Ferris State Softball Season Comes To An End In GLIAC Tournament

Game Highlights 

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University softball squad saw its 2019 season come to a close on Friday (May 3) at the 2019 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament as the Bulldogs suffered a pair of setbacks at Sports Force Parks in Sandusky, Ohio.

In the opener, the Bulldogs and top-seeded rival Grand Valley State battled thru a pair of scoreless innings before the Lakers finally cashed in with four runs in the third. FSU managed to trim the margin to a 4-1 game midway thru the fifth, but GVSU scored five times in the bottom of the frame to end the game with the 9-1 victory.

Then, in the nightcap, Northwood managed to put four runs on the board in three different innings en route to a 12-5 triumph in the elimination game.

In the opening game, overall, the Lakers had 10 hits in the opener to five for Ferris State.

Senior shortstop Logan Fleming produced three hits for the Bulldogs in game one and also had the team's lone RBI with a single in the fifth. Centerfielder Paige Kortz and outfielder Madison McLeod also both added hits in the setback. McLeod doubled in the contest.

FSU's Kaitlyn Nugent tossed three innings and allowed four runs on six hits before Abby Highway pitched the final one and two-thirds frames, giving up five runs, only two of which were earned, and four hits. They combined for a walk and strikeout apiece.

Grand Valley State's Samantha Gehrls won her 10th game of the year by holding FSU to a single run on five hits with five K's and two walks.

In game two, the Bulldogs jumped in front early with a run in the second before Northwood responded with four in the third. The Timberwolves took a 8-2 lead after four, but FSU answered with three runs in the fifth to pull back within 8-5. However, NU found the scoreboard again four more times in the sixth and held the Bulldogs in the seventh for the win. Northwood had 14 hits to eight for Ferris State.

Ferris State got three hits from Kortz along with two by Fleming in the finale. Both Kylie Winkels and Kaitlyn Orme tripled while Kortz had a double. FSU also got RBI's from Kortz, Winkels and Sawyer Wightman.

In the circle, the combination of Nugent, Highway and Connor Proctor combined to allow 12 runs on 14 hits with four walks and a strikeout. Shayna Frank got win for Northwood, hurling all seven innings while allowing five runs on eight hits with five K's and two walks.

Ferris State closed the 2019 season with a 20-34 overall record as FSU reached the GLIAC Tournament for the fourth consecutive year. Three seniors, Fleming along with third baseman Lexi Hongisto and catcher Rebecca Piron, played their final games in a Bulldog uniform.