Stevenson’s Manka steps up big at showcase

Updated: July 12, 2011 1:26PM

Hitting is never easy. But Morgan Manka often makes it look that way.

The Stevenson High School junior-to-be showed off her powerful bat during the inaugural Northwest Suburban Showcase at Stevenson last weekend. During Saturday’s first game, Manka chased home a run with a sacrifice fly to left, grounded out to short and hit a sharp single to center.

“I love going up there,” Manka said. “It’s up to you to start an inning or keep an inning going. Hitting is probably my best thing.”

Manka is developing her skills in the field. She plays third base for Stevenson and plays right field for the Vernon Hills Stingers 16U Elite travel team.

“It (playing outfield) gives me a different feel for the game,” Manka said.

As she hopes to someday land a scholarship, Manka knows the areas that need improvement.

“I need to work on making better throws,” she said. “I have to keep up with my hitting and get faster.”

Manka played for the Orange Crush (a combination of NSC and WSC players). The club won three of four games.

“I got to meet a bunch of new people,” Manka said. “I’ve seen some of the kids before, but now I get to meet them and see what they are like.”

“This is so much fun,” added Vernon Hills’ Jenn Claussen. “Even though we’re all from different areas, we all meshed very quickly.”

Manka also enjoyed working with Mitch Ruchim, who helped organize the event and served as an unofficial coach.

“He (Ruchim) is real funny,” Manka said.

Manka is eager to play for Stevenson in 2012. Although the Patriots lost several key players to graduation, Manka believes the team will be competitive.

“The juniors that will be seniors are pretty good,” Manka said. “And we have two good pitchers with Kat Trotter and Sam Feder.”

Strong debut: As the initial softball showcase wrapped up, Heather Ruchim had no complaints.

“I think it went very well,” said Ruchim, who runs Heather Ruchim Softball, Inc. “Most importantly, the girls were having a lot of fun and they’re making new friends. For a first year, everything is going well.”

The event attracted 20 college coaches, including visitors from the University of Illinois and DePaul University.

“I think they liked what they saw,” Ruchim said. “It’s a solid foundation for next year.”

Ruchim, who is an assistant JV coach at Deerfield High School, was hoping to draw a few more coaches to the event. But the numbers were still satisfactory.

“There were only 80 girls playing at a time,” Ruchim noted. “So the ratio of 80 girls to 20 coaches was pretty good.”

The showcase is the only one of its kind in Illinois. Ruchim knows there are similar softball showcases in Pennsylvania and Colorado.

Ruchim plans on holding the showcase again in 2012. She’s also considering putting together a skills showcase for next fall.

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