Richards Granted a Rare Opportunity to Shine Under Pro Softball Lights

Richards will face Marengo at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 13, at The Ballpark in Rosemont as part of the Chicago Bandits' "Friday Night Lights" series.

On Friday the 13th, the lights will go down and the stars will come out. If you're lucky, you'll be there for a high school softball showcase event at The Ballpark in Rosemont, home of the Chicago Bandits. Richards will face Marengo, the defending IHSA Class 3A state champ, at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 13, at The Ballpark in Rosemont in the first of the Bandits' "Friday Night Lights" series events sponsored by Worth Fastpitch. Six of the state's finest players will be pitted against each other in the matchup: Richards' Brianna LeBeau and Hannah Jenkins vs. Marengo's Lindsay Melson, Stephanie Cartwright, Reed Karsten and Megan Semro. LeBeau, the Bulldogs' ace pitcher, is the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year in Illinois. She will attend …

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UPDATE: Andrew's Durkin Gets the Biggest Roar from the Crowd

Andrew baseball standout Dan Durkin notched 10 straight hits in one three-game stretch. He also outpolled 11 others in Patch's weekly MVP balloting. He is now eligible for March Patch Athlete of the Month recognition.

Your Patch is a place to celebrate local high school athletes. Show your support for these prep sports MVPs—each of whom is Athlete of the Week in his or her local Patch—by cheering them on in the comments thread, sharing your own photos with the Patch community and voting in the poll. Do you think we're missing someone? Tell us in the comments and share his or her photo to the gallery above. (It's easy. Just click the Upload Photos and Videos link — learn more here.) Read more about this week's MVPs in the photo gallery, and show your support for them by: There is one more way for you to become a more interactive fan: Sign up to become a Patch sports blogger. (Learn more about blogging on Patch here).

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UPDATE: The Winner in Patch Athlete of the Week Voting is ...

Stagg's Brett Kaiser made 9-of-10 free throws and scored 21 points in the Chargers' 59-52 victory over Oak Lawn. He captured the lion's share of fan votes, too, in polling for Patch Athlete of the Week honors.

Stagg boys basketball standout Brett Kaiser outpolled five others in voting for Patch Athlete of the Week, Jan. 15-21. He is now eligible for January Patch Athlete of the Month recognition. The candidates were:   Donnie Bell, junior, wrestling, Homewood-Flossmoor. Bell won 2-of-3 matches and placed second in the 195-pound weight class at the Southwest Suburban Conference tournament. Included was a 2-1 overtime decision over Thornton’s Josh Dixon. Bell pushed his record to 32-4. Brett Kaiser, senior, guard, boys basketball, Stagg. Kaiser was Klutch in the Chargers’ 59-52 victory over Oak Lawn. He made 9-of-10 free throws and scored 21 points. Kyle Langenderfer, junior, wrestling, Lincoln-Way East. Langenderfer swept four matches and won the…

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Girls Basketball: LeBeau, Jenkins Carry Load as Richards Tops Oak Lawn

Brianna LeBeau and Hannah Jenkins came up big in Richards' 59-52 girls basketball victory over Oak Lawn on Tuesday night.

Girls Basketball: Swanson's Scoring Powers Oak Forest in Win over Richards

Katie Swanson shrugged off a slow start and went on to score 26 points in Oak Forest's 53-40 girls basketball victory over Richards on Tuesday night. Emily Naegele added 17 rebounds for the Bengals.

UPDATE: And the Winner in Fan Balloting for Patch Athlete of the Week is ...

Lincoln-Way West's Kaitlyn Neiheisel placed second in diving at the IHSA state swimming and diving meet. She finished No. 1 in voting for Patch Athlete of the Week.

Lincoln-Way West's Kaitlyn Neiheisel defeated five others in voting for Patch Athlete of the Week, Nov. 13-19. She is now eligible to be featured as Patch Athlete of the Month for November. The nominees for Southland Patch Athlete of the Week, Nov. 13-19, were: Cheyenne DeGraff, junior, girls swimming, Lincoln-Way North. DeGraff placed in two events at the IHSA state swimming and diving championships. She finished 10th in the 200 I.M. with a time of 2:07.40 and 12th in the 100 breast with a clocking of 1:06.76. Chaz Duson, senior forward, girls basketball, Rich Central. Duson’s all-around play powered the Olympians to a 49-43 victory over Andrew in the championship game of the T-Bolts’ Turkey Tourney. She scored 14 points, had three steals…

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Richards' LeBeau, Jenkins Sign to Play Softball in Collegiate Ranks

Brianna LeBeau is headed to Northwestern, and Hannah Jenkins will play at Loyola. The two are honor roll students and ace softball players at Richards. Can the two Division I recruits lead the Bulldogs to a state title during their senior seasons?

Wednesday. Some like to think of it as get-over-the-hump day. Richards softball coach Julie Folliard called it a day of celebration for the families of her two most gifted players. Brianna LeBeau and Hannah Jenkins signed national letters of intent last Wednesday to play in the collegiate ranks next school year. LeBeau, Richards’ ace pitcher and the reigning Gatorade Softball Player of the Year in Illinois, is headed to Northwestern. Jenkins, a shortstop who earned a spot on the Illinois Coaches Association all-state team, cast her lot with Loyola. The two seniors are honor roll students and diamond gems, too. They teamed to lead Richards to a 32-3 record last spring. The Bulldogs won conference, regional and sectional championships. …

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