Holton Red Devil Softball: Welcome
2013 Holton Red Devil Softball
Holton Red Devil Softball welcomes you to our 2013 web site. The Holton Softball family is where there is care, discipline, shared responsibility, and an absence of special privilege.
HOLTON SOFTBALL MISSION STATEMENT
Our mission is to take the high school student athlete where she cannot take herself. We will foster an environment that teaches young ladies to:
1. Relentlessly pursue and win the Central States Athletic Association Conference!
2. Relentlessly pursue and win the MHSAA tournament and win at every level!
3. Achieve an exemplary foundation of leadership and academic success.
4. Achieve a foundation to become a successful individual throughout life.
OUR PROGRAM IS BASED ON THE VALUES OF FAMILY, SUCCESSFUL ATTITUDES, AND TEAM CHEMISTRY.
Saturday, May 4
Rachel YountsÂ’ pitching carries Holton to Tier 2 county softball title over North Muskegon
By Jim Goorman
Local Sports Journal
The Holton Red Devils softball team rode the strong right arm of Rachel Younts in the championship game of the GMAA Tier 2 tournament and defeated North Muskegon 4-0 on Saturday.
The Red Devils defeated Oakridge 2-1 and Ravenna 11-1 to gain the final-game opportunity at Mona Shores High School. It was a brilliant two-hit masterpiece for Younts as she only allowed Ann Osborn two singles.
North Muskegon (7-2), which was missing four starters due to school commitments, survived earlier games with Muskegon Catholic (14-4) and Montague (8-0).
Katie Hendrickson pitched a solid game for the Norse as she only allowed two hits.
Younts had one of those and figured two of the innings in which Holton scored.
Younts had a bunt single and came around on a bunt by Morgan Sundberg in the second inning.
The Red Devils (12-4) also scored two runs in the fourth without a hit as Younts struck out, but reached base after a throwing error by the catcher and later scored on another suicide bunt by Sundberg.
The final run came on a wild pitch. Katie Flores was the only other Holton player to get a hit as she doubled in the sixth inning.
Holton head coach, Jeremy Hartwick, said that “his team played the best three games this season on this tournament day and are starting to execute.
“To win this (tournament) was huge for the girls,” said Hartwick. He also lauded the efforts of Yount’s pitching prowess.
“Rachel has probably thrown 1500 pitches this year,” said Hartwick.
“We played hard and it was difficult to play without four of our usual starters,” said Norse coach Larry Witham. “Don’t take anything away from Holton because they played well. They played small ball today and they should be proud of their kids.”
Sunday, May 5
Photo Gallery of Holtons Win over North Muskegon in the GMAA Championship
Monday, May 6
Video: Action and Interviews of Holton's GMAA Win
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| 2013 Greater Muskegon Area Champions
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Saturday, May 4
Holton wins first GMAA softball title since 2007 with finals win over 4-time defending champ North Muskegon
Holton wins first GMAA softball title since 2007 with finals win over 4-time defending champ North Muskegon
Scott Brandenburg | sbranden@mlive.com, May 04, 2013 8:17 p.m.
Holton players celebrate after defeating North Muskegon, 4-0 in the GMAA tier 2 championship softball game on May 4, 2013. - (Ken Stevens | kstevens2@MLive.com)
MUSKEGON, MI – Last year's Greater Muskegon Athletic Association tier 2 county softball tournament finals didn't sit well with Holton, which lost to North Muskegon.
The Red Devils got a measure of revenge when they beat the Norse in last year's district tournament, but they were still plenty motivated Saturday when the two teams met in the tier 2 finals once again.
Holton took care of business this time, beating North Muskegon 4-0 at Mona Shores High School to win its second ever GMAA title and first since 2007.
"It's sweet," Holton sophomore pitcher Rachel Younts said. "We pretty much preached redemption coming in. We wanted redemption, and it feels pretty good to get it."
Holton's ends North Muskegon's recent string of GMAA titles at four straight.
The Red Devils got all the runs they would need with two runs in the second inning, and Younts kept the Norse offense stymied all game to unseat the defending champs.
"We certainly would have liked to get a ring for the thumb, but it didn't happen," Norse coach Larry Witham said. "It's been a great run, and now these kids understand what it's like to be on this side of the ledger. Maybe next year we can be the one to dethrone the champion and get the trophy back in our case for 2014."
Both Younts and North Muskegon ace Katie Hendrickson pitched outstanding games, giving up just three hits apiece.
The difference was Younts was able to wiggle out of trouble with some timely pitches and defensive plays while the Red Devils were able to take advantage of a couple of Norse miscues to score their runs off Hendrickson.
Holton, which beat Oakridge 2-1 and Ravenna 11-1 on the way to the title game, scored two more runs in the fourth inning in the finals to outscored its opponents 17-2 on the way to GMAA title No. 2.
"We played three of the best games we've played all year today," Holton coach Jeremy Hartwick said. "We're doing the little things we've got to do. I've talked to them all year long about executing, and they're finally starting to execute and do what they have to do to get the runs across and get it done."
Younts singled and Katie Flores walked with one out in the fourth inning, and moved up into scoring position with two outs.
Morgan Sundberg laid down a good bunt where the only play was at home, but the ball got away on the play at the plate. Flores scored on a wild pitch later in the inning to make it 2-0 Holton.
In the fourth inning Younts struck out to lead off, but was safe at first as the ball hit the dirt and the throw to first got away and later scored on a passed ball. Dominique Waltz reached on an error and later scored for the final run of the game.
"Holton is a very good team," Witham said. "They put a lot of pressure on you with their speed, so you have to be able to make the plays."
Kaylee Slowik and Flores had the other two hits for Holton. Hendrickson struck out 12 batters.
Anna Osborn led the North Muskegon offense with two hits, and teammate Alicia Kelenske also added a hit.
The best chances to score for the Norse came in the first and sixth innings.
In the first Osborn led off with a single, and Hendrickson launched a shot to the warning track which Slowik tracked down in center field. In the sixth the Norse loaded the bases but Younts got the final out on a groundout to the mound.
"I just tried to move the ball around," Younts said. "I thought (Hendrickson) hit it out in the first inning, but after that I just tried to be careful with her and move the ball around."
Wednesday, May 1
Game Added: May 2nd at Reeths Puffer
The Lady Red Devils will a play a single game at Reeths Puffer at 5:00 on Thursday, May 2nd.
Wednesday, May 1
Holton's softball team sweeps a pair of games from White Cloud
From Local Reports-
The Holton Red Devils posted two impressive softball victories on Tuesday. The Red Devils won the opener 6-0 on a solid pitching performance by Rachel Younts. In the nightcap Felica Santos and Younts combined pitching effort to take the win 12-2 in the nightcap. In the opener, Younts struck out 10 and allowed five hits in seven innings of work.
In the two games, Ashley Friend was the leading hitter with seven hits, five runs scored and three RBI. Jackie Stone had four hits, including a triple and a double. Cassidy VanBlargan and Brittney Younts each had three hits
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| 2013 Holton Invitational Champions
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Sunday, April 28
Red Devils Win Holton Invitational
Congratulations Lady Red Devils on your 1st Tournament win of 2013. The Lady Red Devils started the day with a convincing win over the 2012 District Champion Kent City Eagles 13-3. In the Championship game the Red Devils relied on great team speed both defense and on the base paths to take hard fought win 7-4 over another 2012 District Champion team, the Fremont Packers.
Great job ladies!
Thursday, April 25
Red Devils Split With Whitehall
From Local Reports:
The bats were silent for both Whitehall and Holton as they split a double header at Whitehall. While Holton had a few more hits on the day, they also had more errors. Whitehall played strong defensively the entire evening. Holton left runners stranded on third 5 times in two games.
In game one singles by Ashley Friend and Katie Florez were followed by a triple by Holton's Rachel Younts. Younts triple jump started the Red Devils to a 2-0 lead and aided her cause on the pitching mound. From then on the bats went silent for the Red Devils. Younts gave up no earned runs on the mound in the Red Devils 3-2 win. A last inning rally was put to rest with a ground ball to Younts with runners on 1st and 2nd.
In game two the Red Devils led until the bottom of the seventh. Timely walks and errors put the Vikings in a position to win. With the bases loaded trailing 2-1 an error and a passed ball gave the Vikings the win. Again Younts gave up no earned runs. At the plate Holton was paced by Ashley Friend, Younts, and Cassidy VanBlargan.
“It was a tight game both games,” Whitehall coach Dave Goodrich said. “Both teams played well. It was typical for early in the year.”
Kennedee Semans helped Whitehall earn the win in game two on the mound while striking out five batters. Holton is now 3-1 overall while Whitehall is 3-5.
Wednesday, April 17
Red Devils Open Season with Sweep Over Lakeview
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Player Stats - Both Games
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| Kaylee Slowik |
6 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
.667 |
| Rachel Younts |
5 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
.400 |
| Ashley Friend |
6 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
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.333 |
| Jacki Stone |
5 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
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.400 |
| Katie Flores |
3 |
|
2 |
2 |
1 |
.667 |
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Player Stats
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| Rachel Younts |
13 |
2 |
5 |
15 |
1.08 |
Friday, April 5
Muskegon softball players to watch
Muskegon
softball players to watch
Scott Brandenburg | sbranden@mlive.com, April 05, 2013 6:18 p.m.
Morgan Giddings, Oakridge: The junior shortstop expected to do it all for the Eagles after
strong sophomore season in which she hit .459
Jacki Stone, Holton: One of several
talented Red Devil sophomores, Stone covers plenty of ground in centerfield and
hit .464 as a freshman.
Meghan Birr, Mona Shores: Birr
serves as the Sailor spark plug both offensively at the top of the lineup,
where she hit .460 last year, and defensively in centerfield.
Morgan Glover, Fruitport: The Trojan
infielder looking to have a big senior season with the glove and bat.
Laura Williams, Ravenna: The senior third baseman is looking for the
.500 mark after hitting .474 last year.
Wednesday, April 3
Holton softball team looking to continue building on last seasonÂ’s success
Pushing
for a conference title and a repeat of last season’s district championship are
at the top of the list of goals for the Holton Red Devils’ softball team.
After
posting a 28-12 record a year ago, this year’s team is focusing in on another
successful season. And, they’ve got the players to do it.
Five
key players return including sophomore centerfielder Jacki Stone, who hit .464
a year ago, sophomore pitcher Rachel Younts, who won 15 games a year ago,
sophomore catcher Ashley Friend, who batted .381 and threw out 42 percent of
base stealers along with all-district and all-region players Katie Flores and
Dominique Waltz. Other returning starters include seniors Morgan Sunberg and
Cassidy VanBlargan.
“We
will have at least five sophomores starting,” Coach Jeremy Hartwick said.
“Three of them started every game last season.”
Key
newcomers to the team include senior Jordyn Jalovec who returns after being
injured last season along with, juniors Felicia Santos and Amanda Hosmer.
Sophomores Katie Wildfong, Kaylee Slowik and Brittney Younts round out a roster
of 13 Varsity players.
“We should be in the running (for the conference)
along with Morley-Stanwood and Reed City,” Hartwick said. “Two sleepers are
Hesperia and Lakeview.”
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