some of the club members an opportunity to play varsity. A lot of us, when we came to the University of Illinois, they told us they would be adding softball. Some of the players were hoping they''d be able to play earlier than next fall or spring."

While the first Illini soccer team drew upon 11 members of a UI club program that had qualified for national tournaments, it remains to be seen whether club softball can provide a similar quantity or quality of help.

Until this spring, the UI softball club had been without a coach for two years.

In addition, its schedule is limited by the fact that there are no softball club teams at other Big Ten schools. Thus, the UI club team is left to play junior colleges and small four-year schools.

And unlike soccer, softball has no national club system that would provide a national tournament opportunity.

"I''d say the softball club is not as far along in terms of national experience as the soccer club was," said Gary Miller, associate director with the UI Division of Campus Recreation.

Nor did it help the development of these potential varsity players when inclement weather wiped out 30 of the club''s scheduled 38 games last spring.

"If we were scheduled to play, it was guaranteed to rain," UI club coach Larry Crews said.

Still, Crews believes his team will provide some help for the Illini varsity.

"They''ve got a couple that can play," he said. "Not a bunch, but there''s some ballplayers that can play."

Even if there aren''t many Division I-caliber softball players already on campus, other Big Ten coaches believe the Illini can catch up quickly when its full complement of scholarships are in use. The state, they say, is loaded with prep talent that other Big Ten schools have been recruiting for years.

"All of us in the conference think they can be a success sooner than most because Illinois is such a softball hotbed," said Purdue''s Bruggeman, who had three Illinois natives on her 1998 roster. "It has tremendous in-state talent. That''s a great advantage for (the coach) coming into that program."

One veteran high school coach says the absence of varsity softball at the UI has been a topic of conversation for years among his peers and prep players.

"We''ve been waiting for it for a long time," said Casey-Westfield coach Denny Throneburg, who has seen about 20 of his players receive Division I scholarships. "I do a lot of pitching clinics around the country and one of the questions that''s always asked is, ''When is Illinois going to add softball?'' "

"I''ve had kids that passed up softball (scholarships) just to go to Illinois."

Besides this ready source of talent, says Bruggeman, Illinois has its conference affiliation in its favor. It''s no exaggeration to say the Big Ten is a power in collegiate softball, and that reputation should help the Illini attract players eager to play in the league.

"The conference itself instantly will make Illinois better," Bruggeman said. "Our top five (teams) are going to be in the top 25 in the country every year. Being in the Big Ten will give them instant credibility."

In three of the last four years, two Big Ten teams have qualified for the eight-team College World Series. Since 1996, the league has been represented by a minimum of three teams in the 32-team NCAA tournament. And eight Big Ten schools have been to the NCAA tournament at least once.

While the Pac-10 is widely regarded as the premier softball conference in the nation, a former assistant in that league says the Big Ten is second to none in its commitment to be nationally competitive in the sport.

"The Pac-10 is by far the best softball conference because you have the best players (living) on the West Coast," said Wisconsin coach Karen Gallagher, an assistant at the University of California-Berkeley for six years. "But you look at what Michigan is doing, consistently qualifying for the College World Series. They''re saying we are capable of having a top 10 program from the Midwest.

"And what the Big Ten is doing in terms of facilities and budgets and quality opponents, I think we outshine the Pac-10 in a lot of ways."

The flip side of this affiliation, of course, is that a UI program starting from scratch will be wading into some mighty tough competition. Purdue was 8-20 in the Big Ten in its first season as a league member. Wisconsin was 3-21.

Having been through this start-up process, Gallagher says the incoming UI coach faces an all-consuming task in building a program. No detail  from the selection of uniforms to the placement of water containers in the dugouts  will be too small not to demand the coach''s attention.

"I''m in meetings 12 hours a day," recalled Gallagher of her first months on the job. "Just realize that the first couple of years are going to be really hectic and you have to accept the challenge. Know that it''s not always going to be like that. Know that things get a little easier."

Know, too, that things can get better on the diamond. Wisconsin was proof of that, increasing its win total from 14 in its debut season to 32 the next. Purdue offers a similarly encouraging example. In just their third year of Big Ten membership, the 1997 Boilermakers qualified for the four-team conference tournament.

"You have your work cut out for you," said Gallagher, who was reminded of that this spring when Wisconsin slipped back to 19-31. "You run the gamut of emotions. But after you do something like this, it''s very gratifying, very fulfilling."

A Big Ten Softball Primer

With the University of Illinois scheduled to add softball in 1999 and become a Big Ten member in the sport in 2000, here''s a historical look at the conference:

 In 1982, women''s fast pitch softball became a Big Ten Conference-sponsored sport. While the league did not play a conference schedule, it did conduct a postseason tournament for the seven members with softball programs. Michigan, at 4-0, won the tournament. The other original members were Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern and Ohio State.

 In 1983, the first league schedule is played, again with seven schools. Indiana, with an 11-4 record, is the Big Ten champion. The Hoosiers become the first Big Ten team to advance to the College World Series, where they''re eliminated in two games.

 In 1984, Northwestern becomes the first Big Ten team to win a College World Series game. The Wildcats defeat Adelphi 1-0 in the first round. Northwestern reaches the fourth round before being eliminated.

 In 1985, the Big Ten hands out its first individual softball awards: Pitcher Lisa Ishikawa of Northwestern is player of the year, outfielder Tammy Connor of Indiana is freshman of the year, and Carol Hutchins of Michigan is coach of the year.

 In 1986, the Big Ten puts two teams in the CWS for the first time. Northwestern bows out in the second round, but Indiana stays alive into the fourth round, losing there to eventual champion Cal State-Fullerton.

 In 1992, after pitchers have won or shared each of the first seven player of the year awards, the Big Ten institutes a pitcher of the year honor. Michigan''s Kelly Kovach is the first honoree and would claim the award again in 1995.

 In 1992, the Big Ten softball ranks increase to eight with the addition of Penn State. The Nittany Lions take their lumps, tying for last place with Michigan State at 4-22.

 In 1993, Michigan outfielder Patti Benedict is the first repeat winner of the player of the year award.

 In 1995, the Big Ten holds its first softball tournament since 1982. The winner receives the league''s automatic NCAA berth. Michigan wins the tournament, beginning a streak that remains unbroken.

 In 1995, Big Ten softball membership swells to nine with the addition of Purdue. The Boilermakers finish last at 8-20.

 In 1996, Wisconsin comes on board and suffers a fate similar to previous league newcomers. The Badgers lose 18 of 21 league games to finish last.

 In 1997, Iowa becomes the first team to complete the Big Ten regular season undefeated. The Hawkeyes go 22-0.

 1998, Hutchins wins her fifth coach of the year award after guiding Michigan to a 22-1 Big Ten record. Wolverine Sara Griffin, the Big Ten Player of the Year in 1995 and ''96 as a utility player, is named pitcher of the year.

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