Box Score GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – In a deciding Game 3, the Calvin softball team came up big Saturday afternoon, defeating the Alma Scots 8-2 to capture the 2021 MIAA Tournament title.
The MIAA Tournament title is Calvin's second in three years, coming on the heels of a 2019 tournament crown. The victory also punches Calvin's ticket to the NCAA III Tournament which will begin next week. The NCAA III Tournament field is scheduled to be announced on Monday at 1 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Calvin will be making its third NCAA III Tournament appearance in the last four years under head coach Becky Hilgert with the 2020 season and subsequent tournament cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Knights also earned trips to the tournament under her leadership in 2018 and 2019.
Saturday's victory completed a three-game championship series. On Friday, Calvin captured game one 1-0 in 10 innings with Alma coming back to win game two 5-1, forcing Saturday's deciding finale.
Calvin earned the win on Saturday thanks for a five-run outburst in the top of the sixth inning after Alma had tied the game 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth. Calvin tacked on an insurance run in the top of the seventh with senior Bri Leegwater (Zeeland, Mich./Holland Christian HS) tossing scoreless frames in the sixth and seventh to complete the victory.
Alma (23-15) won a pre-game coin toss for the right to be the home team for Saturday's championship game.
Calvin (28-8) used the opportunity to jump out to a quick lead, scoring two runs in the top of the first inning off Alma starter Haley Ullrich who threw all 17 innings in Friday's doubleheader and started again on Saturday.
The Knights opened the game with back-to-back singles from senior Hannah Horvath (Caledonia, Mich./Caledonia HS) and junior Hannah Biddlecome (Portage, Mich./Portage Northern HS) and senior Grace Stock (Vicksburg, Mich./Vicksburg HS) was then hit by a pitch to load the bases. Inserted into the cleanup spot prior to the game, freshman Ali Schultz (Wyoming, Mich./Grandville HS) followed with a clutch single to left to drive in Horvath and Biddlecome to give Calvin a 2-0 lead. The Knights loaded the bases again but Ullrich with a pair of pop ups to the infield.
Ullrich then helped her cause by leading off the bottom of the first with a towering home run to left – her fifth of the year – to cut the lead in half.
In the bottom of the second, Alma threatened to take the lead, loading the bases with two outs. Alma's Taylor Griffith followed with a sinking live drive to center that Calvin senior Kayla Groen (Frankfort, Il./Lincoln Way East HS) got a bead on and snared with a diving catch with her body parallel to the ground to save multiple runs from scoring.
Ullrich began to settle into a groove for Alma, at one point retiring 11 straight Calvin hitters as the game remained 2-1 heading into the fifth.
In the bottom of the fifth, Leegwater relieved senior Ellie Borst (Hudsonville, Mich./Unity Christian HS) who started and went the first four innings. With one out, the Scots began a rally with pinch hitter Danielle Dumoulin being hit by a pitch. Junior catcher Chloe Deckrow followed with an infield single to place two runners aboard. Shortstop Hadyn Terwilliger then laced a 2-2 pitch into centerfield for a base hit. Groen came up firing with a throw to the plate. Calvin catcher Grace Stock gloved the throw and attempted to tag the lead runner in one motion but the ball squirted free on a bang-bang play, allowing the Scots to tie the game 2-2. Another hit batter loaded the bases again for Alma and the momentum appeared to be in favor of the Scots. Leegwater was able to bear down however, getting pinch-hitter Brooke Wells to ground out to third and end the threat.
The sixth inning belonged to the Knights as they finally got through the tiring Ullrich who would go on to toss a total of 22.2 innings on the weekend.
Schultz led off with a single to center – her second hit of the game and the Knight engine was ignited. Junior Jessica Bongiorno (Glendale Heights, Il./Glenbard West HS) pinch-ran for Schultz and moved up to third on the ensuing play as sophomore Kali Yant (Vicksburg, Mich./Vicksburg HS) dropped a sacrifice bunt down the third base line that turned into an error after the throw from third was dropped at first base.
With runners at first and third, the wheels continued to turn for the Knights as Yant stole second and then scored along with Bongiorno from third on a single to center by freshman Grace Glass (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central HS). The clutch hit by Glass gave Calvin a 4-2 lead and the Knights continued to keep the gas pedal down as Groen double to left, scoring Glass. With one out, Groen came home on a long triple into the left-center field gap by sophomore Sydney Duong (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian HS).
Duong was later thrown out at home on a fielder's choice play but the Knights picked up yet another run on a single to center by Stock that plated Horvath to give Calvin a commanding 7-2 lead. The RBI was the 46th of the year for Stock – the second-highest single-season total in Calvin softball history.
With a five-run cushion, Leegewater breezed through a quick sixth, allowing only one base runner on a walk. She was aided in the sixth by a big catch by Biddlecome who crashed into the fence along the right field foul line while gloving a foul fly for the second out of the inning.
In the top of the seventh, Calvin an insurance run on an RBI single by Duong that brought home Yant who led off the inning with a single and moved to third on a double by senior Amber Staniulus (Rockford, Mich./Sparta HS).
In the bottom half off the inning, Duong opened the inning with a diving catch in the hole at short for out No. 1. A flyout to left to Glass brought out No. 2. Leegwater closed out the game with a game-ending and series ending strikeout, sending the Calvin team into a wild celebration in the center of the infield.
"This (Championship) is very special," said Calvin head coach Becky Hilgert. "To do this on our home field in front of our home fans is awesome. We didn't get to have a Senior Day two weeks ago with our final regular season home game cancelled (due to an opponent Covid-19 protocol situation) so our team was excited to play at home again. It was just a great day. Yesterday was draining. We got the first game which was huge - but we didn't finish the second game the way we wanted to. We regrouped overnight, made a few lineup changes and came through with a total team effort. I'm just so excited for this team and for Calvin."
Leegwater picked up the win in the circle to bump her season record to 10-3. Calvin collected 14 hits as a team with five players coming up with multi-hit games. Horvath, Biddlecome, Schultz, Glass and Duong had two hits apiece. Schultz, Duong and Glass all had two RBI's.
The MIAA Tournament title is the third in program history with the other two coming in 1997 and 2019.
Calvin will be making its 13th appearance in the NCAA III Tournament.
