Softball clinches GLIAC tournament berth

Home Sports Softball clinches GLIAC tournament berth
Softball clinches GLIAC tournament berth
Softball Vs. Wayne State Senior Day
Softball Vs. Wayne State
Senior Day

The Hillsdale College softball team improved to 17-5 in the GLIAC this weekend, earning the highest rankings recorded in school history. Amid a strong team performance, junior outfielder Bekah Kastning was named GLIAC Player of the Week with her 21-game hitting streak, and senior pitcher Sarah Klopfer earned an honorable mention for GLIAC Pitcher of the Week.
The Chargers have clinched a spot in the GLIAC Tournament and are now ranked fifth in the NCAA Midwest Regional rankings.
Hillsdale started the weekend on a strong note, sweeping Ferris State University 12-3 and 3-1. After scoring three runs in the top of the first, Hillsdale’s offense exploded with nine runs in the fourth inning.
“It was just one solid hit after another, and it didn’t end,” head coach Joe Abraham said. “It was base hit, base hit, base hit, and next thing you know, it’s 12-3. It was like, ‘Okay, this is a good way to start a six-game series.’”
Abraham won his 100th game at Hillsdale in the second game against Ferris. Abraham has reached this milestone the fastest of any coach in over two decades.
“The game-two win against them was huge, because they got it tied up, and we managed to pull one out,” he said. “You’re on the road, you’re in the lead, they tie it up, and you end up pulling it out anyways. That’s hard to do.”
The Chargers extended their winning streak to nine games after sweeping Saginaw Valley State University 7-3 and 3-2. Seven players had hits in the first game, including sophomore first baseman Haley Lawrence’s two-run home run.
“Saginaw is always a big emotional day for us,” Abraham said. “They knocked us out of the conference tournament last year, and they’ve always been a nemesis for us. Both games were a little back-and-forth, and we got the big key hits in both games. It was just incredible. Saginaw has a really, really good hitting team, so for us to hold them down to five runs in 14 innings is incredible.”
Hillsdale split with Wayne State on Sunday, rebounding after a 6-2 loss with a 5-0 win against a team previously undefeated in the league.
“Our girls are making the plays that you need to make to win games,” Abraham said. “The composure, the maturity — it’s all there, led by our five seniors, and it’s just hard to quantify that.”
Senior pitcher Sarah Klopfer pitched a three-hit shutout in the second game against Wayne State, complementing three consecutive doubles in the fourth inning by senior catcher Danielle Garceau, senior third baseman Julia Kosco, and freshman outfielder Katie Kish.
“Danielle and Julia are both seniors, and that was really fun for their senior day,” Kastning said. “Those runs were what put us ahead and what really got us into that momentum.”
Senior pitcher Sarah Grunert hit a two-run home run and a grand slam in the final home game of her career. Her six RBIs played a critical role in the team’s 10-6 win against Lake Erie College on Tuesday, as the Chargers split the doubleheader after a 3-1 loss in game one.
“We kept taking leads and they kept coming back, and we performed offensively in that second game like we have been all season: clutch,” Abraham said. “That was hard — after getting the big win over Wayne State, I think we had a little bit of a natural let down after game one, which is hard to avoid.”
The Chargers will face University of Findlay and Grand Valley State University this weekend in addition to a non-conference doubleheader against Lourdes before the GLIAC Tournament. Garceau said the wins this past weekend have driven home the coaches’ message to players since the beginning of the season.
“Since day one they’ve told us that we have so much on this team and everybody has a role in it, and we can go really far even with such a small team,” Garceau said. “After this weekend, it’s a really big mark that Hillsdale is here, and Hillsdale is here to kick some butt.”