TP_071317

38 | July 13, 2017 | The tinley junction Sports
tinleyjunction.com
Tinley Park grad travels to Japan to play football
Frank Gogola
Freelance Reporter
Trevor Koepke, a Tinley
Park High School alum, felt
at home on the football field
despite being an entire ocean
away.
The Illinois Wesleyan
University rising sophomore
and his Titan teammates
won their Global Bowl Tokyo
2017 game against the
Waseda University Big
Bears on June 4 at Amino
Field in Chofu, Japan. The
exhibition game was part
of an eight-day sightseeing
trip that allowed players to
compete around the globe
and experience a different
culture.
“It was an awesome trip,”
Koepke, a defensive back,
said. “It was an experience
I’ll cherish.”
Winning the game was
one of Koepke’s top memorable
moments from the trip,
he said. He had his first interception
at the college
level and played on special
teams in the 33-6 win that
saw IWU jump out to a 33-0
lead.
Despite the relatively easy
win, Waseda University is
not a no-name team in Japan.
It was last season’s runner-up
in Japan’s Division I,
the top group, and has been
playing American football
since 1934.
IWU coach Norm Eash
compared Waseda to an
NCAA Division II or top
Division III team based on
film, according to a news
release. IWU plays in Division
III.
“They were at a college
level, just not as good as I
thought they would be,” Koepke
said.
He described the game
atmosphere as “pretty rowdy”
with fans cheering and
conductors leading chants
during the game. After the
game, the teams got to meet
each other and socialize during
a barbecue.
The trip helped in building
team chemistry, and Koepke
said he’ll remember spending
time on and off the field
The Illinois Wesleyan University football team rushes the field June 4 prior to the team’s
game against the Waseda University Big Bears in Chofu, Japan. Photo Submitted
with the 49 other teammates
who made the trip.
An off-field highlight of
the trip for Koepke was going
to the top of the Tokyo
Sky Tree, the tallest tower
in the world (2,080 feet), to
view Tokyo at night. There
was a team boat cruise
around Tokyo, as well as
time to roam around the city
to experience its night life.
“I knew I was going to
have a good time,” Koepke
said. “Being there was so
surreal. It was just a fun
time. It blew past my expectations.
Just experiencing
somebody else’s culture and
seeing what Japan has.”
Koepke said the trip has
made him more interested
in visiting a foreign country
again, although he’d choose
somewhere other than Japan
just to experience something
new. He had only been out
of the country once before,
when he went to Mexico for
an aunt’s wedding, he said.
Koepke and some fellow
football players took a Business
of Asia class at IWU before
going on the trip. Since
they were on campus for football
practice, the three-week
class in May provided them
with an introduction to Japan,
the country’s history and basic
things to know for travel
there, among other topics.
Preparation for the game
required two days of practice
while adjusting their
bodies after a flight that took
approximately 14 hours and
covered 6,338 miles, according
to an IWU news release.
The team left on May 31 and
returned on June 8.
This was IWU’s sixth
overseas trip since 1996, and
the first to Asia. The previous
five trips were to Europe.
Koepke is preparing for
a potentially larger role
in 2017. He played in one
game as a freshman in 2016
and recorded three tackles.
Practice begins Aug. 10,
he said, and IWU’s first
game is Sept. 2 against University
of Wisconsin-Whitewater,
which has won six
Division III championships
from 2007 to 2014.
Baseball
Andrew hones pitching skills in loss against Providence
Frank Gogola
Freelance Reporter
Runs looked like they
would be at a premium – until
they were not.
Providence Catholic beat
Andrew in a high-scoring,
12-8 affair, as a pitching duel
turned into a series of offensive
outbursts on Thursday,
July 6, in Tinley Park. The
Celtics’ nine-run fourth inning
proved to be the difference.
Frankfort Square resident
Logan Anderson, a rising senior,
was one of four Celtics
who drove in two runs. Zack
Landy, Jake Walsh and Jake
Mucha also drove in two runs
apiece.
“I’m always working on
my offense,” Anderson said.
“Before two strikes, I try to
hit a ball as far as I can. Then,
really, just take the ball where
it’s pitched, try not to pull a
ball that I should be hitting to
the right side.”
Anderson’s focus has also
been on improving his defense,
although he was the
designated hitter against Andrew.
He is expecting to start
full-time at third base next
spring, after he played third
base and rotated between first
base and catcher last year because
of injuries.
“It’s just a calmness,” Anderson
said. “Last year, I was
iffy at third base to start the
year. Then, I got in a groove
as I started listening to my
coaches. Now, there’s no
nerves, because I’ve been in
the footsteps. I’m just focusing
on my fielding to make
sure I get my feet in the right
position to make the play.”
Andrew’s Zach Weert and
Kevin Bushnell led the Thunderbolts
with two hits each.
Weert went 2-for-4 with a
double, two runs and one
RBI. Bushnell went 2-for-4
with one run scored.
Bushnell, a rising senior, is
expected to be a big part of
Andrew’s plan for success in
the coming spring. He is expected
to replace power hitter
Joe Oswald at first base after
spending time as the designated
hitter last year.
“Joe taught me a lot
throughout last year,” Bushnell
said. “He’s a great leader.
That’s going to be hard to replace
that. I know I have to be
a leader, and my team needs
me out there. He’s taught me
a lot with my swing. We went
out and hit a lot. He’s been a
great teacher.”
Bushnell said he tries to
take 100 swings every day.
He also has been working on
his defense by taking ground
balls and fly balls. Andrew
coach Dave DeHaan said
likes the development he has
seen from Bushnell during
the summer.
“He’s been a solid hitter,”
DeHaan said. “He’s worked
on his defense. He had some
big hits in the spring, and
we’re excited to have him
back. We need him to be consistent
at the plate and drive
the ball. We want power.
That’s what we got from Joe
[Oswald] last year. We’re
looking for someone to drive
guys in.”
While the offense stole the
show, pitching owned the
early innings. Andrew scored
three runs, building a 3-0
lead through three innings,
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