Kating's "Farewell Tour" at South Elgin Similar to 1984 Quarterfinal Trip at Fremd
MLB Updates on Tauchman, Loutos; Bittersweet Time As Clancy Moves to Ball State
Jim Kating was instrumental in making sure Terry Gellinger had a memorable farewell tour with the Fremd baseball program he started. Gellinger retired after the team’s trip to the Class AA state quarterfinals in Springfield in 1984.
Now Kating is on his own farewell coaching tour with the South Elgin program he started in 2007. The Storm have reached the Class 4A Elite Eight, which is now the supersectional round, and will try to prolong Kating’s career when they face powerful McHenry at 6 p.m. Monday at Geneva’s Northwestern Medicine Field, the home of the Kane County Cougars.
South Elgin is 25-10 and rebounded from a 2-8 start to win the Upstate 8 Conference crown, its seventh regional and its third sectional. Kating won his 300th career game in 2023 and his 2014 team finished third in the state in Class 4A.
“I’m sad because this is a good group of kids to be with,” Kating told longtime Daily Herald sportswriter Craig Brueske for a story near the end of the regular season. “Throughout the years, I have had real good kids and great experiences.
“The mind is still there but the body is telling me it’s time for me to give it up and give it to somebody else and see what happens.”
Kating was a rare three-sport all-Mid-Suburban League pick for Gellinger in baseball, Mo Tharp in basketball and Joe Samojedny in football at Fremd. He was chosen in the 30th round of the 1984 draft by the Cubs, but went to Southern Illinois and played there for a season. After a monster 25-homer sophomore season at Triton College, he was taken in the first round of the January phase of the 1986 draft by the Dodgers and played five seasons in the minor leagues.
Kating captained the Herald’s 1984 All-Area baseball team that included shortstop Dave Eck, first baseman Jeff Bossong and pitcher Rob McCormack. Leadoff man Mike Rathnau was an all-MSL pick. They lost their state quarterfinal 11-0 in 6 innings to Reavis in Springfield.
“I wish we had been in the lower bracket,” Kating told the Herald’s Keith Reinhard. “I think we could have won on this side. It just wasn’t time for the season to end. At least not until we had won one game down here.”
Gellinger told Reinhard he didn’t inform his players of his retirement plans until after the state quarterfinal game. Gellinger coached two years at Palatine (1965-66) before moving across town to Fremd and coached the MSL’s first baseball Elite Eight qualifier in 1979.
“They didn’t know it until then,” Gellinger said to Reinhard. “It’s something I’ve contemplated for three months or so. And I’ve had my mind made up for the last three or four weeks.
“It was a great present just to get to the state tournament. It’s a great way to go out, even with today’s outcome.”
There were a lot of thrills along the way in 1984 that included the only shared MSL baseball title with Prospect. A combination of Fremd’s long postseason run and bad weather prevented a championship game from being played.
Eck recently said the Vikings did get their title by beating the Knights 8-5 in the regional championship game at Prospect. Kating’s 2-run homer started the comeback from a 5-0 deficit and Eck had a go-ahead 3-run double.
Kating homered twice in the Barrington sectional semifinal and his game-winning 2-run blast capped a 5-run bottom of the seventh and 13-12 comeback over Waukegan East. That would lead to a 15-10 sectional title win over Dundee-Crown and trip to state.
“Coach kept us in the game, kept us going, motivating us,” Kating told the Herald’s Phil Brozynski after the sectional semifinal. “This team just never says die.
Kind of like the one Kating is now coaching for the final time 41 years later.
Major Matters
Fremd product Mike Tauchman was off to a good start in his first season with the White Sox with 4 hits in 10 at-bats. Then he strained a hamstring trying to score the tying run in what became the final out of a loss in Cleveland on April 9.
But after a six-week stint on the injured list, Tauchman has come back nicely and was hitting .297 with 3 homers and 10 RBI in 64 at-bats through Saturday’s win over Kansas City. Tauchman joined Buffalo Grove’s Josh Paul as the only MSL alums to play for the Cubs and White Sox.
Barrington grad and pitcher Ryan Loutos made a couple of returns to the big leagues with the defending World Series champion Dodgers before he was dropped from the 40-man roster this weekend and designated for assignment. Loutos pitched 3 innings in 2 relief appearances and gave up 4 hits and 5 earned runs with 2 walks and 2 strikeouts.
Loutos signed with the Cardinals as an undrafted free agent out of Washington University in St. Louis in 2021. He made 3 relief appearances for the Cardinals in 2024.
Hersey grad and third baseman Brett Harris, who got into 36 games last year with the Oakland A’s, has been battling injuries all season. He started on the IL with an oblique strain and had a red-hot start at Triple-A Las Vegas (.375, 3 HR, 11 RBI in 48 at-bats) before going back on the IL in mid-April.
Harris just came back off the IL. After a stint with the A’s Rookie League team, Harris came back to Triple-A Vegas and went 2-for-4 with a double in his first game back on June 7. Click below to check out the MSL to MLB page.
Congratulations, Condolences to John Clancy
Kathy Clancy and her husband Jim were proud supporters of their son John’s drive to succeed as a college basketball coach. The former Buffalo Grove star was recently hired as an assistant coach at Ball State after two years at Western Illinois.
Sadly, Kathy Clancy won’t get the chance to see John coach with his new team as she recently lost her three-year battle with brain and lung cancer on May 19 at age 62 and her funeral was held May 24 in Chicago. To say Kathy qualified for sainthood, especially raising competitive sons John and Pat, is a huge understatement. It was always fun seeing Kathy and Jim at BG games and they also had a daughter, Shannon.
“MOM has gone home to HEAVEN! She went peacefully Monday,” John wrote on his Facebook page. “If you were lucky enough to know her, you know she would not want anyone to be sad or upset. Instead let’s celebrate her amazing life and profound impact she had on so many!
“She was the most kind, selfless and caring person I have ever met! The toughness and strength she showed for almost 3 years battling stage 4 brain and lung cancer was the most inspiring thing I have ever witnessed!
“She was the absolute BEST grandma, mom, wife, sister, cousin, aunt, godmother, friend. I’m so blessed I got 40 years on this earth with her!”
Just a few days before her passing was the announcement of John’s addition to the Ball State coaching staff. Head coach Michael Lewis is entering his fourth season and played at Indiana for Bob Knight (1996-2000).
"I am extremely excited to add John Clancy to our basketball staff," Lewis said in a release from the school. "John quickly rose to the top with his vast network of recruiting connections and his ability to attract student-athletes in today's new era of college athletics. Combined with his on-the-court teaching and coaching ability, especially in the area of player development, John will be a great complement and addition to our current staff."
Clancy led Triton College to the NJCAA 2022 national semifinals in the first of his two seasons as head coach. He was also an assistant at Triton and John A. Logan College, director of basketball operations at Southern Illinois, a head coach for two years at Wheeling and an assistant at Elk Grove, St. Viator and Niles North.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to join Coach Lewis' staff at Ball State as an assistant coach," Clancy said. "I'm excited to work with an experienced and accomplished staff at a place where basketball is very important! I look forward to getting our players here this summer and start building towards a special season in Muncie!"
Obsuszt Enters IADA Hall of Fame
Congratulations to “finally” retired Barrington athletic director Mike Obsuszt on his recent induction into the Illinois Athletic Directors Association (IADA) Hall of Fame. Obsuszt led the Barrington athletic department from 2003-22 and was the boys basketball head coach from 1995-2002. He recently wrapped up a stint as the interim athletic director at St. Viator.
Obsuszt also had an interesting story regarding the recent passing of Tom Shields, the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame coach whose numerous stops included two years at York and leading Providence-St. Mel, arguably the most dominant Class A team in Illinois history, to the 1985 state title with future “Flyin’ Illini” starter Lowell Hamilton.
Obsuszt was still coaching at Walther Lutheran in Melrose Park late in the 1992-93 season and hosted Shields’ Hales Franciscan team that finished second in the Class A tourney. After the Senior Night spotlight introductions, the spotlight turned to a banner on the wall congratulating the seniors, which the cheerleaders pulled down to show a message that said, “Michelle, will you marry me?’”
Not only did the proposal to his future wife work out well but Obsuszt said Walther nearly upset Hales.
Zach’s Back at Fremd
Fremd boys basketball announced on Twitter/X in late May that Zach Monaghan, one of the best players in school history, is coming back to coach the freshman team next season.
Monaghan was a two-time Mid-Suburban West Player of the Year and the Daily Herald All-Area captain in 2011 after he averaged 22.3 points a game. Monaghan played a year at South Dakota State and then at Division II Minnesota State before embarking on an eight-year professional career in Spain, Bulgaria and Belgium. He also recently started “The Basketball Baby” children’s books.
It wouldn’t be surprising if shots from half-court and beyond are part of Monaghan’s practice plan. After he made a three-quarter court shot at Schaumburg as a junior, he said he regularly practiced it with teammate Chris Vanisi in a game they called “75 Cents.” Then-coach Bob Widlowski said it was more than just fun and games and was part of practices that went back to Mo Tharp’s days as a head coach.
After all, one of the most dramatic moments in the Fremd-Palatine rivalry was in the 1988 Class AA regional final when George Poorman, who played football at Notre Dame, hit a half-court shot at the buzzer to give the Vikings a 52-49 victory. Poorman told the Herald’s Bruce Miles “it was all luck,” but Tharp disagreed with the bomb that kept Fremd on track to reach the supersectional.
“You can ask my assistant coach, but as soon as it left his hand I said, ‘It’s in, it’s in,’” Tharp told Miles. “I’ve said all along that there’s no better competitor in high school basketball than George Poorman. When he shot that ball, I knew it looked good and I knew that it had a chance.”
Zach Monaghan’s brother Pat, also known for his long-range shooting ability, was recently hired as an assistant to Fred Hoiberg at Nebraska.
Prospect Pitching Legends Reunited
It was fun to catch up earlier this spring with Kevin Kelley and Larry Lewis, two pitching legends for Larry Pohlman at Prospect, after a Hersey-Rolling Meadows game. Kelley was also Lewis’ pitching coach at Prospect.
The conversation also turned to former Prospect three-sport star Mike Quade. The former Cubs manager for the final two months of 2011 and 2012 is in his eighth year as an outfield instructor in the Minnesota Twins organization.
Quade was also the Cubs’ third-base coach for Lou Piniella, the first-base coach for the “Moneyball” Oakland A’s and a successful minor league manager for 19 seasons with six organizations (1,375-1,289 record).
Remembering Sue (Harkins) Thorsness
Sad to hear about the passing of longtime Schaumburg athletic secretary Sue (Harkins) Thorsness on April 26, about one month after suffering a stroke, at age 77.
Sue was one of the nicest people around and was one of the gems of MSL and area athletic departments that included Lana Ayres at Conant, Annie Hernandez at Palatine, Linda Ray at Barrington and numerous others. They were invaluable back in the days of speed dial, because the phones from the Daily Herald prep sports department were usually burning up to area high school athletic departments every spring.
Every day was an adventure of wondering whether games and events would go on as scheduled or be postponed or canceled. And before there was social media and email to share this information, there was the good old-fashioned phone call to the school’s athletic secretary to find out what was or wasn’t happening that day.
Sue was one of the people who made that part of the job a lot easier not only for us but for ADs like John Selke and Gary Scholz. Condolences to her husband Bob and their family and friends.
Remembering Rich Martin
Rich Martin, who was a big part of high school sports coverage of Barrington and the MSL for Pioneer Press, passed away May 19 at 70 after a battle with cancer. Rich had an award-winning career and it was always good to see him at games and events.
Rich also became an IHSA official in football and girls lacrosse after he retired from newspapers. He met Trish, his wife of 40 years, on September 17, 1983 when he was sitting in front of her at old Comiskey Park as the White Sox beat the Seattle Mariners to clinch the American League’s Western Division title.
Rich was also an avid outdoorsman who enjoyed hunting, fishing and cycling and was a big fan of the Green Bay Packers, White Sox and Notre Dame. Funeral services were held in Lombard on May 29.
I was sad to hear about Sue. She was a good buddy. Thanks for such nice words about all of us. We were a good group! So were our bosses. Love reading all of your articles.