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For Madi Bland, it was in every way an ideal start to the softball season.
Sunny, temps in the mid-70s for first pitch on Tuesday and a nice breeze blowing out to center. Her sister, Ally in the circle, spinning a perfect game with nine strikeouts.
And Madi, 22 months removed from her last high school softball game having torn her ACL playing basketball midway though her junior year, shined as well. Settling in at shortstop and at the plate, she went 4-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs and three runs scored in an 11-0, six-inning win at Bloomington North.
A simply perfect welcome back.
"It felt nice," Bland said. "I came into it just happy for the opportunity. I was just ready to play with my girls. I got a little bit of play in fall, but it was good to see the ball on the bat again and on the field."
Edgewood head coach Mike Hammett was a bit worried about how wound up she would be, maybe attempting to make up for a lost season in one game. She worked out those feelings in the scrimmage against Franklin.
"My experience in basketball, I felt that," Bland said. "Knowing that I had 8, 9, 10 other girls behind me I don't have to do it all myself. Softball is far from an individual sport. So just having that in mind, it puts in perspective in my mind when I go out in the field, go out to hit, I have girls there to pick me up."
Appropriately, Madi brought her sister home with the first run of the season in the first inning, sending a high fly ball that landed on the warning track in center and bounced over for a ground-rule double. Bland then stole third and came home on a sacrifice fly for a 2-0 lead.
"That was picture perfect," Bland said. "I just went into it looking for hits. I wasn't trying to do too much and that's the way it worked out."
Last year, Bland was still a big part of the dugout with Hammett entrusting her to call Ally's pitches. Bland's return to the field shifted that duty back to the coaching staff and it seemed to not bother Ally too much, striking out nine, allowing just one ball to leave the infield.
"I don't know, big shoes to fill, but maybe I was the problem all along," Madi joked. "She did an amazing job up there and we backed her up on the defensive end when balls were hit. Just an all around great game for us."
More: An inside look at Bloomington area softball teams this season
Bland's comeback trail started with her return to the basketball court this winter, wearing a brace and coming off the bench and as always, piling up points, rebounds, assists and steals.
But softball is her and Ally's first love. Madi has signed with the University of Indianapolis. She had a chance to play some fall ball, but there's nothing like joining her eight other senior classmates for one last go in an Edgewood uniform.
"I just love these girls so much," Bland said. "I just love the program. Softball has a good play in my heart and it makes me so happy just to get out here and be able to play with them and contribute to everything."
With Madi's return, these seniors are once again a complete group.
"Three played a lot as freshmen and the others filtered in their sophomores," Hammett said. "Then they were all in there playing. They've encouraged each other pretty well and shown great leadership and been good to the younger girls in helping them along.
"I appreciate all they've done and all the assistant coaches. We're doing our best to push them forward and be a good team."
Hammett was happy to see the offense come from up and down the lineup.
Ally Bland was 2-for-3 at the top of the order and Braylin Bentley was 2-for-3 with two RBIs at the bottom, with nine hits out of the other seven spots.
Bland's two-run blast in the second was part of a five-run inning for a 7-0 edge.
"Madi, in the scrimmage was a little overanxious," Hammett said. "But she relaxed into it a little bit here tonight, got that first nice hit and made good contact. She's a ballplayer.
"And Ally, what have we seen from her that last two years. She did a nice job. Eight of the spots had hits. You always wonder coming out, usually the pitching ahead of the hitting."
It's a tough ask for a rebuilding team to face one of the state's best pitchers (Bland is signed with Taylor). And it's also tough to ask a sophomore transfer pitcher Brylee Moore to face her old teammates in her first start.
But no matter how things turned out for Moore, she needed some offensive backing and Bland was not giving it up, needing just a bit over 70 pitches to get the job done.
More: 24 Bloomington area baseball players to watch in 2026
"We always start with Edgewood and it's a love-hate thing," North coach Kat Edmonds said. "I like to start with Edgewood because of the familiarity. Their staff is so kind and they have an incredible set of seniors that are just such a benefit to that program.
"Brylee, coming into her first game vs. her old team is tough. But her demeanor, you would not have thought she was nervous in any way. Our talk was more positive than the score."
Defensively, North had only one miscue, but it couldn't overshadow the work done in left by first-time sophomore starter Savannah Hammond and veteran senior Kaydence Silvers in center. Hammond in particular had two gems and nearly had another diving stop in shallow left, that was turned into an out at second when the runner at first had to hold up.
"I've seen Kaydence out there for a few years now, but she's moving into the center spot," Edmonds said. "Savannah's been one of our utility players, she's been in and out but I think she has locked down that left field already.
"Our defense just looks really good, we just have to get our bats going. And we will. I have a lot of confidence in these girls. I think it's a lot of nerves and Ally was a little intimidating tonight."
EDGEWOOD 11, BLOOMINGTON NORTH 0
Edgewood (1-0) 250 | 103 — 11 | 13 | 0
Bloomington North (0-1) 000 000 — 0 | 0 | 1
Ally Bland and Jayden Stephens. Brylee Moore and Jocelyn Parrish. W: Bland. L: Moore. 2B: Madi Bland (E), Stephens (E), Bentley (E). 3B: Lindzey Rains (E). HR: M.Bland (E).
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: A 'Picture perfect' start for Madi Bland, Edgewood softball vs. North
Continue reading...
Sunny, temps in the mid-70s for first pitch on Tuesday and a nice breeze blowing out to center. Her sister, Ally in the circle, spinning a perfect game with nine strikeouts.
And Madi, 22 months removed from her last high school softball game having torn her ACL playing basketball midway though her junior year, shined as well. Settling in at shortstop and at the plate, she went 4-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs and three runs scored in an 11-0, six-inning win at Bloomington North.
A simply perfect welcome back.
"It felt nice," Bland said. "I came into it just happy for the opportunity. I was just ready to play with my girls. I got a little bit of play in fall, but it was good to see the ball on the bat again and on the field."
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Edgewood head coach Mike Hammett was a bit worried about how wound up she would be, maybe attempting to make up for a lost season in one game. She worked out those feelings in the scrimmage against Franklin.
"My experience in basketball, I felt that," Bland said. "Knowing that I had 8, 9, 10 other girls behind me I don't have to do it all myself. Softball is far from an individual sport. So just having that in mind, it puts in perspective in my mind when I go out in the field, go out to hit, I have girls there to pick me up."
Appropriately, Madi brought her sister home with the first run of the season in the first inning, sending a high fly ball that landed on the warning track in center and bounced over for a ground-rule double. Bland then stole third and came home on a sacrifice fly for a 2-0 lead.
"That was picture perfect," Bland said. "I just went into it looking for hits. I wasn't trying to do too much and that's the way it worked out."
Last year, Bland was still a big part of the dugout with Hammett entrusting her to call Ally's pitches. Bland's return to the field shifted that duty back to the coaching staff and it seemed to not bother Ally too much, striking out nine, allowing just one ball to leave the infield.
"I don't know, big shoes to fill, but maybe I was the problem all along," Madi joked. "She did an amazing job up there and we backed her up on the defensive end when balls were hit. Just an all around great game for us."
More: An inside look at Bloomington area softball teams this season
Bland's comeback trail started with her return to the basketball court this winter, wearing a brace and coming off the bench and as always, piling up points, rebounds, assists and steals.
But softball is her and Ally's first love. Madi has signed with the University of Indianapolis. She had a chance to play some fall ball, but there's nothing like joining her eight other senior classmates for one last go in an Edgewood uniform.
"I just love these girls so much," Bland said. "I just love the program. Softball has a good play in my heart and it makes me so happy just to get out here and be able to play with them and contribute to everything."
With Madi's return, these seniors are once again a complete group.
"Three played a lot as freshmen and the others filtered in their sophomores," Hammett said. "Then they were all in there playing. They've encouraged each other pretty well and shown great leadership and been good to the younger girls in helping them along.
"I appreciate all they've done and all the assistant coaches. We're doing our best to push them forward and be a good team."
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Hot start for Edgewood bats
Hammett was happy to see the offense come from up and down the lineup.
Ally Bland was 2-for-3 at the top of the order and Braylin Bentley was 2-for-3 with two RBIs at the bottom, with nine hits out of the other seven spots.
Bland's two-run blast in the second was part of a five-run inning for a 7-0 edge.
"Madi, in the scrimmage was a little overanxious," Hammett said. "But she relaxed into it a little bit here tonight, got that first nice hit and made good contact. She's a ballplayer.
"And Ally, what have we seen from her that last two years. She did a nice job. Eight of the spots had hits. You always wonder coming out, usually the pitching ahead of the hitting."
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Positives for North moving forward
It's a tough ask for a rebuilding team to face one of the state's best pitchers (Bland is signed with Taylor). And it's also tough to ask a sophomore transfer pitcher Brylee Moore to face her old teammates in her first start.
But no matter how things turned out for Moore, she needed some offensive backing and Bland was not giving it up, needing just a bit over 70 pitches to get the job done.
More: 24 Bloomington area baseball players to watch in 2026
"We always start with Edgewood and it's a love-hate thing," North coach Kat Edmonds said. "I like to start with Edgewood because of the familiarity. Their staff is so kind and they have an incredible set of seniors that are just such a benefit to that program.
"Brylee, coming into her first game vs. her old team is tough. But her demeanor, you would not have thought she was nervous in any way. Our talk was more positive than the score."
Defensively, North had only one miscue, but it couldn't overshadow the work done in left by first-time sophomore starter Savannah Hammond and veteran senior Kaydence Silvers in center. Hammond in particular had two gems and nearly had another diving stop in shallow left, that was turned into an out at second when the runner at first had to hold up.
"I've seen Kaydence out there for a few years now, but she's moving into the center spot," Edmonds said. "Savannah's been one of our utility players, she's been in and out but I think she has locked down that left field already.
"Our defense just looks really good, we just have to get our bats going. And we will. I have a lot of confidence in these girls. I think it's a lot of nerves and Ally was a little intimidating tonight."
EDGEWOOD 11, BLOOMINGTON NORTH 0
Edgewood (1-0) 250 | 103 — 11 | 13 | 0
Bloomington North (0-1) 000 000 — 0 | 0 | 1
Ally Bland and Jayden Stephens. Brylee Moore and Jocelyn Parrish. W: Bland. L: Moore. 2B: Madi Bland (E), Stephens (E), Bentley (E). 3B: Lindzey Rains (E). HR: M.Bland (E).
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: A 'Picture perfect' start for Madi Bland, Edgewood softball vs. North
Continue reading...
