Different sport. Same results. Same award.

After an outstanding campaign on the basketball court this winter netted her numerous accolades, including Suburban Life Player of the Year, one might have wondered what Toni Kokenis could do for an encore.

Instead of waiting for her return to the hardcourt in 2010, the Hinsdale Central junior simply went out and had the same impact, if not greater, on the soccer field this spring.

Scoring a team-high 26 goals to go along with 10 assists, Kokenis was a key force behind the Red Devils winning their first state title in program history last Saturday.

And the most impressive part, she only plays the sport three months out of the year. That’s right, no traveling teams, club ball or individual drill work in the offseason.

For her individual exploits and the impact she had on her team, Kokenis has been selected as the 2009 Suburban Life/Reporter/Met Spring Girls MVP.

“I’m actually nervous at the start of the season,” Kokenis said, “because I haven’t played in a while. But each day gets a little better and I get more into the swing of things.

“At the beginning of the season, it takes me a little while to get into soccer mode coming off basketball. It takes a little while to get used to it. But during soccer season, my focus is on soccer.”

As is her nature, the junior gave much of the credit for her success to her teammates.

“It reflects on our team,” she said. “They have put me in situations to do as well as I have been doing. They are setting me up to score and supporting me in everything.”

Even more important to Kokenis was the accomplishments of the team, which after a down year in 2008, rebounded with a storybook season culminating in a 2-1 victory over Fremd in the state championship game. In that contest, she added another game-deciding goal to her resume.

“It was amazing,” the junior said. “There are not really words to describe it. After our season last year, we had fun playing together, but our record wasn’t the best. We knew we had a couple of new people on the team and the core of last year was back. We knew we had a chance to be a special team.

“We worked hard and kept after it every day. A lot of thanks goes to the coaches for pushing us every day. We kept pushing each other and we worked to get better.”

Before winning state, Hinsdale Central first had to play in the supersectional, a game that had eluded Kokenis previously in her high school career. In fact, she has been a part of basketball teams that have lost the last three years to Bolingbrook in the sectional final.

“It was nice to get there finally,” Kokenis said. “Playing in my first supersectional game was awesome. I hadn’t gotten past the sectional final. It was really special. And that we were able to come back like we’ve done during the season and stick together was unbelievable.”

Kokenis is almost certain to go on to play basketball at the Division I college level, so Hinsdale Central head coach Skip Begley is just happy she continues to give soccer a go.

“She is a difference-maker for us,” Begley said, “especially because scoring goals is at a premium in high school soccer. I am glad she was able to find value in high school soccer.

“She not only has the ability but she has got the work ethic. And she wants to make the team successful and not just herself. She is very-gifted and a very hard worker and she is deserving of the accolades she has received this year. She has gotten the job done.”

Now meet the rest of the all-area team, which features athletes from all of the spring girls sports:

Brooke Andresen
Downers South, senior
Softball
Achievements Heading to Loyola University next year, the lefthanded-hitting center fielder capped her fourth season as a starter with more impressive offensive numbers. After hitting over .380 in her first two seasons and a staggering .514 with nine home runs and 48 RBIs as a junior, Andresen capped her career with another big spring. While returning to earth a bit from last year’s stratospheric play, Andresen hit .387 with four home runs and 29 RBIs to cap one of the most brilliant four-year careers in program history.

Amy Baschen
Downers South, senior
Soccer
Achievements Her six goals and four assists couldn’t sum up the four-year varsity player’s immeasurable contributions to Downers South’s success. Starting the season at forward, Baschen’s move to midfield not coincidentally coincided with a 12-2-1 record over the last 15 games of the season. More critical as a steadying force on the field, she still finished her Downers South career with 17 goals.

Katie Baschen
Downers South, senior
Soccer
Achievements On a Mustangs squad packed with talented underclassmen, the second Baschen sister on the Downers South team joined Amy in providing first-rate play and leadership. A team co-captain with Amy, Katie nearly matched her sister with six goals and two assists this spring and started 48 games at midfield over the past two years.

Lee Battaglia
Hinsdale Central, senior
Soccer
Achievements In her return to the high school soccer scene after concentrating on club a year ago, the senior was a driving force behind the Red Devils’ run to the state semifinals. Controlling the middle of the field, this all-West Suburban Silver pick scored 11 goals on the spring while adding seven assists. Her biggest goal came in the supersectional match-up with Naperville North where her rebound knotted the score in the second half. She also scored in the state semifinal win over Sandburg.

Jess Bollow
Downers North, senior
Softball
Achievements A four-year starter for the Trojans, Bollow used a combination of great speed dribbling in on the wing with a tremendous ability to finish or draw defensive attention to free up teammates for open-net looks. The forward capped off a tremendous year and career when she scored the eventual game-winning goal in the Trojans’ 2-1 win over host Plainfield North in the regional semifinals.

Hayley Bridwell
Lemont, senior
Softball
Achievements One of many returning standouts from last year’s regional championship team, Bridwell was an offensive catalyst as Lemont’s leadoff hitter and a crucial defensive player in center field. Headed to play collegiately at Valparaiso University next year, Bridwell capped off her high school career in style as she scored both Lemont runs in the Indians’ loss to Richards in the regional finals. She also was 2-for-3 with two runs scored in Lemont’s regional semifinal win.

Caitlin Connor
Hinsdale Central, senior
Water polo
Achievements Going down as one of the top players in program history, this senior helped lead the Red Devils to 14 wins this spring. Connor finished with 106 goals this season after posting 87 a year ago. The team’s captain was especially impressive in the postseason, scoring eight goals against Stagg in the sectional quarterfinals and five of the team’s six goals in the semifinal loss to Sandburg.

Tammy Contorno
Lemont, senior
Soccer
Achievements In her fourth year on varsity, Contorno teamed with fellow co-captain Megan Krull to control the midfield in the best season in Lemont soccer history. Taking virtually all of her team’s corner kicks, Contorno finished with 15 goals and 12 assists. The most important of those goals came in the opening seconds of the second overtime of supersectionals, when her 30-yard blast into the upper corner of the net earned Lemont a 1-0 win en route to second place in Class 2A.

Adabelle Ekechukwu
Hinsdale Central, junior
Track & field
Achievements After finishing 10th in the state as a sophomore in the shot put, Ekechukwu bested that showing this time around. Courtesy of a personal best heave of 41 feet, 5 inches, the junior placed third in Class 3A and helped lead the Red Devils to fifth place as a team. She also competed in the prelims in the discus after being sectional champion in both events.

Tori Franklin
Downers North, sophomore
Track & field
Achievements After qualifying for state as a freshman at Glenbrook North last spring, Franklin quickly made a home in her new school’s record books. She set a new varsity record in the triple jump at the West Suburban Silver meet, beginning a run to state glory. Franklin didn’t even let a rare off-day at sectionals deter her, as she followed a fifth-place triple jump of 35 feet, 6 inches that day by zooming to second place in that event at the state finals (38-6-1/2).

Shelley Hadlock
Lemont, senior
Soccer
Achievements Another invaluable fourth-year varsity player for Lemont, Hadlock was constantly pressuring defenses and goalkeepers with both blistering shots and great playmaking. Leading the Indians in both goals (21) and assists (13), she netted the deciding goal in the 2-1 sectional final win over Joliet Catholic Academy. Then in the Class 2A semifinals, her nice steal and perfect cross set up Jasmin Nunez for the game-winner against Chatham Glenwood. Over just her last two years, Hadlock had 43 goals and 23 assists.

Michelle Hartnett
Downers South, senior
Track & field
Achievements  A pole vault state qualifier as a junior, Hartnett lowered her leaps but reached new heights in 2009. Advancing downstate in the high jump, Hartnett reached the state finals on Saturday and eventually placed 11th. The senior’s versatility was really on display at the West Suburban Gold meet, where she won two individual events (the high jump and pole vault) and was part of two championship relays as well in a tireless performance. 

Julia Katsaros
Hinsdale South, senior
Softball
Achievements Her combination of excellent outfield defense, slap hitting and speed made her an all-around catalyst throughout her Hornet career, and Katsaros’ excellence at Hinsdale South could be just the start. A top traveling team player, she has signed to play at Western Illinois next year.

Toni Kokenis
Hinsdale Central, junior
Soccer
Achievements You can run out of adjectives to describe what this junior has done for Red Devil athletics this year. Following up a record-breaking basketball campaign, Kokenis didn’t skip a beat on the soccer field, scoring a team-high 26 goals to go along with 10 assists. More importantly, many of her goals were game-winners, which played an integral part in Hinsdale Central winning the Class 3A state title.

Marissa Mersch
Downers South, sophomore
Softball
Achievements Mersch made such a big impression as a freshman last year that she was immediately elevated to the high-pressure leadoff spot. She responded to that challenge, then took it to another level this spring. Doing all the things a perfect leadoff hitter does (hitting .487 with 40 runs scored), Mersch also developed into a power hitter with 17 doubles and five home runs. Add a strong throwing arm from right field, and Mersch could be one of Illinois’ top college recruits from the Class of 2011.

Olivia Niemann
Hinsdale South, senior
Badminton
Achievements The senior made her second straight trip to the state tournament after winning the No. 1 singles spot at the Hinsdale South sectional. Niemann went 3-2 at the state tournament and did not lose until the quarterfinals of the championship bracket. As a team, the Hornets came in ninth place after posting a second-place finish in 2009.  

Uzo Okoro
Hinsdale South, freshman
Track & field
Achievements The Hornets’ freshman maximized her opportunities this spring by qualifying for the Class 3A state meet after winning the triple jump at the Hinsdale Central sectional with a mark of 36 feet, 3-1/2 inches. At the state meet, Okoro made it to the second day and took 12th place in the finals with a jump of 36-3, which was the same mark as her qualifying jump.

Morgan Olsen
Downers North, senior
Soccer
Achievements A constant force on the field for four years either on defense, at midfield or offensively, Olsen’s versatility paid off with her starring role in the best two-year run in Downers North girls soccer history. After winning the first regional title in school history last year, the Trojans followed with an 11-4-4 record this spring. Downers North just missed a second straight regional, falling to No. 1 seed Neuqua Valley in overtime.

Kelly Payne
Hinsdale South, senior
Softball
Achievements Payne continued to excel despite an injury-plagued career. After December injuries both as a junior and senior cut short her last two basketball seasons, Payne overcame midseason knee problems in softball (which forced her to move from catcher to third base) to continue to cause major damage in the middle of the Hornets’ lineup for the second year in a row. Her last of many big hits was an RBI double against Downers South that wrapped up Hinsdale South’s 4-1 regional final win.

Lauren Roush
Hinsdale Central, junior
Track & field
Achievements Showing great improvement from the year before, the junior was a key contributor for a Hinsdale Central team that finished in fifth place at the state meet. In individual action, she qualified for the finals in the 400-meter dash and finished ninth after winning a sectional title in that event a week earlier. Roush also ran the final leg of the 4 x 100 relay where the Red Devils placed second.

Katie Schaller
Hinsdale Central, senior
Soccer
Achievements The lone senior on the back line for the Red Devils, this two-year starter had an outstanding campaign this spring. From her position of central defender, Schaller led a unit that allowed only 24 goals in 25 games. An all-sectional player and a Chicago Red Stars Academic all-state selection, she also added one goal and two assists, including the 50-yard free kick that set up the game-winning goal in the Class 3A supersectional.

Leia Scott
Downers North, senior
Track & field
Achievements A great leader of the underclassmen-dominated Trojans with her optimism and enthusiasm, Scott put the same energy to use in the triple jump. After qualifying for state as a junior, Scott built on that experience this spring to jump beyond Friday’s preliminaries and eventually place 13th in the state finals of the triple jump. Beyond her performance, Scott was credited by junior teammate Ellen McCammon for her help in reaching state in the triple jump as well for the first time.

Jesse Vardas
Hinsdale Central, junior
Track & field
Achievements A first-year state qualifier for the Red Devils, Vardas had a fine showing at Eastern Illinois University on May 23 to cap off an outstanding pole vault campaign. One week after winning a sectional title with a height of 11-0, the junior finished in eighth place at the Class 3A state meet with the same mark.

Morgan Wilkinson
Westmont, senior
Softball
Achievements Wilkinson not only provided excellent defensive play at catcher for Westmont, but also was a huge offensive force in the heart of the Sentinels’ lineup. She finished the regular season with team highs in batting average (.377), doubles (11) and RBIs (20), and provided an incredible encore in regionals with a five-RBI game in Westmont’s win over Aurora Christian.

HONORABLE MENTION

Downers North
Jules Burton, softball; Maureen Barr, badminton; Katherine Edmundson, badminton; Allison Gilbert, soccer; Brianna Magill, soccer; Hallie Niewold, softball
 
Downers South
Dege Abate, softball; Jess Bronke, soccer; Kayla Gull, softball; Katie Jelinek, softball; Keri Kujawa; soccer; Megan Martin, soccer; Nicole Thate, track

Hinsdale Central
Grace Amodeo, softball; Courtney Arundel, soccer; Tierney Burchett, soccer; Chelsea Celistan, track; Nicole D’Agostino, soccer; Melissa Moucka, badminton; Julie Ziolkowski, badminton

Hinsdale South
Jackie Belmonte, soccer; Michelle Bolos, softball; Carly Hinni, softball; Amy Narotsky, softball; Maggie Nowak, softball; Rajul Parekh, badminton; Samantha Schimmel, soccer

Lemont
Leah Challenger, softball; Megan Krull, soccer; Kristen Neetz, track; Courtney Smalarz, soccer; Erin Stahurski, soccer; Ashley Sullivan, softball; Bri Wojnowski, soccer

Westmont
Sara Barry, track; Michelle Habib, soccer; Jenny Zapinski, softball; Sandra Zenkeviciuite, soccer