Coleman, Centreville Post Semis Shutouts
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
June 15, 2018
EAST LANSING – Autumn Tubbs swears that “darn it” was as profane as she allowed herself to get.
The Coleman senior shortstop was visibly frustrated with herself after turning out of the way of an inside pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth inning of a tie game. But one pitch later, none of that mattered.
Tubbs smacked a two-run single providing the only runs in Coleman’s 2-0 win Friday against Rogers City in a MHSAA Division 4 Softball Semifinal at Michigan State University’s Secchia Stadium.
“I should have let it hit me, but I didn’t, and it’s fine,” Tubbs said. “(I thought) this is an amazing opportunity for me to be able to hit the only two runs we got in, and get us hyped up to get three outs and end the game.”
Coleman (30-9) advanced to the Division 4 title game at 5:30 p.m. Saturday against Centreville. It’s the first trip to the title game since 2005 for the Comets, who won the championship that year.
“We got down to the semis last year, and every year has been another step, so hopefully we can get two steps in one,” Coleman coach Chad Klopf said. “It feels good.”
Coleman needed not just Tubbs’ heroics, but a gem from pitcher Faith Barden and the defense behind her to take this step. Barden struck out 11 batters while allowing three hits and two walks in front of a defense that committed just one error.
“We’ve always been a really good defensive team, and Faith knows that we’re always going to be behind her,” Tubbs said. “Faith’s played with us on travel ball leagues, and she’s always been our pitcher, we’ve always had to back her up. It’s just a nice opportunity to be able to have the opportunity to win a state championship with her on the mound.”
Rogers City (32-6) had just one runner advance to third base, and that came with two outs in the second inning and was immediately followed by a strikeout.
“That’s a good hitting team. That’s all we’ve been told, that they’ve been pounding the ball, scoring runs,” Klopf said. “(Barden) has been lights out for us the past couple weeks. She’s thrown all through the tournament; she’s done a great job. (Assistant coach Allison) McKibbin calling the pitchers for her and Kylie (Herkel) working behind the plate for her have done a great job, and she’s got a great defense that she can trust, and that makes it a lot easier to pitch when you’ve got a great defense.”
Barden had a strong day at the plate, too, with a pair of hits, including one to load the bases before Tubbs came to the plate in the sixth.
“Either way, I told (Tubbs) do what she wants to do,” Klopf said. “She knows this game in and out. She could easily be standing in that third base box someday and getting it done for her team, because she understands it. She knew with the bases loaded that there’s a run right there if she lets it hit her. She’s a solid ball player, she’s hit the ball for us and played well, so I had no problem with her not getting hit because I knew she was probably going to come through with a hit for us.”
Coleman didn’t get many chances to score, as the Rogers City defense made some spectacular plays to keep balls in the infield. The Comets did threaten to score in the bottom of the fourth inning, but the Rogers City defense again came up big. Barden, who opened the inning with a single, had advanced to third on an error and a passed ball. She was thrown out at home, however, when Rogers City perfectly covered a sacrifice bunt attempt. Amanda Wirgau fielded the bunt, threw the runner out at first, then covered the plate and tagged out Barden to keep the game scoreless.
“I thought our defense played outstanding today. We really made some nice plays,” Rogers City coach Karl Grambau said. “We made defensive plays good enough to win the game, but we just couldn’t get the bats going today. You have to credit their pitcher; their pitcher kept us off guard.”
Rogers City sophomore pitcher Kyrsten Altman had a strong game, allowing six hits and striking out one over six innings.
VIDEO: Coleman's Autumn Tubbs had this two-run single in the sixth inning to give the Comets a 2-0 lead.
Centreville 4, Unionville-Sebewaing 0
For the first time in school history, Centreville (35-6) will play for an MHSAA softball championship.
A marvelous pitching performance from sophomore Hannah Duchene and some heads-up base running keyed the Bulldogs, who were playing in just the second Semifinal in school history.
“It was what we expected – they’re a tough ball club and they’ve been here before and are much more familiar with this atmosphere,” Centreville coach Scott Logan said. “It hasn’t sunk in yet, I guess. They just keep playing, they keep playing hard and they play relaxed. They want to be here, and that’s a good thing.”
Centreville scored its first two runs on wild pitches, and blew open a tight game in the top of the seventh inning, scoring three insurance runs. The big hit in the inning was an RBI single from Joanna Larsen. Centreville scored one more run on a throwing error on the play.
The Bulldogs also had some defensive brilliance in a key spot. With a runner on second and one out, Centreville second baseman McKenzie Sheteron back-tracked to catch a fly ball in right field, then threw the tagging runner out at third to end the sixth-inning threat.
Duchene held the Patriots hitless through 3 2/3 innings and finished with eight strikeouts while allowing four hits and four walks. USA pitcher Katelyn Engelhardt had two of those four hits. Just one of the runs USA (31-9) allowed was earned.
PHOTOS: (Top) Coleman pitcher Faith Barden unwinds toward the plate during her team’s Division 4 Semifinal win Friday. (Middle) Centerville’s Hannah Duchene prepares to fire a pitch in the Bulldogs’ victory.
Nelson Aiming for Another Finals Trip to Close Stellar Whiteford Career
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
April 16, 2024
OTTAWA LAKE – It’s easy to figure out what is on Unity Nelson’s mind.
The Ottawa Lake Whiteford softball pitcher is focused on getting the Bobcats back to Michigan State University and in a position to win a Division 3 championship.
“We’re going to get back there,” Nelson nods, while knocking softly on the wooded dugout at Whiteford’s softball field.
Nelson has been one of the most dominating pitchers in the state the past couple of seasons and has the No. 1-ranked Bobcats poised for another strong season. Whiteford has come painfully close the last couple of seasons to bringing home a Finals title but come up short.
In 2021 they lost in the Division 4 Quarterfinals after going 32-5. In 2022, Whiteford won a school-record 40 games before falling in the Division 4 championship game. Last season, a 37-5 season ended with a loss in the Division 3 Final.
Nelson said this year’s Bobcats are a new team with the same championship mindset.
“We are really close,” she said. “That helps us. On and off the field, we are very close. With some of the new faces on the team, I think all the seniors have had to step up a little bit. We want everyone to have fun, and we are trying to help them with the new experience.”
Nelson grew up in nearby Clinton, where her sister Tierney was an all-state pitcher who went on to play a season at Lamar State College in Texas. Unity followed in her sister’s softball footsteps.
“I remember watching my sister play,” Nelson said. “She was a pitcher and I looked up to her. I’ve seen videos of me pitching when I was 4.”
By 7, Nelson was pitching to her dad, Mike, and joined a travel team. As a ninth grader, she enrolled at Whiteford and was an instant hit.
The Bobcats are coached by Matt VanBrandt, previously an all-state baseball player at the school and Whiteford’s baseball coach for several seasons before he gave it up around the time his daughters Anna and Aly were born. His wife Audra assists him, and both daughters played for them. Aly won the Miss Softball Award last year as the top senior position player and is now starting for University of Indiana.
Nelson came into this season 64-6 over her three varsity seasons, with 858 strikeouts in 404 innings. She’s allowed just 26 earned runs in three seasons. Last year in the District, she struck out 22 of the 24 batters she faced over eight perfect innings.
She already holds several Whiteford single-season and career records, but Matt VanBrandt is careful not to overpitch the 5-foot-2 Nelson.
“I don’t plan on pitching her any more this season,” he said. “She’s pitched about 65 or 70 percent of the innings over the last three years, and that’s what she will do this year. She’s always had another pitcher alongside of her, and this year we have Karlei Conard, who is going to play in college and possibly pitch.”
The soft-spoken Nelson has become more vocal this season.
“At first she was a lead-by-example player,” VanBrandt said. “She was doing that as a freshman.
“This year, she’s become more vocal to the underclassmen, but in a positive way. She’s matured in her leadership. She’s grown every single year. It’s been so much fun to watch her grow and interact with her teammates. She’s everything you want in a leader. She pushes everyone to be their best.”
Nelson is devoted to the sport. She pitches to her dad as many as five days a week. She’s grown to understand what she needs to do to stay sharp.
“If I need to work on a certain pitch, I’ll do that,” she said. “I’ll listen to what my body needs. If it hurts, I’m probably not going to pitch. I’ll stretch and ice instead.
“If I don’t feel connected mentally and physically, I try to work and slow things down at home and get back to how I want to feel.”
While Nelson is focused on a state championship, she’s also not in a hurry to speed things up. She wants to enjoy her senior season before she heads off to pitch at North Dakota University.
“I try to just stay in the moment,” she said. “I don’t want to reach too far into the future. It’s about this game, this inning, this pitch. That’s what I want to live by right now. It’s my senior year. I want to hold on to that.”
While Nelson dominates the circle, future Bobcats stars often gather around the dugout to watch. When Whiteford faced Blissfield on Monday in a non-league game, several had a front-row seat, watching and cheering every pitch, every at-bat and occasionally had one of the Whiteford coaches check in to be sure they understood what was happening on the field.
It’s part of keeping the program connected, VanBrandt said.
Nelson and the rest of the varsity Bobcats love seeing the smiles on the faces of the kids watching.
“I hear them cheering when everyone is hitting,” she said. “It’s so cute.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Ottawa Lake Whiteford’s Unity Nelson unwinds toward the plate during a game in the pitching circle. (Middle) Nelson readies to make a play. (Photos by Kristie Conrad.)