(Bethel Stats) (Huntington Stats) Marion, IN — Heading into the first day of Mid-Central Conference Tournament play on Wednesday, Goshen head coach Linda Bontrager knew that her team’s bats would have to come alive in order to advance in the post-season.
With a team batting average of just a .194 and 10 of the team’s 21 total losses coming via shutout, the prescription for a two-and-out run in the double-elimination tournament was obvious.
In the end, it was also prophetic.
Goshen (6-23, 3-13) dropped its opening pair of contests Wednesday at the Indiana Wesleyan University Softball Complex, falling to top-seeded Bethel College in a no-hit, 0-2 defeat and then losing to Huntington University by a 0-10 score in the loser’s bracket, concluding the 2007 season in the process. The Leafs recorded just two hits on the day, succumbing to 22nd-ranked Bethel College for the third time of the season in a tight manner. Bethel dealt Goshen a 1-0 defeat in Mishawaka on Mar. 27 (click here for article) and again used stellar pitching to hold Bontrager’s squad down on Wednesday.
“We put up a great fight (in the first game),” Bontrager said. “(Sophomore) Haly Williamson (3-8) pitched a strong game, but our offense failed us. If we had a to classify our most central problem this season, (offense) was certainly it. We played very hard, usually played solid defensively, but we just had problems getting the bats going from time to time.”
That time struck again at 10 a.m. Wednesday, as Bethel’s Somer Stilley silenced Goshen’s bats into a no-hit performance. Stilley struck out eight Leafs and came just a shade away from a perfect game — Williamson reached on a walk in the second inning — to propel the Pilots to the 2-0 win.
Had it not been for Goshen’s lack of firepower at the plate, it might have been Williamson celebrating following seven innings, as the right hander allowed just four hits to Bethel while striking out three in a complete-game effort. Bethel did all of its damage in the bottom of the fifth inning with two outs retired, after a costly Leafs’ error kept the inning alive. A pair of singles drove in both Pilot runs, and an otherwise brilliant performance from Williamson was muted.
“ It’s tough when Bethel scores runs, earned or unearned,” Bontrager said. “Our team wasn’t intimidated by them. We just fell short. Bethel knows how to win when games are close, as their record would indicate.”
Forced to move into the bottom bracket following the loss, Bontrager’s team had to wait an anxious four hours before retaking the field, as fifth-seeded Huntington lost to fourth-seeded Spring Arbor University in the first round. Hoping to use the rest to its advantage, Goshen appeared to suffer more rust than anything else, giving up seven runs in the final inning for what otherwise was yet another closely contested ballgame.
“A four-hour wait to play our next game didn’t help us,” Bontrager said. “It was hard for us to warm back up, and we were sluggish and lost focus. Nothing really seemed to be working. Haly again battled hard, but she wasn’t on like she was against Bethel. She had a blood blister on her pitching hand from the first game that may have affected her. It was just a letdown for us, considering how we played earlier.”
Williamson again went the distance in the pitching circle, keeping Huntington within striking distance until the aforementioned seventh. The Foresters claimed just a 2-0 lead through five innings and a 3-0 lead through six, but again the Leafs’ offense failed to drive in a run. Only a fifth-inning single from freshman Diana Stanley and a seventh-inning double from senior Faith Borrell would comprise the Leafs’ offense, while Huntington heated up late. Williamson allowed just seven hits and three runs through six innings, and just six hits and two runs through five. Perhaps fatigued, she allowed Huntington to circle the bases liberally in the final inning, giving up seven runs on eight hits and an error.
Sophomore shortstop Amy Clem was named Honorable Mention All-MCC following the tournament, as Clem led the team in batting average, runs scored, hits, RBI, slugging percentage and home runs.
“We had a better season this year than last considering we had five freshmen starters on the team this season,” Bontrager said. “That makes me excited for next year. With Amy Clem being named honorable mention, I’m excited to watch her play for the next couple of years as well. We’ll have another big year of recruiting ahead, but I’m confident that we’ve got the right pieces in place for future successes.”
Check back to this website for the most up-to-date off-season news, including recruiting information and signings. To contact Coach Bontrager, call her at (574) 535-7233 or click here to send her an email.
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Sophomore Haly Williamson