Prep Zone: Pecoraro psyched for 2nd chance with PR

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The face that was Prairie Ridge baseball has returned.

Glen Pecoraro, the only varsity head baseball coach in the school’s first nine years, is back after a three-year hiatus running the program that he turned into a northern Illinois powerhouse.

Pecoraro’s teams were
220-108 during his nine seasons at Prairie Ridge and produced several NCAA Division I players. The Wolves were 26-10 in 2006, Pecoraro’s final season, in which he was named Northwest Herald Coach of the Year.

Pecoraro’s return was rumored ever since he left the program, and it became official in the summer when he was rehired for his old job.

“I missed it,” Pecoraro said. “It was such a huge part of my life. I feel very lucky, most people don’t get a second chance to doing something they love so much.”

Pecoraro stepped away before in the fall of 2006, leaving the program to his assistant Chuck Lowitzki. A year later, Lowitzki left to devote more time to continuing his graduate education, and Dave Haskins took over. Haskins took the Wolves to the IHSA Class 4A state championship in 2008 and had another strong team last season, but left to take the head baseball coaching job at St. Charles East.

Lowitzki also will return to the Wolves as Pecoraro’s assistant.

“When Chuck stepped down [after the 2007 season], I thought I might want to come back as an assistant coach,” said Pecoraro, who returned to the program last year as freshman head coach. “I talked to [athletic director Patti Hie] about it, but I wasn’t ready. I was just getting over not being head coach, and I just wasn’t ready.”

Aside from furthering his education, Pecoraro took three vacations with his wife, Beth, and their four children, who are in fourth through ninth grade.

“I wanted to really work hard on my education,” Pecoraro said. “I have my master’s plus 30 [hours], and I’m working on my Type 75 for administration. And we took three great vacations, which was something I couldn’t do before.”

One of the guys: Woodstock North junior Niki Ryback won’t have to hit the golf ball quite as far the rest of the season.

Ryback, who has been playing with the Woodstock co-op’s boys golf team because the Blue Streaks do not have a girls team, competed in the Fox Valley Conference Girls Golf Tournament as an individual last week and will play in the girls postseason series this week.

“This is her second year, and she showed steady improvement, and she enjoyed herself and came out again this year,” Woodstock coach J.C. Wise said. “She’s a great kid, a positive kid. She interacts with the guys very well, and she’s enjoying herself, so we will keep bringing her back. I know she finds it a little tough once in a while playing only against guys most of the season, but she handles it well.”

Wise hopes the interest in golf grows to the point where the Streaks are able to field a girls team.

“We’d love to see one if there was enough interest,” he said. “This is the third one to go through in my 16 years [as coach].”

In the Hall: McHenry welcomed its second class to the McHenry High School Athletic Hall of Fame in a luncheon Friday at the McHenry VFW building.

Later, the class rode in the homecoming parade and was recognized at the football game against Dundee-Crown.

Last year, the Hall was opened and McHenry reached far back into its history for the first class. This year’s class was comprised of athletes or coaches from 1970 to recent years. Inducted were Gary Fairchild (1970), Ron Miller (1972), Sue Hutchinson (1980), Bill Marinangel (1989), Erin Boland (1991), Brianne Fowles (1996), Dan Philips (1997), Jace Sayler (1997), Al Wilson (1997), Pete Rasmusen (1998), Lukas Slater (2004), Bill Hutchinson (coach) and Dick Rabbitt (special category, sports writer, “Voice of the Warriors,” conference statistician and coach).

• Joe Stevenson covers high school sports for the Northwest Herald. He can be reached at 815-526-4513. He also can be reached by fax at 815-459-5640 or by e-mail at jstevenson@nwherald.com.