South Lyon, Allen Park Set to Provide 1st-Time Champ

By Jason Schmitt
Special for MHSAA.com

June 17, 2021

EAST LANSING — Coming up clutch is nothing new for the South Lyon softball team.

So when the Lions came up big on the sport’s biggest stage Thursday afternoon, it really should have come as no surprise to anyone at Secchia Stadium — least of all to head coach Dan DePaulis.

South Lyon rallied from two runs down, pulling away down the stretch en route to an 8-4 win over Grandville in a Division 1 Semifinal played at Michigan State University.

“Everyone contributed at the plate today,” said DePaulis, whose team will be making its first appearance in a Division 1 championship game. “It was awesome. We’ve come from behind before and played a tough schedule. We’ve been in a lot of tough games and played some tough teams. I think that prepared them. Nothing surprised them today.”

The Lions fell behind twice early. Grandville scored the first two runs of the game in the first inning, courtesy of an RBI double by senior Jamie Vander Meer and an RBI single by senior Kylee Dillard. South Lyon got two right back, one on an RBI single from senior Ella Vitale.

The Bulldogs then retook the lead, 4-2, in the third inning. Senior Maddie Gkekas scored on a wild pitch, with senior Brook Bernt then scoring on an RBI single by Dillard.

That’s the last run Grandville would score. South Lyon put two runs up in the fourth inning to tie the game, the first when Vitale singled in junior Julia Duncan, who crossed ahead of a tag at the plate.

“That’s a huge momentum shift,” Grandville head coach Troy Ungrey said. “I mean, we get that out right there, it’s the third out. It’s 4-2, we still have momentum. We’ve got the top of our lineup coming up.”

The Lions would add another run in the inning on an RBI single by senior Riley Bourlier, scoring Vitale. South Lyon then took a 5-4 lead in the fifth inning, when Duncan’s single scored senior Tierny Donnelley.

“We’ve been doing that all year, just having really good at bats,” DePaulis said. “They’re putting the ball in play, hard ground balls, getting the run in, productive outs. The seniors really stepped up for us today at the bottom of our order. They had some big hits to get us going early.”

Vitale, Madison Seymour and Bourlier combined for three runs, three hits and three RBI in their team’s victory.

“It’s kind of fun, we (seniors) are all like stacked at the bottom together so we can cheer each other on,” Vitale said. “I feel like our whole lineup can get hits. No one end is stronger than the other. One of our sayings is like, ‘Ground balls win softball games.’ When we have a runner on third, we try to hit it hard on the ground so they can score.”

South Lyon scored seven of its eight runs with two outs.

“We had a team meeting the other day, and we talked about how we were doing it with two outs,” said DePaulis, who’s in his seventh year at South Lyon. “Those kids just come up clutch. Nothing phases them. They’re just really battling. At this point in the tournament, it’s more about what you’ve got between the ears than the talent. They really focused, they were mentally tough and they had really good at bats with two outs.”

Sophomore Emily Johnson had a team-high three hits and starting pitcher Ava Bradshaw went the distance, striking out 12 for the Lions (29-6-2), who advanced to Saturday’s Division 2 Final, where they’ll face Allen Park.

Grandville finished the season 36-6.

“We set a school record for wins this year,” Ungrey said. “Grace (Connelly) set a record for wins in the circle. Maddie (Gkekas) set the stolen base record. There are just so many good things to think about, all the way through. We brought up some sophomores at the end. They had a chance to taste this. I think in a couple years we’ve got a real good chance of coming back here.”

Click for the full box score.

Allen Park 9, Farmington Hills Mercy 5

Allen Park played the patience game Thursday in its Division 1 Semifinal game against Farmington Hills Mercy. That’s not always an easy thing to do when your team boasts just one senior on the roster.

But it paid off for the Jaguars, who scored seven runs in the fourth inning to pull away from the Marlins en route to a 9-5 victory that clinched a spot in Saturday’s championship game at Michigan State University.

Allen Park softballJunior Madilynn Ramey highlighted the inning with a grand slam, which broke a 1-1 tie and gave her team all the momentum it would need.

“The bases were loaded, and I knew I had to capitalize. I knew I had to come through for my team,” said Ramey, who finished the day 2-for-3 with her home run, a triple and a walk. “We’re the underdogs. We know we have to come out here and prove ourselves.”

Her head coach, Mike Kish, knew it was just a matter of time before his young Jaguars would break through.

“I believed. I absolutely believed,” he said. “We knew we had the talent. If we could just keep it close, long enough for us to take a deep breath and relax. And once we did that, this is what we do.

“(Madilynn) is our leader. She’s our shortstop. She’s our heart and soul. You know she’s going to come through. And sure enough she did.”

Allen Park batted around in the fourth inning. Sophomore Molly Hool singled to right-center to get things going. Junior Riley Kish and junior Autumn Bridges had a double and single, respectively, to load the bases for Ramey — who proceeded to clear them. The Jaguars added two more runs on an RBI double by sophomore Morgan Sizemore and an RBI single by sophomore Mia Hool.

The Hool sisters, along with Ramey and freshman Avery Garden, all finished with two hits. Allen Park (32-10) has a young roster which includes four juniors, five sophomores and five freshmen.

“We knew for a couple years that this talent was coming,” Kish said. “We only had three girls on the team who had played a varsity game before the season had started. We knew our pitchers were young, inexperienced. But we knew the talent was there. It comes out of potential.”

Mercy senior Grace Nieto finished 3-for-4 with four stolen bases for her Marlins, who finished the season 32-5. Senior Maggie Murphy and junior Kendall Spivey each drove in two runs in their team’s loss.

“They went to work with their bats. We knew their bats were coming. We didn’t do enough to mitigate them hitting it,” Mercy head coach Corey Burras said. “It was not a surprise. I thought the score would be 12-11. It wasn’t going to be 2-1. It wasn’t going to be a pitching duel.

“They moved on the ball. We moved on the ball. But they moved on the ball a little bit better than us today.”

Click for the full box score.

PHOTOS: (Top) South Lyon’s Julia Duncan is moments from connecting with a pitch during her team’s Division 1 Semifinal win Thursday. (Middle) An Allen Park runner gets to third base head first as Mercy’s Kendall Spivey gathers the ball for a possible tag.

Laingsburg's Bila Sisters Combine for 5 Records on Softball Diamond

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

December 27, 2024

Laingsburg’s Ashley Bila finished her senior season this spring with 14 listings in the MHSAA softball record book and three records as she followed up older sister Hailey Bila’s 13 listings and two records set over the first half of this decade.  

Ashley set the single-season runs record with 93 as a freshman in 2021 and added the second-most, 91, as a senior in setting the career runs record with 335 over 152 games. She also set the career walks record, drawing 136 including 42 as a senior.  

Bila also made the single-season hits list as a freshman with 85 (tied for 12th-most) on the way to finishing fifth on that career list with 279. She is on the career doubles (47) and triples (25) lists and ranks 11th all-time with a .599 career batting average. She also finished with 166 career stolen bases.  

Hailey Bila remains tied for the single-season triples record with 20 hits during 2021, and her eight RBI in an inning May 18, 2022, tops a list as well. She also made the single-season home runs list with 14 in 2022 and single-season RBI list with 72 in 2022 and 70 in 2021.  

Additionally, Laingsburg teammate Addyson Buchin was added to the single-season pitching wins list after going 35-6 as a sophomore in 2023, and her 18 doubles this spring also earned a listing. 

Hailey Bila is playing at Michigan State, and Ashley Bila is playing at Central Michigan.  

See below for more recent additions to the softball record book: 

Softball 

Natalie Wandrie finished her three-season Indian River Inland Lakes career in 2023 among the most accomplished hitters in MHSAA history – and despite her freshman season being canceled due to COVID-19. Wandrie is listed 21 times in the record book, including as a senior for 20 doubles, 24 home runs (fifth all-time), 79 RBI and a .685 batting average. She made career lists with 36 doubles, 47 home runs, 198 RBI and a .651 average over 82 games – the average third all-time, the home runs tied for 11th and the RBI tied for 14th. She’s playing softball and volleyball at Lindsey Wilson College in Kentucky. 

Addison’s Laci Mae Patterson earned a record book entry as a junior in 2023, when she hit 11 home runs across 37 games.  

Riverview junior Ella Vinco earned a highlight less than a month into the 2024 season, when she made the record book for back-to-back home runs against Dearborn Divine Child on April 20. 

Algonac’s Kenna Bommarito entered her senior season this past spring with six record book entries – a combined four for back-to-back homers during the first innings of games in 2021 and 2023, and two more from 18-strikeout six-inning games also in 2023 against Armada and Marine City. She is playing at Oakland.  

Decatur’s Sienna Potter entered the 2024 season with five record book entries, including for 16 doubles and 18 home runs as a sophomore.  

Grand Ledge prevailed over Mason 25-20 on April 6, 2023, and in doing so hit seven home runs – tying for second-most all-time for one game. The Comets led off with two straight homers and also had a pair back-to-back during the fourth inning. 

Several entries for Rogers City’s string of successful seasons at the end of the last decade have been entered, highlighted by a record of nine home runs in one game against Johannesburg-Lewiston in a 2018 District Semifinal. Rogers City as a team was added 17 times, with highs during that time of 481 runs, 438 hits, 85 doubles, 374 RBI and a .403 batting average all in 2017 and 40 home runs in 2018. Total, 31 individual entries were added. Kayla Rabeau’s work included 234 runs, 229 hits, 36 doubles, 25 home runs and 186 RBI from 2015-18. Sarah Meredith was added for a .570 career average, 252 hits, 45 doubles, 38 home runs and 245 RBI from 2013-16. Hannah Fleming made career lists with 208 hits, 47 doubles, 29 homers and 187 RBI from 2015-18, and Taylor Fleming made career lists with 38 doubles, 32 home runs and 185 RBI during the same four seasons. Jayna Hance, Brooklyn Orr and Amanda Wirgau also made individual record lists. Meredith played for Ferris State, Rabeau played for Mott Community College, Hannah Fleming played at Alma College, Hance played at Northwood, and Taylor Fleming played volleyball at Lake Superior State. 

Maple City Glen Lake sophomore Laila Shimek didn’t take long to reach the record book during her first season in the spring, driving in seven runs during an 18-3 win over Traverse City Christian on April 16. 

Marlette’s Delaney Gage reached the record book for the first time in 2023, with a 15-strikeout five-inning game against Warren Woods-Tower and then 366 strikeouts for that season over 166 innings. She graduated in the spring and is continuing at Northwood.  

An unforgettable hitting performance earned Emma Weber five record book entries. The Birmingham Seaholm then-junior hit three home runs, consecutively and including two during the third inning, and drove in seven runs including six in that third inning of her team’s 11-1 win over Rochester Adams on May 16.  

Chloe Parker capped her Niles Brandywine career this spring on three career lists, with 64 doubles, 21 home runs and a .570 batting average over 108 games and four seasons. Kadence Brumitt, also a senior this past spring, was added for hitting 10 home runs during her final campaign. Parker is continuing at Central Michigan, and Brumitt is playing volleyball at Valparaiso. 

PHOTO Laingsburg’s Ashley Bila runs the bases against Bath during her senior season in the spring. (Photo by Click by Christine McCallister.)