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IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Heavy D on August 20, 2026, 12:59 pm

So with players back in school who are the favorites this upcoming season

4A
Marist: They only graduated a couple of starters and the majority of the team is back. Senior heavy D1 talent makes them the favorite. Elite pitcher in the circle with some depth. One on the street, parents aren’t too happy with the coaching. St. Laurence about to become the Bandit hub.

Lincolnway East: They have some bats back and pitching. Seems to always reload the line-up. Could this be the year?

Barrington: Undefeated till Supers, where they ran into a legit team. Returns the IF and their D1 talent. Questions in the circle after the workhorse of a pitcher graduated. Perry’s last year, will he finally win one? With Ken Grams retired, will there be a new Godfather of IHSA Softball?

Glenbard North: They have an ace, but is there enough else where to make a run at state?

Naperville Central: Some elite talent in the right spots but like GBN do they have enough around them to make a run.

3A
The classic 2 horse race, a few years ago it was Lemont and Antioch and now it's Glenwood and Antioch.

Glenwood: loses a D1 leadoff hitter and pitcher, but brings back 5 D1 commits including a pitcher. 2 Top 2 finishes in the last 2 seasons and a Hall of Fame coach, they should make it 3. GC is really pumping out athletes regardless of sport or season. Despite losing at state like Marist should be the top pick to win 3A.

Antioch: 2 walk off wins going into state, the Queens of the North made it look easy. Graduated 3 D1 bats, but returned the 4 frosh starters, including a pitcher who went undefeated. 4 trips in the last 5 years, referred constantly as the state final regulars by the media.

2A
With all the top teams graduating the pitching there might 2 new teams running the table

North Boone: Multiple state appearances and dangerous line-up with young pitching could be a long term favorite.

Stillman Valley: Bandit pitcher with depth in the circle. The young team missed it by one game last season.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by No Way on August 24, 2026, 5:00 pm, in reply to "IHSA way too early top teams"

Glenbard North being mentioned here is a bad addition. They lost three all state players including their star pitcher. While they have a talented junior, the offense will be bad.

Lake Park should probably be here though.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @No Way on August 28, 2026, 9:26 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

I agree on GBN, however the same thing could be said about LP. Their best player just had major shoulder surgery and she is pretty much all they have in that line up. Also, their best pitcher cant get through a season without injury. SCN is by far the best team in an extremely down DuKane conference. They have zero pitching but they have one of the best line ups in the state, with several D1s and some future D1s.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by King on August 30, 2026, 12:33 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

DuKane Conference typically wins 75% of games outside the conference. Subtract Geneva and Batavia and they win 90% of time. But that was then and this is now. The conference has lost so much talent going back 3 years without good replacement. The Guard has changed.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by King knows on August 31, 2026, 7:43 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

King knows exactly what hes talking about. Truth

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @No Way on August 31, 2026, 6:45 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

100% correct. Used to be 6 extremely competitive teams, Stud pitchers on all of them and even some with a stud #2. Now there are maybe 2 decent pitchers in the whole conference (LP and GBN) and only one solid line up (SCN). Just not the same.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Choke on August 21, 2026, 10:40 pm, in reply to "IHSA way too early top teams"

I don’t think Marist will choke again. They will win it. St Laurence has a great coach but needs to recruit pitching asap. Zero pitching!

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @Choke on August 23, 2026, 10:12 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Every year people say Marist will not choke again but Marist continues to choke year after year. Even if Marist won the State Playoffs every other year it would still be a disappointment with that amount of D1 talent.

To have 9 D1 kids on a team in Illinois and not win it is incredibly disappointing. Last year they lost to Lincoln Way West who had 2 D1 players. In 2025 Oswego won it all and beat Marist with only couple D1 players. In 2024 Marist lost to St. Charles North with a only a couple D1 players.

Oswego was the only team they lost to with a D1 pitcher. Marist just simply forgets to show up in important playoff games. It almost like the players and parents think Marist is going to be given a state championship with proving it on the field. Marist continues to lose to teams that play with more grit.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @@Choke on August 23, 2026, 11:23 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

So if they win, it's insignificant because they have more talent; if they lose, it's all coaching because they have so much talent? Might be right, but it's really hard to win a single game every time. HS is tough; sometimes it's not about the superstars; it's about the lesser recruits having a game. It always depends on who gets the ball hit to them and who's at bat when it counts.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @choke on August 22, 2026, 12:09 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Don’t underestimate the politics at Marist
So far the banditfest isn’t exactly working
At least one who definitely shouldn’t be in the lineup every game

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @@Choke on August 23, 2026, 11:19 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Parents with daughters who are almost good enough sit on their thrones at the top of Mount Petty.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Bill Conroy on August 31, 2026, 8:35 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

I just seen this thread and since the Bandits were mentioned a few times, I thought I would share my thoughts.
Marist has and always does have a roster full of talent. So Does Lake Central, which finally won the Indiana State Championship. Marist has had more success than any program at the 4A in Illinois but I would bet on the field against Marist or Lake Central winning State Championships each year, even if they have more talent than any other individual team.
Not much different than Oklahoma or Texas Tech in college softball, both teams on paper were slight favorites over Texas but the results played out differently.
Softball, like any team sport, is a game with too many factors to ever predict the outcome with any certainty. Coaches at programs such as Marist and Lake Central, have the luxury of massive influx of talent each year but with that talent comes expectations and egos that are more challenging to manage than the game itself.

Good luck tomorrow to all the 2028's!

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @Bill Conroy on September 2, 2026, 7:26 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Bill you mentioned Marist and Lake Central, both those teams are playing in a triangle with Antioch at the end of the spring. I believe all 3 programs have Bandit and Chill players.

Who you got winning the day?

Is it Marist the private school flush with talent and depth? Numerous state championships in the past 10 years and a top 20 national ranking.

Is it the defending Indiana State Champs and the best team in their state? Another nationally ranked top 20 team with 4 state championships to their name.

Or is it the defending Illinois State Champs and the best team regardless of class who made the state finals look like a walk on the beach?

All four teams are stacked with talent and pitching, so it has to come down to coaching.

Colleen has all resources of recruiting, top notch facilities, access to turf, and reloads her roster year in and year out with D1 talent. 7 state final appearances in the last 10 years.

Coach Tovar in 3 seasons has returned Lake Central to glory and national prominence. Also has the D2 college playing background and nearly 3,000 students compared the smaller Marist and Antioch.

Coach Rocco whose teams made 4 state final appearances in the last 5 seasons, almost 5 straight. His teams year in and year out beat some of the best 4A teams. Does is it with a much smaller population and hometown talent.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Thx Heavy on August 21, 2026, 4:11 pm, in reply to "IHSA way too early top teams"

Your insights are awesome. Thanks for the post!

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Dr Seuss on August 21, 2026, 3:24 pm, in reply to "IHSA way too early top teams"

GBN ace?

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @Heavy D on August 21, 2026, 1:16 pm, in reply to "IHSA way too early top teams"

LWE graduated 90% of the their starters, besides a pitcher and a few "part-time starting players" (like 3). Their varsity team will be all new players, who can play better than the majority of the seniors they graduated.
The question will be...can the coach, coach a new group, and put the correct players on the team. NO POLITICS.
She has had the same team for about 4 years and did nothing.
She has the deepest set of athlete's in the state, outside the private schools and keeps striking out.
PUN INTENDED.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @@@Heavy D on August 27, 2026, 11:47 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Can someone describe the POLITICS at LWE?

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @@Heavy D on August 22, 2026, 6:09 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Please explain the politics at LWE.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by PC Dad on August 20, 2026, 7:51 pm, in reply to "IHSA way too early top teams"

Watch out for Providence

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by @PC on August 21, 2026, 9:46 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

PC dad must be former Benet dad

PC couldn't beat Fenwick who has everyone back

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by August on August 21, 2026, 8:16 am, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

I feel like this is Stagg's year.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Portal on August 21, 2026, 2:20 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

Did STCE pick up anyone in the portal again this year?

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Dangerfield on August 23, 2026, 12:13 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

This earned a slight grin - twelve months ago.

Need some new content, ma’am.

Re: IHSA way too early top teams

Posted by Saints Watcher on August 23, 2026, 2:09 pm, in reply to "Re: IHSA way too early top teams"

You are a Saints fan. Tell us how the last portal transfer helped STCE?

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