Edwardsburg softball bouncing back nicely from early woes
Edwardsburg's girls softball team had plenty of adversity in the early going.
But the Eddies have rebounded nicely.
Ace Edwardsburg pitcher Emma Denison missed part of the early part of the season with first a forearm and then a wrist injury. And then there's the weather, which has made it difficult to not only practice, but to get games in.
So Dean Dixon's team, which reached the Division 2 regional finals last year, including a victory over perennial power Lakeshore, got off to a 4-5 start.
But the Eddies have gotten Denison back and have won nine of their last 10, including a sweep Saturday of Northridge, Ind., by scores of 10-2 in 11 innings and 11-2.
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Denison was sensational in the opener, striking out a school-record 23 batters, equaling the 25th best single-game mark in state history. In limited duty, Denison is 7-0 with a 1.99 earned run average of 93 strikeouts in 56 1/3 innings.
"The weather has been a factor for a lot of people," Dixon said. "So you can't blame everything on that. But losing Emma hurt. There were times we had to dig deep into our pitching staff. Emma has really started to pick it up. Saturday it took her about three innings to get her groove. But about the third or fourth inning she started pitching really well. Her velocity picked up, her accuracy was better and she had quite a bit of spin on the ball."
Edwardsburg has also started hitting the ball better, led by slap hitters Lindsey Dalenberg and Samantha Baker. Dalenberg, a lefty who plays centerfield, is batting .517.
"Lindsey is one of the fastest kids I've had in 10 years," Dixon said.
And Baker is batting .500 with 13 runs batted in.
"Samantha is one of the best slappers I've had," Dixon said, "She can soft slap it, hard slap it and lay it down as a drag bunt. She's really good at reading the field, seeing where the defense is playing and directing the ball away from them."
Other top Edwardsburg hitters are third baseman Abby Bossler (.431, 21 RBI), Denison (.367, 16 RBI), shortstop Caitlin Tighe (.359, 12 RBI) and outfielder Lexi Schimpa (.358, 11 RBI).
Rough Saturday for Bucks
Buchanan softball coach Rachel Carlson called it "a get ready for tournament type of day."
And if that's the case, the second-ranked Bucks have some work to do before the state tournament begins May 31.
Buchanan had a rough day Saturday in the Lakeshore Invitational, losing two out of three.
The first loss was to No. 1-ranked Indiana power South Bend St. Joseph and freshman pitching sensation Berkeley Zache. Zache, who hadn't allowed an earned run this season going into Saturday, came on in relief in the fifth inning with St. Joseph clinging to a 7-6 lead. She retired the final seven batters, four via strikeout.
The Bucks beat Marian 18-3, but lost to Division 1 Portage Central 9-3.
"These were the type of games that show where we need work," said Carlson, whose team fell to 19-3. "We have to get sharper running the bases and our outfielders have to be better. Just a lot of little things."
Buchanan hopes to get leftfielder Hannah Tompkins back soon. Tompkins, who is batting .465 with one homer and 20 RBI has missed the last 10 games with a pulled arm muscle. During that stretch the Bucks did get catcher Christin Cooper back and in nine games she's hit .400 with 11 RBI.
Top Buchanan hitters continue to be All-State shortstop Hannah Herman (.589, 3 homers, 23 RBI), All-State second baseman Alea Fisher (.500, 2 homers, 27 RBI), All-State first baseman Hailee Kara (.471, 4 homers, 39 RBI) and outfielder Sage Pruett (.408, 2 homers, 24 RBI).
BASEBALL
Edwardsburg still unbeaten
Edwardsburg is still unbeaten after sweeping Three Rivers by scores of 7-1 and 4-0 Wednesday. The Eddies' biggest problem has been getting games in. Another twin bill against Plainwell was wiped out by the weather Thursday. Edwardsburg is 12-0, ranked fifth in Division 3 and has a 126-26 scoring edge to date. Top Edwardsburg hitters are Connor Ostrander (.517, .720 on base, 3 homers, 10 RBI), Caleb Layman (.429) and Landon Mikel (.425, 2 homers, 18 RBI).
Buchanan still No. 2
Buchanan is another area baseball team having trouble getting games in. The Bucks swept Schoolcraft last Monday by scores of 10-0 nd 11-1. But the Bucks had four other games postponed. In the first Schoolcraft game, Macoy West pitched a no-hitter with nine strikeouts in a game halted after five innings by the 10-run mercy rule.
Leading the way for Buchanan (11-2) are Matthew Hoover (.500, 1 homer, 19 RBI), Murphy Wegner (.471, 12 RBI), West (.429, 1 homer, 14 RBI) and Cade Preissing (.364, 1 homer, 12 RBI). Hoover (3-0, 0.76 ERA, 33 strikeouts in 18 1/3 innings) and West (3-1, 1.76 ERA, 39 strikeouts in 23 2/3 innings) have also been stalwarts on the mound.
District pairings
Lakeshore has been a thorn in the side of Edwardsburg's baseball team in recent years. The Lancers have eliminated the Eddies in the past four postseason tournaments, three times in the district and once in the regional final. In those four years, Lakeshore won two state titles and were the runner-ups last year.
A.J. Gaideski's team will need only a victory over Benton Harbor in the Division 2 district this year to get another shot at the Lancers. This spring the Eddies will be the hosts.
Second-ranked and defending state semifinalists Buchanan takes on arch-rival Brandywine in a Division 3 pre-district game at Buchanan.
In softball, No. 2-ranked and defending state runner-up Buchanan will face the Brandywine-Constantine pre-district winner in the district semifinals.
BASEBALL
District pairings
DIVISION 2
Tuesday, May 31
Niles at Berrien Springs, 4:30 p.m.
Benton Harbor at Edwardsburg, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 4
At Edwardsburg
Dowagiac vs. Berrien Springs-Niles winner, 10 a.m.
Lakeshore vs. Benton Harbor-Edwardsburg winner, 12:30 p.m.
Championship, 2:30 p.m.
DIVISION 3
At Buchanan
Tuesday, May 31
Buchanan vs Brandywine, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 4
Lawton vs. Buchanan-Brandywine winner, 10 a.m.
Bridgman vs. Constantine, Noon
Championship, 2 p.m.
DIVISION 4
At Decatur
Saturday, June 4
Decatur vs. Marcellus, 10 a.m.
Championship, Cassopolis vs.. Decatur-Marcellus winner, Noon
SOFTBALL
District pairings
DIVISION 2
At Berrien Springs
Tuesday, May 31
Dowagiac vs. Niles, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 4
Edwardsburg vs. Dowagiac-Niles winner, 10 a.m.
Lakeshore vs. Berrien Springs, 12:30 p.m.
Championship, 3 p.m.
DIVISION 3
At Buchanan
Tuesday, May 31
Brandywine vs. Constantine, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 4
Brandywine-Constantine winner vs. Buchanan, 10 a.m.
Lawton vs. Schoolcraft, Noon
Championship, 2 p.m.
DIVISION 4
At Marcellus
Tuesday, May 31
Cassopolis at Marcellus, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 4
Howardsville Christian vs. Cassopolis-Marcellus winner, 10 a.m.
White Pigeon vs. Mendon, Noon
Championship, 2 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
300th victory for Marazita
Brandywine's girls tennis team provided veteran coach Joe Marazita with his 300th victory by beating Schoolcraft 8-0 last Monday. The Bobcats then provided No. 301 by sweeping New Buffalo 8-0 Wednesday, improving to 13-0 this spring. Marazita is 301-26-12 in 26 years as coach.
"Three hundred wins was never really a goal of mine," Marazita said. "My main objective as coach was to motivate the players to always give 100 percent and trust the process that we established. I'm a very committed and dedicated coach. The kids see that when they come out and, honestly, just give 100 percent because our staff sets the example."
Marazita's team generally practice two hours per day. But Marazita works after practice with individuals and tries to get with some players individually on the weekends to fine tune their games."
Brandywine's No. 2, 3 and 4 singles players, Hannah Earles, Mari Allen and Courtney Bates are all 14-0. The Bobcat No. 1 doubles team of Abbie Hubbard and Emma Hinser are also 14-0. And the No. 3 doubles team of Chloe Sidenbender and Dani Holden and No. 4 doubles team of Isabelle Sosnoski and Abagail Solloway are 13-0.
Brandywine has another busy week with matches Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and the BCS Conference Meet Thursday at Berrien Springs. And the Division 4 regional is May 18.
Eddies unbeaten
Edwardsburg's girls tennis team crushed Three Rivers 7-1, Vicksburg 8-0 and Marshall 7-1 last week to improve to 7-0-1. No. 1 singles player Leah Hosang lost one game in three matches to improve to 11-0. And No. 2 singles player Claire Deak swept three matches and is also 11-0.
GIRLS SOCCER
Pruett hot for Bucks
Evyn Pruett had quite a week for Buchanan's girls soccer team, scoring six goals in both of the Buck victories, 7-6 over Comstock and 8-1 over Hartford. Pruett now has 21 goals and nine assists for 7-4 Buchanan. Besides Pruett, Jenna French has scored nine goals and Jillian McKean has eight goals and 11 assists.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Area Michigan high school sports news and notes
