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Sports
Big preseason turnout for defending SPC champs : Sports : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisBig preseason turnout for defending SPC champs
| Freischlag builds 14-player roster for badminton team
| by Christine Bolin Dascher
| 3/14/2013
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It had been a few years since Oswego head badminton coach Scott Freischlag saw such a big turnout at tryouts.
The 10th year coach said about 80 girls tried out this year, but he could only keep so many before having to make cuts.
"It's the second-largest group that's ever tried out," Freischlag said. "I had 105 about three or four years ago, and I had to cut it in half. I wish I could keep everyone...but we can only keep so many."
Fourteen fill the varsity roster for the 2013 season, which, at this point in the season is limited to just juniors and seniors. That may change later in the year, but right now, the main players are all returning players.
That includes seniors Alisssa Cullen, AnnChristine Fay, Marissa Gutkowski, Leanne Schilling, Kaitlin Tossing, Vanessa Santiago, Michaela Wagner and juniors Olivia Lewis and Kaylee Kiger.
"I have high expectations for both the seniors and juniors," said Freischlag, who is also working with two assistants for the first-time ever - Colleen Predl and Scott Llorenz.
"They have a title to defend. Their goal obviously is to get to state, but we have to take small steps at a time. We'll start with this week, make the adjustments, fine-tune things and get into practice."
The title Freischlag speaks of is the Southwest Prairie Conference title, which Oswego won last year with the three graduated seniors (Jena Buss, Emma Gorman and Christie Parkinson). The Panthers edged out Plainfield North for the crown. Plainfield East was third, followed by Romeoville, Plainfield Central, Oswego East and Plainfield South.
Freischlag likes Oswego's chances again at the conference title. In dual league action last year, the Panthers only suffered one loss to Plainfield North, but obviously avenged that at the right time - the end of the season.
"(Conference) is looking pretty good, but Plainfield North and Plainfield South have some good players back," Freischlag said. "The SPC conference is a tough little conference, but it's nice. There's no clear No. 1 dominant team. Everyone's right there in the pack, and that's exciting."
Gutkowski (at No. 8 singles) and Cullen (at No. 9 singles) placed first at the conference last year. Oswego had seven second-place finishes in singles, including Fay (No. 4), Wagner (No. 5), Schilling (No. 6), Santiago (No. 7) and Tossing (No. 10).
Wagner was also a part of the No. 3 doubles team that placed first in conference. Santiago and Schilling were also paired together (at No. 4) and won, as did duo Cullen and Tossing (at No. 5). Fay and Gutkowski also teamed up at conference doubles (at No. 2) and placed second.
At the Naperville North Sectional, Oswego placed fourth and did not advance anyone to the state tournament. In the 2011 season, the Panthers saw two singles players qualify. Freischlag hopes his team will have some representation back at state this year.
"That's the goal," Freischlag said. "If we work as hard as we did the last time we had state qualifiers, we'll be right there. Anything can happen. The bar has been set. We're working really hard in practice and getting ready for our first match."
Oswego's first match was at home against Wheaton North on Wednesday, but results were not available at press time. The Panthers head to West Chicago today, Thursday, for a 5 p.m. match. On Friday, the Panthers will host Oak Park-River Forest at 5 p.m.
After two weeks off, the Panthers return back to action on March 30 at Plainfield North's Doubles Invite. The first SPC dual meet of the season is on April 1 at Plainfield East. On April 10, Oswego will host rival Oswego East. The conference meet is at Romeoville on April 25 and April 27. The sectional will take place on May 2 and the state tournament is May 10-11 on the campus of Eastern Illinois.
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