Like the Hillsdale College softball team itself, junior pitcher Erin Kapteyn has experienced ups and downs to start the 2023 season.
On Saturday, however, Kapteyn got to experience one of the highest highs for a pitcher with a performance that bodes well for Hillsdale's future in the rest of 2023.
Kapteyn was lights out against Queens (NY) in the first of two games the Chargers played in Daytona Beach, Florida, to kick off their spring break trip. The junior pitcher her first career no-hitter, striking out two batters and allowing just four baserunners on two walks and two defensive errors.
It's one of Kapteyn's best performances in a career that includes second-team All-G-MAC honors in 2022 while helping lead the Chargers to the conference title.
While Kapteyn shut down the Knights' bats, Hillsdale found ways to manufacture runs offensively despite finishing the game with just four hits. Freshman Anna Chellman had a big game at the plate for Hillsdale, going 2 for 3 with the critical bases-clearing double in the top of the fourth inning, making Queens pay for loading the bases with two errors and a walk. Junior Hailey Holtman chipped in a RBI double in the third inning as well for the Chargers.
Hillsdale followed Kapteyn's dominant performance with a critical come-from-behind victory over host Embry-Riddle in the nightcap. The Eagles, always a solid Florida program, jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, taking advantage of two Chargers defensive errors to pull ahead.
From there, however, Hillsdale sophomore Joni Russell shut down the Embry-Riddle bats in a commanding performance, holding the Eagles scoreless over the next six innings while striking out six and walking one. Russell conceded just five hits in the game and none of the three runs she gave up were earned.
Russell's strong performance gave Hillsdale time to get back in the game. The Chargers loaded the bases in the top of the third and got a run back when McKenna Eichholz hit into a fielder's choice to score leadoff batter Emma Sather from third.
Still trailing 3-1 with two outs in the top of the sixth inning, the Chargers broke through. With the bases loaded, Holtman delivered her second clutch hit of the day, singling to second base to score Chellman, then Hillsdale took advantage of an Embry-Riddle error to get the game-tying and go-ahead runs across.
Now in the lead, Russell held off the Eagles over the final two half-innings of the game. Eichholz caught a runner stealing for the third out in the bottom of the sixth inning, and although Embry-Riddle got a runner on with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Russell induced the game-ending fly out to left field to secure the victory.
Hillsdale improves to 7-8 overall with the two victories, and picks up momentum heading into a huge test tomorrow, Sunday. The Chargers travel to Leesburg, Florida, where they'll face off with the top team in the Midwest Region and the eighth-ranked team in the nation, Indianapolis, at 11:30 p.m. Hillsdale finishes the day with a contest against a tough Wayne State team as well.