Tiger freshman Julia Williams earned her first collegiate pitching victory

Nice article from Wittenberg University about Julia Williams, one of my students. Nice job, Julia.

March 4, 2012
Softball Picks Up Two Victories On Spring Break Day Two

Tiger freshman Julia Williams earned her first collegiate pitching victory with
a one-hit shutout of Regis.
Contributed photo by Jodi Eickemeyer

FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Wittenberg softball team picked up two wins and improved to 3-1 on day two of their spring break trip to the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic with a 10-5 win over WPI and an 8-0 victory over Regis.

Freshman Julia Williams (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) pitched a gem to collect her first collegiate victory, allowing just one hit in five innings while striking out six and issuing no free passes.
READ THE COMPLETE STORY ON THE WITTENBERG UNIVERSITY HOME PAGE.

Thanks So Much For Your Testimonials

It's so great to work with these kids, and I appreciate the kind words.

Thank you for all you taught Anna and especially for your kindness. You truly have a gift when it comes to working with kids.

Beth Hirshman

Bill, You have made all the difference in the world for Sarah and the other pitchers on my team. Any parent can call or email me .
Dave Joesph

I am a father of one of Bill's students. As I have told many, he is an amazing instructor and is so wonderful to work with. You can't go wrong.

Ira Antelis

Just Wanted to Share...

Just wanted to share a nice letter from the dad of one of my students. (Thanks for taking the time to write it.)

I’ve followed girls’ fast pitch softball for many years. My daughter was a pitcher and played for 5 years. Even after my daughter graduated from travel ball, I have remained a huge fan and will attend local tournaments whenever I’m able. I noticed and made a rather interesting observation. I always seem to run into Bill Wozney, one of the premier pitching coaches. Bill is always there observing and supporting his students and talking with their parents. His involvement and enthusiasm tells me that he cares. In speaking to the other parents of pitchers, they basically agree that they have never seen their daughter’s coach attending games.

I see the results of his teaching and coaching. His pitchers realize that he is more than a “see you at your next lesson, but not at your games" coach. The girls seem to appreciate his support and perform with confidence. My daughter was always excited to see Bill at her games. Even today, as a twenty year old college student, she asks me that if I run into Bill at the tournaments, be sure to say hi for her.

If you have a daughter that pitches, ask yourself when was the last time you saw her coach at one of her games. Bet I know the answer.

Michael Ziering

Testimonial From Ira Antelis

Isobella Antelis is one of my newer students. Her goal is to pitch in the Olympics and we're going to try to make that happen!

Here's a vote of confidence from her dad:

Bill
Just wanted to say thanks. You are an extraordinary teacher and I am thrilled Isobella has the opportunity to work with someone like yourself who besides an amazing understanding of pitching makes learning so enjoyable for her.
Ira

Girls Fastpitch Coach - Success Stories

I've been coaching girls fastpitch for 10 years and during that time I've had the privilege of working with lots of dedicated kids. Their successes are my successes. Here are just a few of my students who went on to pitch in college:

Rachel Cleavland from Mundelein High School went on to pitch for Ball State University

Kristin Madoch, Glenbrook South - Rutgers

Kristina Long, New Trier - Rochester

Randi Kreiter, Deerfield H.S. - Northern Illinois

Brooke Buzard, Glenbrook South - Univ.of Illinois

Lauren Ott, Mundelein - Butler

Alex Vikartofsky, Stevenson - Miami of Ohio

Pam Nicholson, Glenbrook South - South Dakota State

Samantha Roth, Glenbrook North - Cornell

Top November Performances

Welcome new students:
Isabella M.
MaryFaith S.
Laura V.

New speed highs:
Ashley G.-52 mph
Anne Marie R.-45 mph
Tara N.- 41mph
New Plate Game High:
Natalie K.-85
Top Wall Drill Increase:
Sam T.-21%
Rachel B.-14%
Anna H.-12%
New personal bests:
1 min. snap-Katharine P. 47
Blue Wall --Heather F.-6 misses
Lisa W. --0 misses
Warm Up Drills:
Top Monthly Average:
Katharine P. 76.3%
New Personal Bests:
Rachel B. 83%
Hannah W. 83%
Melanie N. 100%
Jen Z. 100%
New Pitches:
Zoey F. Drop-change
Rachel E. Drop-change
Hannah O. Drop
Congratulations to the November top performers!

Exerpted from an Article by Niksports

Lane Tech's Young Guns
The softball scene in the Chicagoland area is generally dominated by the suburban teams. Lane Tech is getting ready to make some noise. They have quietly built up a team of young guns to give those suburban teams a challenge and recapture the City Championship. The Pioneer Press called them the "three-headed monster." They aren't very tall, they may not put the fear into a hitter...until they see the first pitch. Whoever said that dynamite comes in small packages may have been talking about Lane Tech's Trio of Young Guns.
This young pitching staff is led by Jazzy Camacho, Jackie Manrique and Samantha Nikolich.
All three of these young ladies have a couple things in common. Their fathers have all coached softball/baseball. They all played travel softball on the Outburst with Xavier Manrique as head coach. They also at one time or another took pitching lessons from Bill Wozney of North Shore Sports.
Sam still trains with Bill Wozney, he had this to say about her, "I realized at a fall league game how fearless Sam was when I challenged her to throw three consecutive change-ups in a row. She did and struck out the batter on three pitches. Sam just wants to win."
Bill's dedication to teaching pitching shows. He went on to say, "Northshore sports has been teaching girls fastpitch for ten years. I believe the girls realize that I really care about their success and that seems to motivate them to work harder. All my gratification comes from the girls pitching well at a competitive level. For the last four years we have sent girls to pitch at division 1 in college."
CLICK HERE to read the entire article.
Ed. note: Jazzy is now pitching in college; Jackie and Sam are completing their senior year and are looking forward to their college softball careers.

Softball Champs

2009 Glenview Fall Ball League Playoffs



12u Winner: P.R. Pistols (Sorry for the terrible picture - I'm working on that. Meanwhile CLICK HERE for a bigger picture.)



14u Winner: Trevians
CLICK HERE for a bigger picture








16u Winner: Chi-Town Explosion
CLICK HERE for a bigger picture



CONGRATULATIONS to all the teams. See you next season!

Heather's Story

The Trevian 10u team tryouts were on October 3rd. Heather Franson pitched for the C team last year which was her first year of travel ball. I said she pitched but that's sort of a stretch. Once in a while Heather actually got the ball over the plate but it was also over the backstop.
But that didn't discourage Heather. She had a goal: she wanted to be on the top Trevian Blue team.
After the 2009 season ended in July Heather practiced religiously with her dad. Sometimes she went to lessons twice a week instead of just once. She was dedicated. And it paid off - she increased her speed by five miles per hour, a phenomenal accomplishment. And then she was actually throwing strikes.
The teams were recently announced for 2010 and Heather made the blue team, achieving her goal. Way to go, Heather!

Girls Fastpitch Tips

The most important thing in fastpitch is learning the fundamentals and developing the proper mechanical skills. This student is practicing the basics, correctly following through with the proper use of the power line. When her stride foot lands correctly, she has the best chance to throw strikes.
In my ten years as an elite fastpitch coach I've worked with eight pitchers from Northeastern Illinois who've gone on to play successfully at the college level, and 15 girls who are currently pitching at the varsity level.
I can help to insure your daughter's future at something she loves.
Call me at 773.883.1863.

Photos from the Tulip Tournament