Lowell, 59ers back in Railcat Challenge
BY Mark Smith msmith@post-trib.com February 12, 2013 11:38AM
File photo of the Steel Yard in Gary. Photo taken May 1, 2008. | Archive~Sun-Times Media
38th State baskeTball Tournament
CROWN POINT (4A) Semi-State
2-23-13 - 1 p.m.-4 p.m.. (classes and teams to be determined)
VALPARAISO (4A) Regional
2-16-13 - 10 a.m. semifinals at Valparaiso high
MERRILLVILLE [22-1] vs. LAKE CENTRAL [16-7]
Penn [19-4] vs. Warsaw [22-1]
RENSSELAER (3A) Regional
2-16-23 - 10 a.m. semifinals at Rensselaer high
Benton Central [20-3] vs. Rensselaer [16-7]
Griffith [15-8] vs. Plymouth [17-6]
ROCHESTER (2A) Regional
2-16,-13 at Rochester high - 9:30 a.m. CST
Westview [15-8] vs. Bishop Luers [12-11]
Whiting [20-3] vs. BOONE GROVE [17-6]
2013 Railcats Baseball Challenge
Gary Southshore Railcat High School Baseball Challenge
@ US Steelyard - Gary Indiana
Monday, April 1st
4:30 p.m. - Hobart vs. Highland
7:30 p.m. - Calumet vs. Hebron
Wednesday, April 3rd
4:30 p.m. - Morton vs. ANDREAN
Friday, April 5th
7:30 p.m. - Valparaiso vs. Munster
Monday, April 8th
7:30 p.m. - Guerin Prep vs. Chicago Christian
Wednesday, April 10th
4:30 p.m. - Gary West Side vs. Gavit
7:30 p.m. - (Chicago) Hales Franciscan vs. St. Patrick
Friday, April 12th
4:30 p.m. - TF North vs. TF South
7:40 p.m. - Westville vs. Hammond Academy
Saturday, April 13th
4:00 p.m. - Kankakee Valley vs. Bowman Academy
7:00 p.m. - Bishop Noll vs. LOWELL
Monday, April 15th
4:30 p.m. - Lake Station vs. River Forest
Wednesday, April 17th
7:30 p.m. - North Newton vs. South Newton
Friday, April 19th
4:30 p.m. - Lew Wallace vs. Gary Roosevelt
7:30 p.m. - East Chicago vs. (Michigan City) Marquette
Saturday, April 20th
1:00 p.m. - Michigan City vs. BOONE GROVE
4:00 p.m. - Chesterton vs. Griffith
7:00 p.m. - Victory Christian vs. Calumet Christian
2013 CROWN POINT Baseball
coach Steve Strayer (11th year) DAC games in CAPs
3-20 W) Andrean (Scrimmage) 4:00 PM
3-25 (M) Elkhart Central 4:30 p.m.
3-26 (Tues) Warsaw 4:30 p.m.
3-30 (Sat) @ Elkhart Memorial 12 noon
4-2 (Tues) @ Bishop Noll 4:30 p.m.
4-4 (Thurs) @ Munster - 4:40 p.m.
4-6 (S) @ (Chicago) Mount Carmel - 11 a.m
4-9 (Tues) LAKE CENTRAL - 4:30 p.m.
4-11 (Thurs) @ MERRILLVILLE - 4:30 p.m.
4-15 (M) MICHIGAN CITY - 4:30 p.m.
4-17 (W) @ LaPORTE - 4:30 p.m.
4-19 (F) @ CHESTERTON - 4:30 p.m.
4-23 (Tu) @ VALPARAISO - 4:30 p.m.
4-25 (Th) PORTAGE - 4;30 p.m.
4-27 (Sat) Hamilton Southeastern - 10:00 a.m.
4-27 (Sat) Bellmont - 2 p.m.
4-29 (M) @ LAKE CENTRAL - 4:30 p.m.
5-1 (W) MERRILLVILLE - 4:30 p.m.
5-3 (F) @ MICHIGAN CITY - 4:30 p.m.
5-4 (S) @ (Crawfordsville) N. Mongomery - 1 p.m. EST
5-4 (S) @ Crawfordsville - 4:30 p.m. (EST)
5-7 (Tues) LaPORTE - 4;30 p.m.
5-9 (Thurs) CHESTERTON - 4:30 p.m.
5-10 (F) BOONE GROVE - 7 p.m.
5-14 (Tues.) VALPARTAISO - 4:30 p.m.
5-16 (Thurs) PORTAGE - 4:30 p.m.
Benton Central Invitataional
5-18 (S) semifinal game - 9 a.m.
5-18 (S) 3rd place or championship - (TBA)
5-20 (M) @ Kankakee Valley - 4:30 p.m.
2013 Railcat High School Baseball Challenge
@ US Steelyard - Gary Indiana
Monday, April 1st
4:30 p.m. - *Hobart vs. Highland
7:30 p.m. - *Calumet vs. Hebron
Wednesday, April 3rd
4:30 p.m. - *Morton vs. ANDREAN
Friday, April 5th
7:30 p.m. - Valparaiso vs. Munster
Monday, April 8th
7:30 p.m. - Guerin Prep vs. Chicago Christian
Wednesday, April 10th
4:30 p.m. - Gary West Side vs. Gavit
7:30 p.m. - (Chicago) Hales Franciscan vs. St. Patrick
Friday, April 12th
4:30 p.m. - TF North vs. TF South
7:40 p.m. - Westville vs. Hammond Academy
Saturday, April 13th
4:00 p.m. - Kankakee Valley vs. Bowman Academy
7:00 p.m. - Bishop Noll vs. LOWELL
Monday, April 15th
4:30 p.m. - Lake Station vs. River Forest
Wednesday, April 17th
7:30 p.m. - North Newton vs. South Newton
Friday, April 19th
4:30 p.m. - Lew Wallace vs. Gary Roosevelt
7:30 p.m. - East Chicago vs. (Michiagn City) Marquette
Saturday, April 20th
1:00 p.m. - Michigan City vs. BOONE GROVE
4:00 p.m. - Chesterton vs. Griffith
7:00 p.m. - Victory Christian vs. Calumet Christian
Updated: February 12, 2013 12:08PM
If we get some very warm days in early April, the folks who put together the Gary Southshore Railcat Baseball Challenge will look like shrewd operators.
Otherwise, everybody’s going to be cold. The schools and dates for Gary’s annual baseball showcase were announced last week, as was the opening date: Monday, April 1.
I don’t think there was any intent to move up the high school games to be played in the 5,200-seat U.S. Steel Yard in Gary but it was especially warm in March of 2012 and those days would have been nice play dates.
A legitimate reason to move the showcase up as much as possible is to allow time for postponed games to be played. The Challenge will see 18 games played in 20 days at the downtown Gary home of the Class A baseball Gary South Shore Railcats.
After a few years off the schedule, Andrean, which will begin the season in the Class 3A Top 5 statewide, will play Morton on Wednesday April 3.
Lowell gets a prime time slot, facing Bishop Noll on April 13 at 7 p.m.
The Boone Grove Wolves will take on the Michigan City Wolves on the final day of the parade of teams at 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20.
Three of Northwest Indiana’s finest football players will end up on the same roster close to home this fall as Crown Pomt’s Sean Jones and Tyler Smith plus Merrillville receiver Aaron Dye have agreed to attend St. Xavier in Chicago.
Jones is going to be developed into an offensive lineman for the Cougars, who were 11-2 last season and are a consistent NAIA power.
Smith, an all-purpose star who played wide receiver, defensive back, kick returner and even halfback for the Bullodgs in 2012, will be a defensive back to start with at SXU, which was ranked fourth in the final national NAIA poll last season.
Dye (5-10, 160) is the Merrillville wide recievr who caught 62 passes for a school record 1,294 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2011.
Merrillville halfback Dylon Collins will play for the Division II University of Indianapolis.
Collins (5-10, 205) helped boost Merrillville to a 11-3 record last fall and he’ll be a state contender in track after running a :10.83 in the 100-meters at the 2012 state finals.
Collins, who had to sit out most of 2011 after transferring from Bowman Academy, gained 305 yards and four TDs in a game against Valparaiso on Sept. 28, 2012. He probably would have been a Division I recruit had he been able to play more.
UIndy, rated 15th in Division II in the final 2012 poll, may have better offensive players than Collins right now but they certainly don’t have faster ones.
While Crown Point, Lowell and Hanover left the state tournament last week, Boone Grove, Lake Central and Merrillville all won sectional titles last Saturday, increasing the odds that a nearby team would qualify for the first-ever Crown Point Semistate on Feb. 23.
What we want to see is the winner of Saturday’s Merrillville-Lake Central game win the regional title Saturday night. That would put the 4A semistate in Crown Point and give it large local flavor.
The longshot scenario involves Boone Grove.
Bishop Luers (12-11) is a big favorite at the Rochester Regional. A Boone upset would put the Wolves as close to home as they will ever be this late in the state basketball tournament.
