The Lady Wolves smiled as they celebrated on Saturday night – they just made school history by winning the University of Michigan Tournament for the first time.
“It was awesome,” Clarkston Girls Varsity Softball Head Coach Don Peters said enthusiastically. “The kids played awesome. They had lots of fun. They made great plays and did a lot of clutch hitting. They represented the school extremely well.”
The girls opened the tournament against Jenison on Friday night. They clinched the win with three runs in the fifth winning and finished with a 5-0 win.
Junior Sydney Hasselbach hit the first of her four home runs during the game bringing in two runs. Senior Megan Hastings hit a triple and had one RBI. While freshman pitcher Madeline Maday had a shutout with nine strikeouts.
“Jenison is a traditional powerhouse,” Peters said. “Everything was fresh and exciting at that moment in the first game. We got a key home run early in the game and Madeline shut them down. We had some great defensive plays. They did a nice job.”
The girls beat Brighton, 5-3, Ann Arbor Pioneer, 12-2, St. Clair, 11-1, Saline, 12-4, and Ypsilanti, 3-0. They lost to Howell, 4-3.
Hasselbach scored three more home runs during the weekend as well as a triple and two doubles with nine RBIs. Hastings hit a home run against Saline and had a triple and a double with six RBIs. Katie Nelson hit a home run, triple and one double. Shauna Siwicki hit two doubles and had seven RBIs.
On the mound, Maday had 35 strikeouts and four runs for the weekend. Freshman Candace Kitchen had six strikeouts.
“Madeline and Candace did a lot of good pitches in pressured situations,” Peters added. “For hitting, when they needed a hit they got them. When the game was on the line the girls came through. A lot of those hits were when they absolutely needed to make them.”
The girls are now over 30 wins at 32-5, putting Peters at a new record at Clarkston.
“This is a great group of girls,” he said. “They play well together. It is very well-deserving.
The girls start playoffs next Tuesday.