D2 Softball: Two Pitching Heroes, One Title Shot
June 15, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
BATTLE CREEK – Briana Combs carried Livonia Ladywood as long as she could Friday before her left knee said no more.
But thanks to the equally heroic relief of sophomore Lauren Hayes, Combs and the Blazers will get a chance Saturday to win their first MHSAA championship.
Combs, the team’s four-year ace, got within two outs of finishing off Wayland Union in Friday’s Division 2 Semifinal. But a knee injury that’s kept her out of practice the last two weeks became just too painful – and Hayes, a rarely-used pitcher who said herself she usually gives up her share of hits, came on to finish the job.
She struck out two batters and Ladywood hung on for a 4-2 win – followed by Combs coming out of the dugout not for the celebration, but to hug her closer.
“She said thank you very much,” Hayes said. “She gave me a big hug and said thank you for getting me through it.”
The No. 2 Blazers (38-3) will face No. 3 Saginaw Swan Valley in Saturday’s 12:30 p.m. Final.
Ladywood has been to the Semifinals three times over the last four seasons, and Combs was a freshman throwing in the 2009 championship game – a 4-0 loss to Niles.
She struck out five and gave up just six hits Friday before calling to the dugout after getting the first out in the seventh inning. She had a small hobble as she walked around the pitching circle, and her coach and father Scott Combs said he was unsure if she’d be able to pitch in the championship game.
Hayes will be ready. Although she’s thrown fewer than 10 innings this season, she’s been putting in a lot more practice of late to prepare for a situation in which Combs can’t go.
“We’ve been trying massages, trying balms, trying Mr. Miyagi (of “Karate Kid” fame), anything we can,” Scott Combs. “We got six innings out of her. I didn’t think we’d get two or three.”
“We’ve gotta be a bullpen (Saturday). We’ve gotta be a staff. We can’t expect someone to go seven innings. … All we can do is ask for a chance to win the championship. We got that chance.”
Hayes also had two hits and drove in a run. Senior catcher Kayla Merice had two hits and junior third baseman Haley Obetts drove in two runs for No. 5 Wayland (38-3-1). Click for a full box score.
Saginaw Swan Valley 2, Coloma 1
Senior outfielder Heather Pollick’s two-run homer in the fourth inning was enough as the Vikings (37-3) advanced to their first MHSAA championship game since 2002.
Pollick drove in senior shortstop Elizabeth Addy, who had walked to open the inning. Coloma got on the board with a run in the bottom of the sixth, but Swan Valley senior Mackenzie Boehler struck out the side in the seventh to finish the win.
She ended with 15 strikeouts and gave up only two hits, with Coloma’s run unearned. Her Comets counterpart, sophomore Emily Najacht, gave up only four hits and struck out six. Coloma (40-3-1) was making its first Semifinal appearance. Click for a full box score.
PHOTOS: (Top) Livonia Ladywood pitcher Briana Combs delivers during Friday's Semifinal win over Wayland Union. (Middle) Swan Valley pitcher Mackenzie Boehler had 15 strikeouts in her team's win over Coloma.
Perfection: Hudsonville Follows Winning Formula to Cap Undefeated Season
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
June 15, 2024
EAST LANSING – Good things typically happen when Hudsonville leadoff hitter Megan Beemer gets on base in the first inning.
That trend carried over to Saturday’s Division 1 Final – and it helped jumpstart her team’s offense.
Early runs, sparkling pitching and stellar defense proved to be key factors as the Eagles capped an unbeaten season with a 5-0 victory over Lake Orion at Secchia Stadium.
“It’s always important to get off to a good start, and I think Megan Beemer has scored in the first inning in, I want to say, 34 or 35 times of our 42 games,” Eagles coach Tom Vruggink said. “When she gets on in the first inning she’s going to steal second, maybe third, and (Tessa) Heffelbower is going to bring her in. That’s our formula, and it worked out great today.”
Senior hurler Ava Snip tossed a one-hit shutout, and Hudsonville (42-0) won its first Division 1 Final since 2012 and fourth in school history.
“To make history like today is like a dream for all of us,” said Beemer, a senior who will play next season at University of Michigan. “Me and Elly (Koopman) were on the team sophomore year and got punched in the face in the Semifinals, so this was our goal ever since then when we felt the sting of that. To come back and win it was huge for all of us.”
The Eagles struck early and loaded the bases in the top of the first inning.
Beemer, who went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, singled to open the game. She stole second, and trotted home when junior Autumn Dennis ripped a shot up the middle and put the Eagles ahead 2-0.
Freshman Lauren Luchies followed with an RBI single to make it 3-0.
“As the leadoff batter, that's my goal,” Beemer said. “To get on in the first inning because that sets the tone for the rest of the seven innings.”
Snip, a lefty, felt more relaxed after getting the early run support.
“To get three runs on the board early made me not so nervous anymore, because at the beginning I was really nervous,” said Snip, who had eight strikeouts. “My nerves went away after the three runs because my offense had me, and my defense always has my back.
“This is so incredible. I can't believe we went undefeated this whole year and that we just did it. We proved to ourselves that we could go unbeaten, and it's insane to think about.”
Beemer was proud of her teammates’ effort on the mound.
“She did so good, and she had a breakout year,” Beemer said. “She has been my best friend since middle school, so seeing her succeed in this big moment was huge.”
Lake Orion pitcher Rylee Limberger had her team’s only hit off Snip, to lead off the fifth inning, but a double play by Hudsonville ended any threat.
The Eagles added to their lead in the sixth inning with a two-out rally. Beemer singled and then scored on a double down the left-field line from sophomore Tessa Heffelbower.
Junior Claire VanderWeels had a two-out, RBI single in the seventh.
The Eagles banged out nine hits on the day with Heffelbower and VanderWeels each collecting two hits as well.
“This is so awesome,” said Vruggink, who has won nearly 1,200 games during a 43-year career and is the fifth-winningest coach in MHSAA softball history. “We didn’t quite finish it two years ago, but this team has played unbelievable all season long and our pitching carried us. They stepped up to the pressure of an undefeated season, and I can't say more about them. They are tremendous athletes, tremendous kids.”
Lake Orion (38-6) was making its first Finals appearance in program history.
“We had a great season, and we played quite a few really good teams to get here,” Lake Orion coach Joe Woityra said. “I thought they were ready to play, but things got sped up real quick in that first inning and we couldn’t battle back like we had before.
“Obviously, Hudsonville has a great team also, and their pitcher did exactly what she needed to do. She shut us down, and not many pitchers did that this year.”
PHOTOS (Top) Hudsonville celebrates its Division 1 championship win Saturday at Secchia Stadium. (Middle) A Lake Orion infielder places a tag on the Eagles’ Megan Beemer. (Below) Lauren Luchies makes a throw to first.