Josh Carlile won the coin toss.
Then he went out and won 400 games.
Carlile’s wife Krista coached Manteno’s softball for four years and coaxed Josh to work as a volunteer assistant.
In 2007, the Carliles decided to have children and some tough choices had to be made.
“We flipped a coin,” Josh Carlile said. “She got to stay home with the kids, and I got the softball team.”
Josh Carlile reached 400 career victories on April 3 when the Panthers beat Bloom 19-4.
Over the years, Manteno finished second in the state in 2014 and won five regional titles and a sectional championship under his watch.
He said he is not in coaching for a sparkling record.
“A lot of people from the outside look at coaching as wins and losses,” he said. “It’s nice to get 400 and all that kind of stuff.
“Honestly, the highs for me and what makes me keep coming back are watching the girls compete and watching them be good teammates. Going through adversity and trying to figure out and persevere after setback after setback after setback. That’s my favorite part.”
Carlile has an extensive military background with more than a quarter century of service with the Army and National Guard. He has been deployed to Kuwait, Germany and Afghanistan. He earned a Combat Infantryman Badge during his service.
Now he is teaching at the middle school and coaching softball players.
His military background has helped him run a successful softball program.
“I think our program runs on having a blue-collar work ethic,” he said. “They work hard, and they are there for each other.
“We have high expectations, and we expect every girl in the program to meet those expectations and to exceed those expectations. At the same time, I try to show the girls love and compassion and give them a fatherly image.”
Honor for Stritar
Manteno girls basketball coach Bethany Stritar was named Illinois Basketball Coaches Association District 9 Coach of the Year.
Under her watch, the Panthers finished 24-5 overall and 13-1 in the Illinois Central Eight conference.
Perfection for Norkus
Beecher’s Taylor Norkus, the No. 2 hurler behind ace Ava Lorenzatti, fired her fifth career perfect game in a 10-0 five-inning win over Grant Park in the second game of an April 3 doubleheader.
She struck out 13 of the 18 batters she faced. She threw 65 pitches and 50 were strikes.
Panthers end drought
Michelle Carrera scored the game-winning goal with 4 minutes, 33 seconds left on April 3 to help Manteno to a 1-0 girls soccer victory over Peotone.
It was the first time the Panthers beat the Blue Devils since 2017.
Peyton Boros had the assist and goalie Ava Derrico had eight saves in recording the shutout.