Post by Homer Hawks Site Administrator on Apr 26, 2007 8:24:05 GMT -5
Her place is behind plate
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL | U. of Chicago Lab School's Mari Topel starts at catcher, earns respect as team leader, hard-nosed player
April 26, 2007
BY ANDRE' MORGAN
Mari Topel is in a league of her own.
The University of Chicago Lab School senior is the only female player on one of the state's 665 varsity baseball teams.
» Click to enlarge image
Senior catcher Mari Topel is the only female baseball player among the state's 665 varsity teams. "She is our best leader," U-High teammate Van Miner said. "Being a girl does not matter."
(Jon Sall/Sun-Times)
PHOTO GALLERY
• League of her own
As a catcher, the 5-7 Topel calls all the pitches and the defensive plays. She is batting .278 and has a .348 on-base percentage.
''I like the physical part [of catching],'' Topel said. ''I can take hits. I don't tense up, that's how you get hurt. Instead I just relax and concentrate on making the tag.''
Teams try to steal bases once they discover Topel's gender, but her strong arm foils that strategy. Attempting to get physical by running her over at the plate offers Topel a chance to show her toughness. ''This is my territory,'' she said. ''And I feel like how dare you even try to score.''
Her father, Bob, a University of Chicago economics professor, views these violent encounters differently. ''When I see a play at the plate, I just hope the boy does not get hurt because Mari is not going to back down,'' he said.
Topel's older sister Akemi tried out and made the U-High team. But her teammates were not receptive, and her baseball career was short. For Mari, the experience has been the opposite. She has been welcomed with open arms.
''Mari is a different sort of kid,'' Bob said. ''Her sister did not feel comfortable, but Mari had a different group of teammates.''
Topel's coach is a former professional player, Keronn Walker, who was drafted by the Kansas City Royals and played for 10 organizations as a catcher.
''Mari is not just a good girl,'' Walker said, ''she is good at everything. She is the leader of our team. In all honesty, if she got hurt it would ruin our season.
''When I first saw her I thought she was hard-nosed, blocked the ball well and called a good game. I'm teaching her to move her feet so she can throw even better. I am sure she will dominate in college softball.''
At first, Topel was subjected to taunts from opposing players. They would gather around home plate during pregame drills and stare. Comments of ''Is that a girl?'' or ''Look, they got a girl catching,'' were not uncommon.
''The boys would tease each other, saying, 'Why don't you throw like her?' '' her father said.
''Sometimes it comes as a shock to the other teams,'' Walker said. ''They think they can take advantage of her. They look at it as a joke until the game starts. Then they find out she is for real.''
U-High junior infielder Van Miner observed: ''She is our best leader. I learned from Mari that to be a good baseball player you have to be mentally tough, hit, throw and run. Being a girl does not matter.''
Rob Strickland loves having Topel as his catcher.
''She is tough, plays hard, does not ever complain and makes the most of every opportunity,'' Strickland said. ''She is the best blocking catcher I've ever had.''
Topel's mother, Lynn, noticed that the parents of teammates were observing her daughter.
''At first there was just a lot of questions,'' Lynn said. ''It took a bit of time, but once they saw that she could contribute, you could see she had earned their respect, too.
''She would not have been happy if she did not earn her spot on the team. I always thought she could hold her own. She was smaller than the boys, but it was never a problem because of her toughness. Originally it was just a way to stay in shape, but over time she has come to love her teammates.''
When the high school season ends, Topel joins her summer softball team, the Homer Hawks.
College softball coaches took notice of Topel's double-duty skills, and it has resulted in Topel agreeing to play at the University of Rochester.
Her baseball career will end in a few weeks -- U-High entered the week at 3-6 -- and Topel has nothing but good memories.
''I am going to miss baseball,'' she said. ''I have learned to love the game, but it is my teammates that I will miss the most.''
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL | U. of Chicago Lab School's Mari Topel starts at catcher, earns respect as team leader, hard-nosed player
April 26, 2007
BY ANDRE' MORGAN
Mari Topel is in a league of her own.
The University of Chicago Lab School senior is the only female player on one of the state's 665 varsity baseball teams.
» Click to enlarge image
Senior catcher Mari Topel is the only female baseball player among the state's 665 varsity teams. "She is our best leader," U-High teammate Van Miner said. "Being a girl does not matter."
(Jon Sall/Sun-Times)
PHOTO GALLERY
• League of her own
As a catcher, the 5-7 Topel calls all the pitches and the defensive plays. She is batting .278 and has a .348 on-base percentage.
''I like the physical part [of catching],'' Topel said. ''I can take hits. I don't tense up, that's how you get hurt. Instead I just relax and concentrate on making the tag.''
Teams try to steal bases once they discover Topel's gender, but her strong arm foils that strategy. Attempting to get physical by running her over at the plate offers Topel a chance to show her toughness. ''This is my territory,'' she said. ''And I feel like how dare you even try to score.''
Her father, Bob, a University of Chicago economics professor, views these violent encounters differently. ''When I see a play at the plate, I just hope the boy does not get hurt because Mari is not going to back down,'' he said.
Topel's older sister Akemi tried out and made the U-High team. But her teammates were not receptive, and her baseball career was short. For Mari, the experience has been the opposite. She has been welcomed with open arms.
''Mari is a different sort of kid,'' Bob said. ''Her sister did not feel comfortable, but Mari had a different group of teammates.''
Topel's coach is a former professional player, Keronn Walker, who was drafted by the Kansas City Royals and played for 10 organizations as a catcher.
''Mari is not just a good girl,'' Walker said, ''she is good at everything. She is the leader of our team. In all honesty, if she got hurt it would ruin our season.
''When I first saw her I thought she was hard-nosed, blocked the ball well and called a good game. I'm teaching her to move her feet so she can throw even better. I am sure she will dominate in college softball.''
At first, Topel was subjected to taunts from opposing players. They would gather around home plate during pregame drills and stare. Comments of ''Is that a girl?'' or ''Look, they got a girl catching,'' were not uncommon.
''The boys would tease each other, saying, 'Why don't you throw like her?' '' her father said.
''Sometimes it comes as a shock to the other teams,'' Walker said. ''They think they can take advantage of her. They look at it as a joke until the game starts. Then they find out she is for real.''
U-High junior infielder Van Miner observed: ''She is our best leader. I learned from Mari that to be a good baseball player you have to be mentally tough, hit, throw and run. Being a girl does not matter.''
Rob Strickland loves having Topel as his catcher.
''She is tough, plays hard, does not ever complain and makes the most of every opportunity,'' Strickland said. ''She is the best blocking catcher I've ever had.''
Topel's mother, Lynn, noticed that the parents of teammates were observing her daughter.
''At first there was just a lot of questions,'' Lynn said. ''It took a bit of time, but once they saw that she could contribute, you could see she had earned their respect, too.
''She would not have been happy if she did not earn her spot on the team. I always thought she could hold her own. She was smaller than the boys, but it was never a problem because of her toughness. Originally it was just a way to stay in shape, but over time she has come to love her teammates.''
When the high school season ends, Topel joins her summer softball team, the Homer Hawks.
College softball coaches took notice of Topel's double-duty skills, and it has resulted in Topel agreeing to play at the University of Rochester.
Her baseball career will end in a few weeks -- U-High entered the week at 3-6 -- and Topel has nothing but good memories.
''I am going to miss baseball,'' she said. ''I have learned to love the game, but it is my teammates that I will miss the most.''