Hooked on Fishing

Summers Over, Fishings Not

By Dick Peach

Labor Day has come and gone, and school has started again here in Evanston. For our kids, that marks the end of summer and all the fun things they did. It means back to school books and homework.

But we all know the old adage that "all work and no play" makes for a dull person. Well, fall doesnt have to be all schoolwork and no fun and enjoyment. Fall is still fishing season.

Autumn is one of the best times of the year to go fishing. Not only are the trees starting to turn their beautiful fall colors, but fish are beginning to get ready for cold water and ice.

Water temperatures will begin to fall and aquatic vegetation begins to die, making fewer hiding places for small baitfish.  That in turn makes more food available for predator fish. Fish will be feeding more heavily at this time of year and schooling up in large numbers.

These factors together make them easier to target and catch. In fall, fishing along the weed edges can be really exciting, with big fish easier to catch than at most other times of the year.

The food chain has grown over the summer so dont be afraid to use larger baits, artificial or live. This time of year, when I fish for large smallmouth bass, I use large 5- to 6-inch minnows.

Remember, Lovelace Park is still open on Saturdays for the kids to go fishing and take a break from the books.

Also all the area forest preserve lakes will produce great fishing for several months yet.

So when your children need a break from their homework, take the family out and enjoy the complete experience – fall colors and the great fall fishing. Til next time, keep a tight line.
hookedonfishing@comcast.net

Girls Swim Team One of Best in State

By P.H. Toor

After a disappointing end to last season, the ETHS girls swimming team showed no signs of disappointment in their opening meet last Thursday as they defeated Loyola 106 ½ to 76 ½.

"We swam really well for the first meet. We have some things that we have to improve on. Its the first meet and weve been training pretty hard for the last couple of weeks," Coach Kevin Auger said.
Last season, the team finished the year ranked fourteenth in the state, a ranking that would have actually been second had they not been disqualified from a relay. This year the girls swim team is ranked third and ninth in the state by two different publications, and Coach Augur is optimistic about their chances this year.

"Were pretty excited about this year. I think well be closer to third in the state by the end of year," Coach Augur said. 

Already this year, all of the girls relay times were better than the state standards and should only improve throughout the rest of the season.

"More of the younger kids, freshmen and sophomores, are having best times. The older girls, we dont expect them to have their best times till the end of the year," Coach Auger said. 
The 54-woman roster is led by senior co-captains Sophia and Grace Borchers, both of whom expressed excitement about their teams opening meet performance.

"I was really impressed [with the team]. I think we did an absolutely fantastic job. Everyone was kind of nervous and they just pooled all their energy and went for it. I was really impressed about how we started off the season with a bang," Grace said.
"As a team we did really well. We stepped up a lot. I think we had three or four false starts that we need to work out and we still managed to win and start our season off well," Sophie said. "I think [this week] were really going to work on technical things like fast turns, fast starts. Were going to need all things to go well on all levels."

Ahead for the Wildkits is the most difficult part of their schedule: back-to-back meets against Lake Forest and Barrington over the weekend. Last year with the same schedule, the girls were able to earn a victory on the Friday against Lake Forest but ran out of gas on Saturday against Barrington. They look to improve upon that this year.

"Our schedule is loaded. We even bring in Arrowhead, the top team in Wisconsin, which means that our record might not be the greatest but we are toughened up for the state competition," Coach Auger said.

Said Sophie about this years team: "We definitely have some awesome freshmen this year. Im really excited to bring them into the team and be great for us. We have so much potential this season."

The ETHS offense grinds it out against Lake Tech on Sep. 1. The Kits lost 7-0 at home to fall to 0-2 for the season.

Football Teamn Overpowered  In Season Opener

 By Michael OSullivan

The ETHS football team entered Memorial Stadium on Aug. 25 looking to start the new season on the right foot against the West Chicago Wildcats. A year after the squad fell one win short of reaching the post-season, head coach Tony Johnson and the team felt this was a year to bounce back and get the town talking about Wildkit football again.

Unfortunately, the Wildkits simply looked over-matched in their season opener. The offense, led by junior quarterback David Hirsch, never got into a rhythm. The defense for the Kits made some nice stops, but tired out in the second half and could not keep the Wildcats from pulling away. As the final buzzer sounded, the team walked off the field disappointed from their 23-3 loss to West Chicago.   

Neither the running game nor the passing game ever really got going for the Wildkits.  Hirsch threw three interceptions, and tailback Michael Schanette was very limited on the ground. The offensive line for the Kits was dominated from the first quarter to the final whistle. Hirsch was pressured almost every time he dropped back to pass, and there was not much room for Schanette to run or make plays.

Defensively, Evanston had some bright spots. Senior linebacker Danny Kruger had some solid tackles for losses in the game and senior safety Tyree Crosby had some hard hits and forced a fumble which set up the Wildkits only score of the day, a 35-yard field goal from kicker Phil Hwang.

"We had some nice stops defensively, especially after some of the turnovers from the offense," defensive captain Kruger pointed out. "It takes any offense some time to mesh together, and when they struggle, we [the defense] need to keep the team in the game, and we didnt do that as well as we should have on Saturday."

The Wildkits were hoping to get back on track Sept. 1, as they hosted Lane Tech in their second game of the season.

Boys Golf and Girls Volleyball Start Seasons with High Hopes

By Michael OSullivan

Coach Jed Curtis and the boys golf team are off to a solid start in their 2007 campaign, but they know they are still far from where they want to be. To begin the year, the team is 2-0 in conference play and has had some strong showings in tournaments.

 In last Saturdays Warren Invitational, senior Sean Bostrom took third place, shooting a blazing two over-par 74 at Bittersweet Golf Club in Gurnee. "That was probably my best round of golf through the four years I have been on this team," Bostrom said. "We are off to a good start, but we all need to be playing well to compete with teams like New Trier, Glenbrook South and Glenbrook North in our conference."

Senior and team captain Michael Peters said he felt honored to be the leader a team trying to achieve very high goals. "It was really special to be recognized for the hard work I have put into this team for four years. I have always tried to be a good teammate and a guy people can talk to and ask questions to," Peters said. "I think we can compete for this conference, but we all need to play better than we are now and I think the guys know that."

Coach Curtis has this team moving in the right direction but says it will not be easy to accomplish their goal of winning a conference championship. "These boys have worked very hard to improve their games, and it is definitely showing here in the early part of the season. You can tell they want to win this thing really bad," Curtis said. "We are without question the underdogs in this conference, but if we can pull together and believe in ourselves weve got a good shot."

The boys golf team has a conference match-up with New Trier scheduled for today.

After having one of the best seasons in school history last year, the girls volleyball team is looking to build on that success.

Coach Pam MacPhersons team is a young one, as the majority of the roster consists of sophomores and juniors. However, she is looking for the same attitude that characterized her team last year. Seniors Rachel Sawa, Jane Handel and Gavin Runzel are expected to be key players on this years team and will be looking to display senior leadership for the younger players.

The girls team began their season with the New Trier Tournament, Aug. 31-Sept. 1. On Sept. 4, the girls were scheduled to  have an early season test against the Ramblers from Loyola.