Waubonsie Valley senior outfielder Hannah Laub has always felt at home on the softball field, but she was never as relaxed as she was this season.
The two-sport star ended a multiyear recruiting process by choosing to play basketball in college instead of softball, committing to Army.
With her future decided, Laub made sure her farewell to softball was a blast.
“I knew this was my last year, so just have fun,” she said. “I’m playing with all of my friends, so it was enjoyable. I honestly think that’s why I hit better, just because all of the pressure was taken off.”
Laub, the 2024 Naperville Sun Softball Player of the Year, transferred that pressure to opposing pitchers. She batted .576 with 62 hits, 16 home runs, 18 doubles, 45 RBIs and 39 runs scored. She broke the single-season program records for home runs, batting average and hits, tied the record for runs and had the second-highest RBI total.
Laub did that while demonstrating incredible plate discipline. She struck out just seven times.
“She was just incredible to watch play because she’s so strong and so mentally tough,” Waubonsie Valley coach Valerie Wood said. “She has crazy pitch selection. She just knows which pitches are balls and strikes. I don’t know how she’s trained herself to do that, but she knows what the pitch is.”
Throwing a pitch in the strike zone against Laub was often a bad idea. During a game this season, Naperville Central coach Andy Nussbaum told his pitcher not to give Laub a ball anywhere near the middle of the plate after she homered. But in Laub’s next at-bat, she did get a strike and homered again.
While Laub’s last season was by far her best, she has been a star throughout her career. In her first game as a freshman, she struck out 16 batters, one shy of Wood’s program record.
Laub didn’t pitch as much after she suffered a torn ACL in May 2022 but still made a massive impact on the Warriors (15-18), who had won just four games in 2023.
“A lot of that was attributed to her because we had a very young team again and she took all those kids under her wing,” Wood said. “She really helped mold them into the players they are now. It’s almost like I had a third coach.”
That’s a familiar storyline for Laub, who helped lead Waubonsie Valley’s girls basketball team to a program-record 32 wins and their first state trophy with a fourth-place finish in Class 4A.
“Softball, I honestly thought it was going to be worse than every year before just because we (graduated) two of our better players and I had no idea what was coming in,” Laub said. “We had seven freshmen, but they really helped us out, and we made it probably as best we could have this year.”
In the process, Laub’s younger teammates helped her prepare for the challenges she will face in the Army, listening to her instructions and making adjustments.
“It was kind of nice because I’m going off to West Point next year where I have to learn how to be a good leader,” Laub said. “They helped me to do that.”
Upon graduating from West Point, Laub will be required to serve five years of active duty followed by three years in the Army Reserve. A straight-A student, Laub is embracing the huge commitment.
“This opportunity was too hard to pass up,” she said. “I get my college paid for … and probably some of the best schooling that I could get. After you’re done with the military, saying that you went to West Point will pretty much get you the job.”
Laub’s job at Waubonsie Valley is finished, and she’s proud of what she accomplished, including all of her program records. The school doesn’t keep career records, but Laub finished her four-year stint with a .527 batting average, 53 home runs, 117 RBIs, 163 hits, 47 doubles and 21 triples.
“I definitely hope those records stay there for quite a while,” she said. “It’s kind of nice having my name at the top, but for Waubonsie’s sake I’m hoping they get a couple more players coming though that can do something good for the program.”
But Laub cannot be cloned.
“I’m never going to see this type of caliber of player again,” Wood said. “There’s no way. I’ve been very privileged and fortunate to be able to work with her. It’s just been a pleasure.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
