GRCC freshman Lindsey Paas slides into home plate, beating Glen Oaks Community College catcher Kylan Hagelgans
during the April 17 double-header. GRCC won both games, 9-1 and 11-3, and is on a 5-game winning streak. (Photo by Victoria Fanning,Collegiate)

Softball team turns around losing streak
By Dave Westra
News Editor

The GRCC softball team beat Glen Oaks CC on April 17 during a double-header conference game at Belknap Park in Grand Rapids.

Both games finished after five innings due to the eight–lead run mercy rule, with the first game ending 9-1 and the second 11-3.

The win comes as the fourth straight win for the softball team after an eight-game loosing streak, according to team statistician Ben Brown.

“We hit a slump for a while; we ended an eight game loosing streak,” Brown said. “Our pitching wasn’t there and our hitting wasn’t there. The last three games we’ve come back and hit the ball like we know we can.”

Head Coach Paula Maloley said that the season has had its ups and downs

“When we haven’t played so well; we haven’t been playing to our ability,” Maloley said.

Maloley attributes the slump to the weaker and slower pitching of other teams.

“We’ve been having a hard time adjusting to poorer pitching, slower pitching,” Maloley said. “We’ve been trained to hit faster pitching, and the pitching hasn’t been fast. Some pitchers almost have an arc on the ball. It’s that slow.”

But Maloley has a strategy in place to help her team adjust.

“We’re going to have two machines on the field, one fast ball, one slow, and they’ll be at the plate and they won’t know which one they’re going to get,” Maloley said. “So, they actually have to wait for that pitch.”

According to Center Fielder Keri Austhof, the game Saturday marked the start of the second half of the season.

“We’re starting the second round of games, so we hope to do better than we did the first time,” Austhof said. “If we want to make it to regionals, we need to be top five and we want to be one of them, unlike last year.”

The softball team has three weeks left in their regular season.

(Top/ Index)

The GRCC golf team isn’t playing to their full potential, according to sophomore Jackson Davison.

“We haven’t showed all of our potential,” Davison said. “Last year we dominated, so this is a bit different.”

Head Coach Bruce VandenBeldt said that the weather has been a major factor in the team’s performance.

“At Furniture City, we played in a downpour all day and at Pilgrim’s Run, we played in a snowstorm,” VandenBeldt said. “So being that it’s early in the season and with the weather conditions that they’ve been in with the amount of practice, I’m pleased but looking for some more consistency.”

VandenBeldt remains optimistic for the team, ranked third in the country last year, due to the results of the trip the team made to Alabama.

“It was a great trip for us,” VandenBeldt said. “We finished thirteenth. Which probably doesn’t sound so good but we finished last year at fifteenth and ended up ranked third in the country. We go down there with out any practice. So it’s always a good learning experience and the kids get to know each other.”

VandenBelt still sees the team making it to nationals.

“We’ve just got to get our averages down a little bit and we should be fine,” VandenBeldt said. “Our whole goal is to get to the nationals.”

According to VandenBeldt, the freshmen have been showing a lot of promise.

“We’ve had a freshman from Roscommon, Garrett Branch, who has won two tournaments for us already this year by shooting 71, one under par on each of them,” VandenBeldt said.

“We’re excited for him. Anytime you get a freshman come in and win a couple of tournaments it is
always exciting to see, and the three freshmen that we have are all making a big contribution to our team.”

Branch and freshman Cody Britton said that there is a lot of competition amongst the team.

“We started out the year as alternates and worked our way up,” Branch said. “We’re one and three on the team.”

Branch is also hoping to make it to the national tournament.

“We’re just not playing the way we know we can so we’re going to turn it around hopefully by
regionals so we can make the national tournament,” Branch said.

Branch said that he wants to be on the team again next year.

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In one spectacular flight, LeBron James welcomed James Johnson to the NBA playoffs and reminded all of this very important distinction:

It’s the Cavaliers’ turn to have No. 23.

The Bulls-Cavaliers playoff history is a rich one, filled with the Bulls’ No. 23, Michael Jordan, terrorizing everyone from Craig Ehlo to Gerald Wilkins.

But following the Cavaliers’ 112-102 victory April 19 at Quicken Loans Arena, the Bulls can spend their two off days having nightmares about James and their 0-2 deficit in these Eastern Conference quarterfinals.

James first posterized Johnson with a ridiculous first-quarter dunk and then scored 15 of his 40 points during a dazzling shooting performance in the fourth quarter, allowing the Cavaliers to pull away from a gritty Bulls effort.

“That’s why he’s the best player in the NBA,” Bulls guard Derrick Rose said. “When he’s holding the ball all the way to the shot clock ends and still scores, it’s hard.”

Luol Deng exited for 14 seconds midway through the fourth quarter after banging knees with James, who took advantage by drawing Johnson into a bad foul on a turnaround jumper and sinking two free throws.

This came during a stretch where the Cavaliers scored on 10 of 11 possessions, including a huge 3-pointer from Jamario Moon and a stepback 3-pointer by James over Joakim Noah with 4 minutes, 21
seconds left.

Moon sank four of five 3-pointers, including all three in the fourth, for 12 big reserve points.

Noah led the Bulls with a monster game of 25 points and 13 rebounds, while Rose added 23 points and eight assists and Deng had 20 points.

To be fair, James scored on everyone, Johnson, Noah, Kirk Hinrich, Deng. It was one of those nights.

“If they keep hitting shots like that the whole series, we got no chance,” Deng said. “Those are shots you want him to take. And he was still hitting them unbelievably.”

The Bulls accomplished most of their pregame goals. They limited their turnovers, finishing with four; they increased their secondchance points, tallying 21 to the Cavaliers’ seven, and they battled more evenly on the boards after getting killed in that category during game 1.

They also got a boost from their bench, with Flip Murray scoring eight of his 14 points in the second quarter to prop up a struggling Hinrich.

But in end, all they could do was point to game 3 on April 22 at the United Center.

“I don’t want to just give LeBron all this credit,” Noah said. “Yeah, he played an unbelievable game. But we have to play them again.”

Astute fans will remember the Bulls won all five post-season meetings over the Cavaliers from 1988 to 1994. Now that No. 23 has switched sides, keeping that trend could prove difficult.

“My confidence isn’t going anywhere,” Rose said. “If anything, it’s making me want to play even harder to beat them. At the United Center, it’s going to be time to ball.”

(Top/ Index)

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