Somonauk inducting 2 individuals, 2016 baseball team into its hall of fame

This Saturday Somonauk High School will host its annual Pack the Place day with basketball games against Sandwich at five levels and the introduction of the Somonauk Athletics Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024 after Friday evening’s induction ceremony at Village Courtyard.

Games on Saturday begin with a 12:30 p.m. freshman boys contest, followed by the JV girls (2 p.m.), JV boys (3:30 p.m.), varsity girls (5 p.m.), inspiration night and hall of fame celebrations (6:30 p.m.) and the varsity boys (7:15 p.m.).

Three new members of the Somonauk Athletics Hall of Fame will be recognized.

Maddie Kawall competed in softball, basketball and track and field. She was the first Somonauk School District 432 athletic sponsored state champion, of any kind, when she was the 2012 IESA seventh-grade long jump champion representing Somonauk Middle School.

She started all four years for the Somonauk girls basketball and softball teams from 2013-2017. She scored 1,302 career points and was the first guard to crack 1,000 points in school history. Kawall was a four-time Times All-Area Girls Basketball Team selection, a four-time Little Ten All-Conference selection and an Illinois Basketball Coaches Association All-State selection during her four years in basketball.

In softball, Kawall was a three-time Illinois Softball Coaches Association All-State selection, three-time Times All-Area first-team pick, three-time All-Little Ten selection and two-time Beacon News All-Area selection. Maddie was the leadoff hitter and center fielder for the 2015 IHSA state runner-up softball team (that was inducted into the HOF in 2022), while leading the team that season with a .556 batting average and 44 runs scored.

She continued her academic and athletic careers after Somonauk, first at Waubonsee Community College, becoming a Skyway All-Conference softball first-team unanimous selection and an NJCAA All-Region 4 selection. Her success at WCC in softball led to playing NCAA Division I softball at Morehead State University in Kentucky, where she started in the outfield her final two years.

She is one of only six documented athletes from Somonauk High School to receive an NCAA Division I athletic scholarship.

The 2016 boys baseball team finished as the IHSA Class 1A state runner-up under head coach Troy Felton and assistant coach Fran Kenyon, going 24-7.

On the way to the state championship game, the Bobcats went 15-1 in the Little Ten Conference, won regional, sectional and supersectional championships and a semifinal matchup against Catlin South Fork.

The Bobcats had eight student-athletes with batting averages above .300 heading into the state title game – Johnny Johnson (.529 average), Ryan Lumsden (.439), Nate Wegener (.421), Jacob Kenyon (.397), Clint Rader (.364), Andrew Johnson (.348), Steven Kenyon (.333) and Brady Kreiter (.312).

Going into the postseason, Johnny Johnson was 8-2 pitching, while teammate Nate Wegener was 5-2, Ryan Lumsden and Ben Svoboda and Nolan Wegener 3-1.

The team was the first boys team to make it to an IHSA state championship game to date in Somonauk history. Team members included Dennis Ferguson, Chris Franzone, Andy Jackson, Andrew Johnson, Johnny Johnson, Jacob Kenyon, Steven Kenyon, Brady Kreiter, Ryan Lumsden, Clayton Morris, Clint Rader, Ben Svoboda, Nate Wegener, Nolan Wegener and Drew Westbrook.

Johnny Johnson, who starred in baseball and soccer, also will be inducted as an individual.

Johnson was a 2017 graduate of Somonauk. Baseball was where he truly excelled, a two-time all-stater, in 2016 as a junior and then his senior year in 2017.

In 2016, the Somonauk Bobcats took second in Class 1A, finishing 24-7. Johnny led the team in pitching with eight wins, 104 innings pitched, 68 strikeouts and a 1.97 ERA. He also led the team in hitting with a .527 average, 49 hits, 13 extra-base hits including two home runs and 51 RBIs.

Johnson’s senior year, the Bobcats made a return trip to the state finals, with the team finishing fourth and going 24-3. He again led the team on the mound with ine wins, 54 2/3 innings pitched, 87 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.15. Johnson had a .402 batting average, 33 hits, three home runs and 38 RBIs.

What can’t be quantified is his dedication and hard work to the sport he truly loved. He exemplified what being a Bobcat means and always demonstrated his Bobcat Pride.