softball
March 3, 2016
Softball travels to California
Over spring break, Goshen’s softball team headed for warmer temperatures, traveling to California to begin their season. The Maple Leafs culminated the trip with a 1-9 record over five days of play. Despite losing their first eight games, Goshen competed well and played several contests where the outcome could have gone either way. Four of the losses were by 3 runs or less and one game against University of Antelope Valley took an extra inning before Goshen fell 3-1. The Maple Leafs tied the game in the sixth inning when Morgan Owens, a senior, scored on a throwing error. However,...
February 4, 2016
Softball gears up for 2016 season
Spring offers the opportunity for a clean slate and fresh start for the Goshen College softball team. The Maple Leafs return to the diamond with hopes of improving upon last season’s 5-42 record. In her third season as head coach, Kristen Kolter enters the new season with an eagerness for growth. “Throw out the record last year, and I thought we were pretty dang competitive,” said Kolter. “If we can figure out how to finish games and improve each day, I think we have a shot to be a contender in the Crossroads League.” This year’s roster includes 10 new...
April 16, 2015
Leafs take a game from IWU
Goshen’s softball team traveled to Indiana Wesleyan on Tuesday looking to steal a win or two from the 18th ranked Wildcats. Goshen struck first in the double header, taking a 4-3 win in 10 innings before falling 9-1 in the second game. Goshen and IWU scored a pair of runs apiece through the first 7 innings before a misplayed ball in the top of the 10th allowed sophomore Krista Sutliff to reach base safely and first-year Brooke Maes and sophomore Miranda Robles to score, giving Goshen a 4-2 lead. IWU would strike for a run in the bottom half of...
April 2, 2015
Softball strikes out against IWU and HU
Monday afternoon, the softball team took on the nationally-ranked Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats in a Crossroads League matchup. IWU struck early with three runs in the first inning and then late with four in the fifth in the first game of the doubleheader at the Goshen College Softball Complex. The Maple Leafs got a run back in the bottom of the first when senior Melanie Meyer singled, stole second, then moved to third on a fly ball before first-year Brooke Maes brought her home with a ground ball. Unfortunately, the Maple Leafs were unable to get to IWU pitcher Janessa Guevara...
March 26, 2015
Softball drops two against Grace
This past Saturday, the GC softball team took on Grace College in a conference double-header contest. The Maple Leafs were looking to bounce back after being swept in their Crossroads League opener by Taylor University on the previous day. Unfortunately, they were not able to do so. Despite a 13 hit performance by the Leafs in the first game of the day, the Lancers prevailed in the high scoring affair by a score of 11-10. Senior Melanie Meyer led the team with three hits, going 3-for-5. Sophomore Jessica Cagigas drove in four runs with a pair of singles. Junior Abby...
March 12, 2015
GC softball battles into extra innings
Over the weekend, the Goshen softball team traveled to Rosemont, Illinois, to challenge Roosevelt University in the Rosemont Dome. The Maple Leafs looked to get their first victory of the season out of the double header, but were swept by the hosting Lakers. Goshen struggled in the first game and never really settled into a rhythm offensively, collecting only 4 hits in the game. Sophomore Jessica Cagigas threw all 6 innings for the Maple Leafs, striking out 2 in the process. Cagigas also collected a pair of Goshen’s 4 hits, with senior Melanie Meyer and sophomore Miranda Robles adding a...
March 5, 2015
GC softball and baseball spring preseason review
2014-2015 Baseball team Goshen’s baseball and softball teams traveled for sunny skies over spring break, with the baseball team heading down to Florida, and the softball team going to California. The trips marked the first time either team was able to be outside since the fall. The baseball team ended their break by winning 2 out of 6 games, and the softball team ended theirs with a record of 0-9 to start to the season. The baseball team got off to a fast start, whipping Warner University 9-2, with sophomore Michael Walker pitching a complete game, surrendering only 4 hits...
February 12, 2015
GC softball begins season in California
As the spring athletic season quickly approaches, the Goshen College softball team looks forward to the beginning of their year. The season launches at the beginning of spring break and many of the student athletes could not be more excited to get things underway. Senior outfielder Mel Meyer said, “I am excited for my senior year; it feels like it has been a long time coming but the past three years have gone so fast. I am eager to get started and see where my final season takes me.” Meyer’s senior season will begin in California, where the team is...
April 17, 2014
Leaf Softball Takes Win over Lancers
Hall of Fame baseball player George Brett famously said that “losing was as pleasant as kissing your grandmother with her teeth out.” After 23 consecutive conference losses and a 1-29 start to the season, a win had to be a welcome sight for the Goshen College softball team. Even sandwiched by three losses in 28 hours, a win is a win – and a win is what the Maple Leafs got Saturday in Winona Lake. The Leafs began their Crossroads League twin bill auspiciously if ineffectively – shortstop Sam Langley, a junior, singled in the first but was left on...
March 12, 2014
Youthful Teams Prepare for Season, Brace for Weather
The calendar suggests that it will soon be time for the Maple Leaf baseball and softball teams to take the field. While patches of bare grass were visible on both teams’ home fields earlier this week, Mother Nature appears to disagree. The softball team will have more chances than ever to be postponed – the Crossroads League changed its schedule so that each team plays its opponents twice at home and twice on the road, resulting in a 36-game slate that is twice as long as that of previous seasons. The baseball season hasn’t been lengthened, the longer schedule having...
April 18, 2013
Bible, religion and softball: an interview with Ame Blankenship
Ame Blankenship, a senior softball player, has pitched and played first base for four years. During the team’s most recent match-up, Blankenship pitched a complete game, striking out a career high ten batters and allowing just three hits in a 3-2 victory over Bethel. It was the Leafs’ first victory over Bethel since 2004. Blankenship came to Goshen from Jonathan Alder High School in Plain City, Ohio. Here, she provides an in-depth look at her experience here at Goshen College, the softball team this year and what she foresees in her future. How did you hear about Goshen College and what...
April 10, 2013
Put it in the book(s)
The digital revolution has not been kind to dead-tree books. As I’m sure the bookstore has told you several times over, the electronic editions of your favorite literature are cheaper than their bound relatives, not to mention less likely to collect dust and turn yellow with age. But there are some functions of computerization that don’t translate well from the tactile to the touchscreen. It’s April, which means (despite Mother Nature’s evidence to the contrary) that baseball season is beginning—and that brings to mind one such function. I’m referring to the practice of scoring baseball and softball games, which entails...
April 10, 2013
Maple Leafs split with Bethel, first win since 2004
The Goshen College softball team snapped a 17-game losing streak against local rival Bethel on Tuesday as the Maple Leafs split a doubleheader, losing 2-1 and winning 3-2 against the Pilots in Mishawaka. The win ends a losing streak that dates to May 6, 2004, when the Leafs beat the Pilots 2-0. The first game was played under heavy cloud cover, with a fourth-inning burst of rain sending spectators scurrying for cover. Starting pitcher Maria Koshmider, a senior, recorded two quick outs before two singles, a walk and a wild pitch got Bethel the contest’s first run. But the Leafs...
March 28, 2012
Softball swept
The Goshen College softball team dropped a twinbill on the road to the St. Francis Cougars, 7-3 and 6-5. In game one, the Leafs spotted the Cougars three runs heading in to the fourth inning before Goshen pushed across an unearned run to cut the deficit to 3-1. Shortstop Kat Berg, a junior, made it a one-run game with an RBI single. The Leafs trailed 3-2 going to the bottom of the fourth. In the home half of the fourth, St. Francis pinch hitter Jackie Beilfuss, a sophomore, smacked a grand slam to give the Cougars a 7-3 victory. Game...
March 21, 2012
Softball looks for a spark
The Maple Leaf softball team dropped their third and fourth straight games on the road against Calumet College of St. Joseph’s in a twinbill on Tuesday. In game one, the Leafs were held to just four hits as Calumet pitcher Alex Latronica, a first-year, tossed six innings of shutout softball and recorded her sixth win of the season. Goshen left-hander Maria Koshmider, a junior, pitched six innings giving up five earned runs on seven hits and striking out two to take the loss for Goshen (6-8). In game two of the doubleheader, the Leaf offense was held to seven hits...