St. Edward's McShane chooses Valpo
There were many things Tarah McShane liked about Valparaiso University.
And now McShane will call Valpo home for the next four years.
The St. Edward senior catcher/third baseman recently accepted a scholarship offer to play for the Crusaders and attend school at the NCAA Division I institution in northwest Indiana.
“When I went there I really liked the campus and that was a big part of the decision for me. It's small and I can still walk to my classes and it's close enough that my parents can come and see me play,” said McShane, a Driscoll transfer and Streamwood resident who was a Daily Herald All-Area player as well as a Suburban Christian Conference all-league pick last season.
McShane helped St. Edward to a 20-14 season as a junior, hitting .457 with 8 doubles, 3 triples, 4 home runs, 27 RBI and only 9 strikeouts in 105 at-bats. She had a .584 on-base percentage and a .705 slugging percentage.
“Tarah is one of the hardest working and most dedicated athletes I've coached,” said former St. Edward head coach and current assistant Mike Rolando, who also went to college at Valpo. “I'm happy that she will get to play in college and get an outstanding education at Valpo. I also look forward to her playing a relaxed senior year and coaching her one more year. She has quite a desire and drive to win and that makes her fun to coach.”
McShane had originally set up an official visit with former Valpo coach Randy Schneider, who left the program Aug. 2 to become an assistant coach at Wisconsin. But Crusaders assistant coach Rachel Folden, who plays for the Chicago Bandits of the NPF, kept the recruiting process going. McShane took her official visit the weekend before new Valpo coach Jordan Stevens took over, then she met Stevens when the Crusaders played DePaul on Oct. 10.
“He seems really nice and when I went out there I met the girls and I loved the team,” said McShane, who said she also considered Morehead State and Northern Illinois.
“Tarah has a strong presence on the softball field,” said first-year St. Edward coach Jaci Corn. “Her talent, maturity, leadership skills and perseverance make her a force that's tough to beat. She will continue to be a leader for the program going into her senior season and I look forward to coaching her before she makes her transition to college softball.”
McShane is believed to be just the third Division I softball player to come out of St. Edward, the last being 2005 graduate Lissa Fehlman, who was the honorary co-captain of the Daily Herald's All-Area team her senior year before going on to a four-year career at Evansville. She is also the third player from an Elgin high school to go to Valpo for softball, following Courtney LaFerle and Tracy Korth of Larkin.
At Valpo, McShane will join a program that finished 35-21 last season and 12-9 in the Horizon League. In Schneider's seven seasons as coach, the Crusaders were 172-187-1 but had winning seasons the last four years. Stevens, the new coach, came to Valpo from Union College, an NCAA Division III school in New York. His team there won 32 games last season.
For McShane, who will play this season for the Orland A's travel program, the pressure is now off.
“It's been a really stressful process,” she said. “I'm happy I had the options I had and it was a tough choice but I'm happy with my decision and now I can concentrate on my senior year.”
NCAA rules prohibit coaches from commenting on recruits until their National Letter of Intent is signed. The early signing period begins Nov. 10.