Brown, Hornets edge Comets in district final, 7-5

PELLSTON – Randy Bricker had a good feeling going into Saturday.

A really good feeling.

By the end of the day, his players – a younger group he’s believed in all season long – didn’t let him down as the Pellston softball team won a Division 4 district championship with a thrilling 7-5 victory over Mackinaw City in the final at home.

“I’m so excited for the girls on this softball team,” said Bricker, Pellston’s first-year head coach. “It’s a big step forward to trying to build a program going forward. We’re super excited for the kids. It’s something they deserve with the time and effort they’ve put in.

“We knew that winning the Ski Valley Conference wasn't a reasonable goal, so every day at practice we tried to set the tone of winning a district championship. We had great attendance all season long at practice, the girls worked extremely hard, and Madison Brown was our senior leader. She stepped up in the tournament late in the year and really started pitching extremely well.”

Brown, Pellston’s pitching workhorse all season, was solid against a strong Mackinaw City lineup, striking out nine and allowing six hits in a complete-game performance.

“Madison was able to keep their hitters off-balance,” Bricker said. “She allowed six hits and struck out nine, and we just tried to limit Mackinaw’s rally. We limited their rally to just one inning in the third where they got three runs. We just tried to keep the ball in front of us and the defense made plays when we had to. That was huge.”

“Madison’s one of the top pitchers in Northern Michigan, she’s our leader. She’s our three-hitter, she’s just dominant on the hill for us, and she’s kept us in every single game we’ve been in. She’s a special player, and I was just honored to be able to coach her.”

Brown was just as instrumental at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a triple, while sophomore teammate Caroline Crenshaw was 3-for-4 with three RBI, junior Megan Bricker added two hits and an RBI, and junior Gabby Landon connected for two hits. Emma Irwin, Haleigh Bohn and Elysia Ward chipped in with a hit apiece for the Hornets (16-18), who avenged two regular season defeats to the Comets with the best payback possible.

The triumph marked a first district crown since 2018 for the Hornets, who will host Hillman in a regional semifinal clash on Saturday, June 11.

Gracie Beauchamp went 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored to lead the Comets in the final, while Gabi Bell (run), Madison Smith (run), Rae Hingston and Jersey Beauchamp each recorded hits. Marlie Postula and Kenzlie Currie both scored once.

Postula took the loss on the mound, striking out five, allowing 10 hits and walking two in six innings.

The Hornets rolled into the final with plenty of momentum following a 22-1 rout over Alanson in a morning semifinal.

The Hornets hammered out 18 hits in that matchup, led by Megan Bricker’s 4-for-4 performance, which included a homer, a triple and four RBI. Irwin matched Bricker by going 4-for-4 with a double and four RBI, while Brown went 3-for-4 with two triples, a double and three RBI. Ward tallied two hits to round out Pellston’s attack.

Crenshaw was Pellston’s winning pitcher, striking out six and allowing four hits in three innings of work.

While Hillman might be the presumed favorite to win next week’s regional, the Hornets will continue to embrace their role as underdogs.

And they believe on their day – with the ace they have – they can pull off a shocker.

“With Madison on the hill, it gives us a chance to win every game,” Bricker said. “We’re going to play Hillman, who beat (Johannesburg-Lewiston). We lost to JoBurg 3-2 and whatnot, and I think Hillman squeezed by Rogers City in the semifinals. We think if Madison’s game is on, and we can play defense behind her, it’ll give us a shot to advance in the tournament.

“Obviously Hillman’s been ranked the entire year, they’re probably the team that’s favored to win it, but hopefully the Pellston Hornets have something to say about that.”

Mackinaw City (21-4) advanced to the final with a 21-3 victory over Harbor Light in the second semifinal on Saturday.

Bell went 3-for-3 with a triple, five RBI and four runs scored to fuel the Comets in the semifinal triumph. Going 2-for-3 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored was Hingston. Other contributors included Gracie Beauchamp (RBI, three runs), Jersey Beauchamp (RBI, two runs), Postula (two runs), Smith (two runs), Currie (two runs), Julia Sullivan (run) and Rian Esper (run).

Jersey Beauchamp was Mackinaw City’s winning pitcher, striking out three, allowing no hits and walking 10 in three innings.

Despite falling short of a first district title since 2004, Mackinaw City coach Emma Cook was proud of her players, who captured a share of a first Northern Lakes Conference title since 2019 this campaign.

"I'm just really proud of how the girls fought through the championship game," said Cook. "We knew it was going to be a battle and they didn't give up until the very end. Also just proud of how they showed up the whole season. Overall we had a very successful season. Gabi (Bell) and Rae (Hingston) are going to be big losses for us, but I'm excited to watch the team continue to grow."

This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Pellston softball beats Mackinaw City to win district title