Wheeler still waiting to snap skid

Updated: May 5, 2011 11:04PM

Wheeler softball coach Marc Bruner was hoping to wash away thoughts associated with losing three straight games.

After his defending Class 2A state champions lost to Kankakee Valley, Lake Station and Whiting, the Bearcats were looking to get back into the win column again against Calumet in a Greater South Shore Conference game Thursday.

Wheeler was on its way to doing exactly that — holding a 7-1 lead in the bottom of the third inning with none out — when umpires stopped the game after a few heavy rains.

“Our field’s not the greatest with water,’’ Bruner said. “The main issue is the safety of the kids. It’s a worry.’’

While Wheeler has a doublheader at River Forest Monday, the Calumet game is scheduled to resume at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in the bottom of the third inning with the Bearcats (9-4, 6-3) batting with nobody out.

“I think we’ve had enough water to last us forever,’’ Calumet coach Ryan Vondrak said. “We’ve had about five games rescheduled, some of those rescheduled again and others, like Michigan City, lost forever. Maybe Morton, too. Weather has pushed 10 practices inside and at Calumet there’s not much facility-wise.’’

Vondrak was upset umpires stopped the game with the Bearcats holding a 5-1 lead after a two-run triple by Caitlin Herzog — only to start it again a few minutes later.

When play resumed, Wheeler’s Karessa Sweeney belted a two-run, inside-the-park homer. Following Sweeney’s homer, umpires stopped the game again, then finally called it.

“Our kids were focused and ready to go when they got off the bus today,’’ Vondrak said. “We made two errors in the first inning to give them two runs — so we provided them with a nice lead. That’s the one thing you can’t do with a defending state championship team like Wheeler. You just can’t give them any breaks.’’

Bruner and his Bearcats appear on their way toward snapping their losing streak.

“When you lose three in a row, you naturally worry a little bit about the way you’re playing,’’ Bruner said. “We look at things, evaluate, and try to see why things might be going the way they are. I didn’t like the way we handled the three losses, myself included. We’ve been feeling bad about it, instead of going out and doing something about it.’’

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