Pallozzi Seeking to Add Memorable Finish to Unforgettable Start as Mercy's Ace
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
April 3, 2025
FARMINGTON HILLS — Three years ago at about this time, Farmington Hills Mercy softball coach Corey Burras sent then promising freshman Kaitlyn Pallozzi out to the circle for her first varsity game knowing she possessed lots of potential.
But what happened next is something that still amazes Burras and everyone else who witnessed it.
Pallozzi threw a no-hitter in that debut, striking out 14 batters for the Marlins. Oh, and it got better.
Three days later, Pallozzi struck out all 21 batters she faced in a 1-0 win over Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard, becoming the 12th pitcher in state history to strike out at least 21 in a seven-inning game and the third to strike out at least 21 straight hitters.
“I’m not sure I’ve ever been a part of a game like that, playing or watching,” Burras said. “It was magical to see.”
Magical would be a good way to describe the high school career up to this point for Pallozzi, who is now a senior and a solid contender to be throwing the final out of this year’s Division 1 championship at Secchia Stadium come June.
Going into the season opener Tuesday at Dearborn Divine Child, Pallozzi had a 57-4 record, 899 strikeouts and a 0.54 earned-run average in 372 2/3 innings pitched for her career.
Signed to play collegiately for Alabama, Pallozzi also is a .400 hitter in the heart of Mercy’s lineup.
But her pitching dominance is what’s been especially notable during her high school career, which is somewhat remarkable since she said she wasn’t full-time into the position until she was about 13 years old while playing travel ball.
“I did pitch, but just in the (travel) seasons, I was never put in (games),” Pallozzi said. “I played third base and first base. When I got to 13-U, I was put in more and I started developing. I had been working for it my whole life. I knew I always wanted to be a pitcher. I really worked over that winter and then coming into the summer, it really took off.”
Already with a good arm from playing third base, it didn’t take long for Pallozzi to master the craft of pitching, how to move the ball and change speeds.
“I always threw pretty hard,” she said. “My location was inaccurate. I had to work on locating, adding a changeup and also a rise ball.”
Burras said Pallozzi took her game to a whole new level last year in the midst of a tougher schedule, practically driving Mercy to a Semifinal berth.
While it might seem impossible, Burras said there definitely can be more improvement from Pallozzi this year as a senior, even as she is arguably the favorite for the Miss Softball Award.
“She drove our team to the best it could be last year,” Burras said. “What’s she’s working on is accepting the role and responsibility of being a leader on the team. Also, accepting the role and pressure of getting all this attention, which she doesn’t want. She wants to go out there and support her teammates, play great softball and get prepared for the next stage.
“The most improvement you’ll see is strength and size. She’s also working on the mental aspect of the game, knowing it’s OK if she gives up a hit and it’s OK if she’s not at her best.”
There haven’t been too many times in high school where Pallozzi hasn’t been at her best, but the one most notable occasion is what is driving her and the Marlins this spring.
Pretty much everything that could go wrong did go wrong in a 10-0 Semifinal loss to eventual Division 1 champion Hudsonville last year. With Pallozzi and all but two regulars back from that team and a roster filled with seniors, it’s no wonder Mercy is on top of the preseason coaches association Division 1 rankings.
“I think we are all fueled because of that game,” Pallozzi said.
As difficult as her debut three years ago has been to top, if Pallozzi and Mercy can celebrate a title in East Lansing, her last game of high school softball would be even more memorable than her first.
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Farmington Hills Mercy’s Kaitlyn Pallozzi makes her move toward the plate during last season’s Division 1 Semifinal against Hudsonville. (Middle) Pallozzi, during a practice this spring.
Richmond's Ace, Paw Paw's 'Ms. Walk-Off' Send Teams Into Saturday
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
June 12, 2025
EAST LANSING — You might as well dub Paw Paw sophomore Elizabeth Vanderburg as “Ms. Walk-Off” this season.
Paw Paw head coach Mike Mottl noted Thursday that Vanderburg has had four game-winning walk-off hits this season for the Red Wolves. But none were as important or dramatic as how she finished her team’s Division 2 Semifinal against Carleton Airport.
With her team down to its final out, Vanderburg delivered a 2-run home run inside the foul pole and over the left-field fence to give Paw Paw a 3-2 victory and its first trip to an MHSAA championship game. The Red Wolves will face Richmond for the Division 2 title at 10 a.m. Saturday at Secchia Stadium.
Vanderburg most recently had hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to advance her team past Otsego in their District Semifinal two weeks ago.
Ms. Walk-Off indeed.
“I got pitched outside all game, so I was going to wait on the outside pitch and take it to right field,” she said. “It was a high, inside pitch, so I just took it that way. I knew off the bat it was gone.”
Mottl said, at the very least, he felt Vanderburg was going to make hard contact.
“I had no doubt whatsoever she was going to do that,” he said. “She’s just an amazing athlete and for a sophomore, I don’t think she has blood in her body. It’s all ice.”
🚨WALK-OFF. GONE. FINALS BOUND!⁰Paw Paw’s season-saving blast over the fence to walk it off and send the Red Wolves to the Division 2 Final with a 3-2 win over Carleton Airport!🔥🥎⁰#Softball #WalkOff #PawPaw #RoadToTheFinal #MHSAA pic.twitter.com/wm9H8bNK4B
— MHSAA (@MHSAA) June 12, 2025
It was an unusual Semifinal matchup in that neither team had a senior on the roster. As crushing of an ending as it was for Airport, knowing everyone will be back next year was something that allowed Jets head coach Jessica Irwin to smile.
“Just being here is good for them to see,” she said. “Just the pressure of it, and you can come in a little more relaxed next year.”
Airport (33-9) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning on a 2-out, 2-run double to left field by junior Peyton Zajac.
Paw Paw (37-3) got on the board in the fifth, cutting Airport’s lead to 2-1 on a single to left by Vanderburg.
Red Wolves sophomore pitcher Lauren Mackellar also starred. She didn’t allow a run after the first inning and finished with a 6-hitter, striking out 11 and not walking a batter.
Mottl knows not many people will be expecting his team to win the Final against Richmond, but his squad is fully capable of delivering the program’s first title.
“Don’t worry about next year,” Mottl said of what will be his team’s mindset. “You don’t know what’s going to happen next year. The opportunity is here. You’ve got to take opportunities when they are presented.”
Richmond 2, Escanaba 0
It was an all-state pitchers’ duel as No. 1-ranked Escanaba met No. 7 Richmond in the second Semifinal, with Richmond senior Katie Shuboy getting the better of Escanaba senior and Michigan signee Grayson LaMarche.
Shuboy tossed a one-hitter, striking out 12 and walking one batter. LaMarche threw a three-hitter, striking out 13, walking one, while not giving up an earned run.
“You can’t overthink it,” Shuboy said of facing the Escanaba lineup. “You just have to trust your stuff, go out there and throw.”
Richmond scored the only two runs of the game with two outs in the top of the sixth inning. The Blue Devils put runners on second and third base with one out following a passed ball after a strikeout, a bunt single and a sacrifice bunt.
Following a groundout, an Escanaba throw aimed at getting the Richmond runner at third went into left field, allowing both runners to score.
That was all the run support needed for Shuboy, who has tossed back-to-back shutouts beginning with a 6-0 win over Goodrich in a Quarterfinal.
“I just trust my defense,” Shuboy said. “When we got those two runs, I knew it was going to be game because my team made amazing plays in the field. I trust myself, and I knew that we were going to win that game.”
Escanaba (38-5) was seeking its first Finals title since winning the second of back-to-back crowns in 2019.
The Eskymos got their leadoff hitter on in the bottom of the fifth inning on their only hit of the game, but the rally fizzled quickly.
“She mixed it really well,” Escanaba head coach Andy Fields said of Shuboy’s performance. “It was nothing we haven’t seen this year. She did an excellent job locating. It was just tough to get a gauge on what she was doing."
On the other side, Richmond will go for its third title during the 47-year tenure of head coach Howard Stuart.
Richmond’s most recent Finals championship came in 2021.
“She was moving the ball, and we were really struggling,” Stuart said of LaMarche. “But we were OK in the end.”
PHOTOS (Top) Paw Paw players greet teammate Elizabeth Vanderburg after her game-winning home run Thursday at Secchia Stadium. (Middle) Richmond catcher Ashley Stafford frames a pitch during her team’s win over Escanaba.