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Sports

Longtime Baseball Player Brings Skills to Softball

Stevenson second baseman Lara Horwitz is one tough out.

's sixth-place hitter never flinched once during those inside pitches from the Glenbrook South right-hander on Thursday afternoon.

Doesn't Stevenson junior Lara Horwitz know how to get out of the way of a blazing fastball headed for her?

"It's not as fast as any pitches I've been used to,'' Horwitz said.

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This Patriots infielder didn't grow up playing fast-pitch softball. But rather since she was 4 years old, it's been nothing but baseball. From the Buffalo Grove Recreation Assocation  to the Vernon Hills Cougars to the Chicago Pioneers.

"I went everywhere in baseball,'' Horwitz said. "I grew up playing baseball."

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Well, there is the answer right there. She doesn't flinch or back down from any pitch.

"She has had some real quality at-bats,'' said Stevenson coach Larry Friedrichs. "She'll get in a hole and still manage to get a walk out of it."

On Thursday in a nonconference game with visiting Glenbrook South, Horwitz had nothing to show for two sizzling line drives. One was caught in center field and the other one at third base. In the sixth inning, she laced a ball over the third base bag and chased home Heather Cohen with Stevenson's second run of the game. The Pats (11-5-1) fell short 4-2.

Horwitz looks like a rising star in the Stevenson program. However, all that baseball playing and softball has left her with a torn labrum. Surgery should clear that up as the Pats decide where to play her next year.

Oh, her biggest moment during her long baseball career came at Disney World. That's when she clocked a home run.

Changing to softball hasn't bothered Horwitz. She loves playing with the Stevenson team.

"The girls are so much fun,'' she said. "There is never a dull moment with this team."

Recap: Stevenson grabbed a quick 1-0 lead. After leadoff hitter Emma Patrash was hit by a pitch, third baseman Ashley Niedermayer ripped a run-scoring double for the quick 1-0 lead. Glenbrook South scored three times in the second on four hits and three Stevenson errors.

Stevenson's offense did manage a baserunner in five of the seven frames. In the fifth, both Nicole Alesi and Patrash reached on singles but a double play halted that rally.

Pitcher Sam Feder scattered 10 hits. She was helped by a gorgeous stab at third base by Niedermayer. That senior threw home to nail a runner at the plate.

"That's why she is playing third base,'' Friedrichs said.

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