EAST LANSING — The head coach hadn’t coached high school softball before last year, the ace pitcher is a junior who had never played on varsity before this spring, and the program itself had never advanced beyond the MHSAA Quarterfinal round over its long history.

Given all that, it certainly seemed like the definition of a stunning rise to the top for the Saline softball program, which captured its first Finals championship with a 5-2 victory over South Lyon in the Division 1 championship game Saturday at Secchia Stadium. 

First, Saline head coach Rebecca Suiter hadn’t been a head coach in high school softball before being hired in December 2023. She has been a travel head coach, but her primary background was as an athletic trainer treating athletes, not coaching them.

“When I first got here, my goal was to get to know the girls and see where we were at,” said Suiter, who formerly was an athletic trainer at Brooklyn Columbia Central High School but is now a teacher at Saline. “Last year, they started to get to used to our philosophy. This year from the start, they bought in from the beginning. Each and every day they have put in the work to reach their goal. We would offer time for open hitting, and girls would be just showing up. This week, we were studying film and they were studying film on their own. They wanted it so bad.”

Junior ace Abby Curtis wasn’t even on varsity during Suiter’s first year, playing on the JV squad.

Committed to play next for Wayne State, Curtis went 20-0 this season and finished an incredible year by throwing a seven-hitter against South Lyon, striking out 13 and walking none. 

“Our first practice, I had a feeling,” Curtis said. “There was an obvious chemistry and click we had from the get-go. We set high goals and reached them.”

Saline (40-3-2) reached the ultimate goal by avenging a loss to South Lyon in a Regional Semifinal last season. 

Coming off a 5-4 win over 2025 champion Hudsonville in a Thursday Semifinal — a win that featured a 2-run rally in the top of the seventh inning — Saline’s offense was consistent throughout the championship game. The Hornets collected 10 hits and scored single runs in every inning except the fourth and the seventh. 

Senior Ava Stripp broke a 1-1 tie in the second with a solo home run, and the Hornets took a 3-1 lead in the third inning on an RBI groundout by sophomore Gracelyn Waldrop. It was her second RBI of the day after she singled home the game’s first run. 

In the fifth inning, Saline went up 4-1 on an RBI single with two outs by junior Madison Bellus. Saline got its final run in the sixth on an RBI double to the gap in left-center by Casey Griffin. 

South Lyon scored a single run in the sixth inning on an RBI single by junior Ella Glowacki to make it 5-2, but couldn’t get closer. 

South Lyon also scored in the first inning on an RBI fielder’s choice off the bat of sophomore Isabella Bracali. 

As improbable as Saline’s rise to the top was, it might have been even more unlikely to see South Lyon get this far in 2025.

The Lions last spring graduated all-state pitcher Ava Bradshaw, who as a freshman pitched a shutout in the 2021 Division 1 championship game to lead the Lions to victory. 

South Lyon (33-8) also had a new coach in Jerry Shippe and was unranked heading into the MHSAA Tournament, but went on another unforgettable run to reach championship weekend.

“We flew under the radar all year,” Shippe said. “We played our last games at Clio before the playoffs. I took the team and told them, ‘You can win a state championship.’ They looked at me like, ‘Yeah, this old man doesn’t know what he’s talking about.’ Hey, they almost did. A couple of hits here and there, and they are. I’m proud of them.” 

Click for the full box score.

PHOTOS (Top) Saline players including Casey Griffin (3) celebrate during their Division 1 championship win Saturday. (Middle) Ashley Malinczak steps into her swing during an at bat for the Hornets.