Bay City Western Finishes 1st Title Run
June 14, 2014
By Kelsey Pence
Special for Second Half
EAST LANSING – Hannah Leppek tried not to think about last year.
Easier said than done.
After leading and then losing last year’s Division 1 championship game to Mattawan, Leppek was determined not to let this one slip away.
The senior pitcher struck out six, walked two and gave up just three hits through seven innings as Bay City Western held off Portage Central 4-2 in the Division I Final on Saturday at Secchia Stadium at Michigan State University.
“I tried not to think about it, but obviously it was in my mind,” Leppek said of last year’s loss. “I had that extra motivation, like, I need to finish it out this year. I really don’t know how to describe it. It’s just awesome. I have no words for how good I feel right now. I’ll probably be up all night just smiling.”
The MHSAA title is the first in softball for Western (41-3), after last season’s championship game appearance also was a first.
Meredith Rousse was hit by pitch in the bottom of the first inning to get things started for the Warriors, and Kaylynn Carpenter brought her home with a double to centerfield.
“That hit boosted (my confidence) up a lot, and I think it boosted up the girls' a lot,” Carpenter said. “Once our first, second and third girls get hits, it just riles everyone up. That’s how we win the game.”
Leppek then hit a foul ball to the first baseman that was caught, but Portage Central’s Meredith Adams fell into the dugout on the catch, and Carpenter came home for the second run.
The Mustangs (42-4) got on the board in the top of the third with a home run to right field by Lea Foerster.
Bay City Western built some cushion in the sixth inning when Leppek singled to left field and Kelsie Popp doubled to center. Blair Miller brought home a run with a single to short right field and Melissa Wegener singled to increase the lead to 4-1.
Portage Central found some fire in the top of the seventh inning. Brooke Wyman walked and Adams doubled to center to put runners in scoring position. With one out on the board, and the memory of last year’s loss lingering, Western coach Rick Garlinghouse rallied his team around the pitcher’s circle.
“We had a 4-1 lead, so we could allow those runs to score, but we wanted the batter to stay at first base,” Garlinghouse said. “Our throw from the outfield was going to second base. The infielders were going to first base. We weren’t worried about any tag plays at the plate. We wanted to get outs.”
Cole grounded out, scoring Wyman, but Leppek then got a strikeout to end the game.
“Honestly at the beginning I felt a little off, and then I found my groove in the middle of the game,” Leppek said of her performance. “That last game tripped me up a little bit, but I got it back.”
Foerster, Adams and Cole picked up Portage Central’s three hits. Gina Verduczo pitched six innings, striking out two, while allowing seven hits and no walks.
“This has been a fun year win or lose at the end,” Mustangs coach Tom Hamilton said. “You get someone crying or someone going home smiling, and we’re going home crying today. I’m going to go home crying too because these kids are wonderful kids, and that is what it’s all about. They’ve made it special. The kids will come back. I hope they look back on this and realize how special it is.”
Carpenter finished 1 for 3 with a run and an RBI for Portage Central, while Miller and Wegener each had a hit and an RBI.
“She has had two great years,” Garlinghouse said of Carpenter. “She drove in the first run and scored the second one. She’s a gritty player.
“It’s a very surreal feeling. I am real happy for the kids. They did all we asked them to do all year, play 21 outs. They wanted to get here after losing last year’s game.”
Added Carpenter: “It feels good going in my senior year and actually coming here and winning it. (Last season) wasn’t on my mind at all. I knew that was behind me. I had support, and I knew we could get it.”
PHOTOS: Bay City Western’s Meredith Rousse crosses the play during the Warriors’ Division 1 Final win. (Middle) Western’s Hannah Leppek finished 1 for 3 at the plate and threw a complete game.
Coach's Hunch Proves True for Lakeshore
June 14, 2014
By Kelsey Pence
Special for Second Half
EAST LANSING – Denny Dock remembers looking at his team midway through the regular season and thinking, “We’re on the verge of being something special.”
It turns out, the Stevensville Lakeshore coach in his 25th year was right.
The Lancers overcame a sloppy start and rallied back for a 4-3 win in the MHSAA Division 2 Final against Livonia Ladywood on Saturday at Secchia Stadium at Michigan State University.
“A lot of tears in this trophy,” Dock said. “There were times during the season where we weren’t very good. As we kept playing, as frustrated as I was and as frustrated as they were with me, we never lost to a bad team. Our losses are to good quality teams. I kept saying, if we can just finish a couple of these, we’ve got a chance.”
The Lancers ended the season at 36-9 and leave East Lansing with the school’s seventh softball title.
“This tournament I thought we really played extremely well,” Dock said. “These kids have really pushed themselves. We’ve pushed them to their limit, and some of them we’ve had to back off. It’s been a real up-and-down season, but they’ve worked through it.”
The Blazers scored first, putting up two runs in the first inning, both unearned on two Lakeshore errors.
Christina Meyer was hit by pitch to start the game and Haley Lawrence reached on an error. Haley Thibeault struck out the next batter, but Ladywood pitcher Rozlyn Price reached on a throwing error, scoring Meyer.
Lawrence then scored on Hallea Garcia’s foul pop-up.
“I can’t repeat what I said to them in the circle,” Dock said with a laugh. “We’ve tried all along to get them to play the game. You don’t play against a team in this game; you play the game. The kids sure found a way.”
Rachel Riedel managed to get the Lancers on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning, smacking the first pitch she saw over the left field fence.
“My coach says once you find your pitch, you swing at it,” Riedel said. “She was throwing good, and when I saw it I knew. I love the first pitch, and I was ready. I felt good and when I hit it, it felt great.
“Not trying to brag, but when we started hitting, our whole team just got up,” she added. “Once one of us hits, I feel like it’s a train. We all start hitting. It’s a great feeling having a team we can trust. “
Rebecca Meyer hit a drive to center to reach base and Mahri Younger subbed in as a pinch runner. Rachel Clem brought her home with a sacrifice bunt to tie the score at 2-all.
“She hid the ball really well, which was harder to see,” Riedel said of Price. “I think we just needed to concentrate more. We were so anxious and ready for this game that when we got here, we were just like we want to swing at everything. Once we got her, it just stuck with us.”
Haley Thibeault and Mackenzie Sanders walked to start the bottom of the fifth inning, and Hunter Thibeault was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Alex Forsythe then singled to score Toni Priebe, running for Haley Thibeault. Carpenter, running for Sanders, was tagged out at home on the same play – but Riedel’s sacrifice fly to right field scored Hunter Thibeault.
The Blazers (29-14) loaded the bases in the top of the sixth inning, and Rachel Hendrickson’s line drive past third base cut the deficit to one run with two outs and the bases still loaded. But the Blazers couldn’t bring the tying run home.
“With bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth, we needed one hit and we got the bat on the ball. It was just a little too high,” Ladywood coach Scott Combs said. “I can’t be happier. They were feeling a little bit sluggish in the middle of the year when we were like 8-6. We did a wake-up call and got hot and played really well the last six weeks. As you can see, we can play with anybody. If you can come in here and go 4-3 with those guys you can’t be upset.”
Price struck out nine for the Blazers, walking three and giving up five hits in six innings. Hayley Thibeault struck out three, walked two and gave up just three hits.
“In that last inning Haley stuck three or four pitches right where she needed to stick them,” Dock said. “It was a beautiful thing.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Stevensville Lakeshore players hold up their MHSAA Division 2 championship trophy Saturday. (Middle) Lakeshore shortstop Alex Forsythe had a hit and an RBI in the Final.