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Winners battle through adversity, even when it negatively impacts their mindset.
Walled Lake Northern pitcher Lyla Turmell is certainly a winner.
Twice during a 6-1 victory over Livonia Stevenson in an MHSAA Division 1 softball quarterfinal on Tuesday, June 9, the Toledo signee faced adversity.
And twice she responded, helping the Knights (37-3) reach the state semifinals for the first time in program history. After falling behind early and battling through an almost catastrophic at-bat in the fourth inning, Turmell helped send No. 7 Northern to a playoff matchup Thursday against Northville at Secchia Stadium on the campus of Michigan State. A berth in the D-1 final awaits the winner.
Stevenson senior catcher Katie Cramer struck first Tuesday. She opened the second inning with a solo home run to left field, nearly buzzing the head of Spartans athletic director Arnie Muscat as he arrived late to the game at Novi High School.
"Honestly, that kind of pushed me down a little bit, but I knew I missed my spot," said Turmell, who tossed a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts and no walks. "I just knew our upcoming at-bats could bring us back."
Except they almost didn't.
Cramer nearly got the best of Turmell again in the fourth.
Turmell popped up behind home plate, and Cramer was in perfect position to make the catch. Instead, the ball bounced out of her glove, giving Turmell another life.
She did, doubling to start a four-run rally that sealed the victory.
"I was so down after that, too," Turmell said. "But then I realized she dropped it, and my coach was telling me to keep my head up. I just knew what I had to do, making my adjustments and get things started for my team."
Her teammates did the rest.
Saginaw Valley State commit Makenna Kresbaugh tripled home Turmell in the next at-bat to tie it at 1. Shaela Brynes' groundout then gave Kresbaugh enough time to score the go-ahead run.
Madi White later singled to right field to score Anna Doyle and Ashton Genson.
Northern added two insurance runs in the sixth. Kendall Morris singled home Bailey Price, and Jenna Kallen lined a hit to right field to score Morris.
"We know how to stay composed, know how to work through the pressure," Kresbaugh said. "So we were really just focused on getting timely base hits. ... We didn't get upset or anything [after Cramer's home run]. We stayed composed. We played as a team, and we know we can come back."
The Knights also benefited from two Stevenson errors and a pair of misplayed balls in the outfield. Cramer's close-call on that dropped pop-up didn't help, either.
"One inning got us," said coach Kevin Hannigan, who led the Spartans to their first quarterfinal appearance in program history. "It started with a dropped pop-up that led into a double, and then it fell off a little bit from there. Normal plays we made all season long, maybe the moment got to us a little bit. We just bobbled the ball a couple of times and they were able to take advantage of our mistakes, and that's what happens in games like this."
The errors overshadowed an otherwise excellent pitching duel between Turmell and sophomore Allie Cramer, Katie's younger sister.
"She was dominating the game and had seven strikeouts in a row at one point," Hannigan said. "For whatever reason, we just couldn't make the right play at the right time in the right moments."
Allie struck out 10 with no walks. She allowed eight hits, but at least three came on balls that could've been turned into outs.
Turmell brought her A-game, too.
The home run was a mistake she didn't make again, nearly flawless the rest of the way.
BACK-TO-BACK REGIONAL CHAMPS: Key to WL Northern regional title is a machine
Coach Kristen Woodard knew Northern's bats would come around. They did, with Olivia Frellick collecting two hits and Aubrey Kresbaugh doubling to add to the Knights' highlights.
"[I just told them] that there was a lot of game left and just to work on making adjustments at the plate," Woodard said. "The girls did a good job in the fourth when we scored the four runs. The girls just needed to get a few runs under their belt and relax and execute, and they did that."
It's something the Knights hadn't been able to do in quarterfinal games over the past decade. This was their fourth Elite Eight appearance during that span and third in the past five seasons, including last year's loss to Lakes Valley Conference rival South Lyon, the eventual state runner-up.
This time, they finally broke through and earned a chance to play for a state championship this weekend.
All it took was capitalizing on their opportunities and not giving in to adversity.
"That's what you want to do," Woodard said. "You want to put the ball in play and make the other team have to field the ball, and that's what we did. We got a few bounces, and a little bit of luck went our way, but that's the name of the game."
Northville had to overcome some early adversity, too.
The No. 4 Mustangs (35-4-1) erased a two-run first-inning deficit by scoring four runs over the next two innings to beat Kensington Lakes Activities Association-West rival Howell, 4-2, to advance to the semifinals against Walled Lake Northern.
The Highlanders (23-16) grabbed a 2-0 lead when Zoey Overton launched a home run to center. Northville answered with three runs in the second inning. Avay Yaldou scored on an error, and Ohio State commit Kennedi Adams drove in Mia Petrovski and Alyssa Spencer with a line-drive single.
Abby Parrinello added a solo home run in the third inning. Jocelyn Burns led the Mustangs at the plate, going 3-for-4.
Aside from the home run, Wayne State signee Mary Gugala was dominant in the circle. She struck out nine, walked two and allowed four hits.
Howell's Allison Ulanowski struck out four, walked three and allowed eight hits.
A win over Northern on Thursday at MSU would send Northville to its first state finals appearance.
Farmington Hills Mercy will return to the semifinals for the first time since 2024. The Marlins will face Ogemaw Heights (27-7) on Thursday (5:30 p.m.) at MSU.
Mercy (20-17) used a three-run rally Tuesday in the sixth inning to beat Carleton Airport (25-6), 4-3, in a D-2 quarterfinal.
Vanessa Husband went 3-for-3 and led the comeback. The sophomore blasted a solo home run to knot the score at 1 in the fourth.
After Audrey McGain singled home Taylor Selimi to tie it at 3, Husband scored the winning run on an Avery Wright single.
In the circle, Anna McGavin struck out four, walked four and allowed three earned runs on five hits.
Airport's Julia Dyson struck out nine, walked none and allowed eight hits. Brooklyn Martin drove in two runs with two doubles.
The Marlins will try to reach the state finals for the third time in program history. They lost 10-0 to eventual state champion Hudsonville in the semis two seasons ago. Mercy's lone state title came against Macomb Dakota in 2016.
Brandon Folsom covers high school sports in metro Detroit for Hometown Life and the Detroit Free Press. Follow him on X at @folsomwrites.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: MHSAA softball playoffs: Walled Lake Northern makes program history
Continue reading...
Walled Lake Northern pitcher Lyla Turmell is certainly a winner.
Twice during a 6-1 victory over Livonia Stevenson in an MHSAA Division 1 softball quarterfinal on Tuesday, June 9, the Toledo signee faced adversity.
And twice she responded, helping the Knights (37-3) reach the state semifinals for the first time in program history. After falling behind early and battling through an almost catastrophic at-bat in the fourth inning, Turmell helped send No. 7 Northern to a playoff matchup Thursday against Northville at Secchia Stadium on the campus of Michigan State. A berth in the D-1 final awaits the winner.
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Stevenson senior catcher Katie Cramer struck first Tuesday. She opened the second inning with a solo home run to left field, nearly buzzing the head of Spartans athletic director Arnie Muscat as he arrived late to the game at Novi High School.
"Honestly, that kind of pushed me down a little bit, but I knew I missed my spot," said Turmell, who tossed a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts and no walks. "I just knew our upcoming at-bats could bring us back."
You must be registered for see images attach
Except they almost didn't.
Cramer nearly got the best of Turmell again in the fourth.
Turmell popped up behind home plate, and Cramer was in perfect position to make the catch. Instead, the ball bounced out of her glove, giving Turmell another life.
She did, doubling to start a four-run rally that sealed the victory.
"I was so down after that, too," Turmell said. "But then I realized she dropped it, and my coach was telling me to keep my head up. I just knew what I had to do, making my adjustments and get things started for my team."
Her teammates did the rest.
You must be registered for see images attach
Saginaw Valley State commit Makenna Kresbaugh tripled home Turmell in the next at-bat to tie it at 1. Shaela Brynes' groundout then gave Kresbaugh enough time to score the go-ahead run.
Madi White later singled to right field to score Anna Doyle and Ashton Genson.
Northern added two insurance runs in the sixth. Kendall Morris singled home Bailey Price, and Jenna Kallen lined a hit to right field to score Morris.
"We know how to stay composed, know how to work through the pressure," Kresbaugh said. "So we were really just focused on getting timely base hits. ... We didn't get upset or anything [after Cramer's home run]. We stayed composed. We played as a team, and we know we can come back."
The Knights also benefited from two Stevenson errors and a pair of misplayed balls in the outfield. Cramer's close-call on that dropped pop-up didn't help, either.
"One inning got us," said coach Kevin Hannigan, who led the Spartans to their first quarterfinal appearance in program history. "It started with a dropped pop-up that led into a double, and then it fell off a little bit from there. Normal plays we made all season long, maybe the moment got to us a little bit. We just bobbled the ball a couple of times and they were able to take advantage of our mistakes, and that's what happens in games like this."
The errors overshadowed an otherwise excellent pitching duel between Turmell and sophomore Allie Cramer, Katie's younger sister.
"She was dominating the game and had seven strikeouts in a row at one point," Hannigan said. "For whatever reason, we just couldn't make the right play at the right time in the right moments."
You must be registered for see images attach
Allie struck out 10 with no walks. She allowed eight hits, but at least three came on balls that could've been turned into outs.
Turmell brought her A-game, too.
The home run was a mistake she didn't make again, nearly flawless the rest of the way.
BACK-TO-BACK REGIONAL CHAMPS: Key to WL Northern regional title is a machine
Coach Kristen Woodard knew Northern's bats would come around. They did, with Olivia Frellick collecting two hits and Aubrey Kresbaugh doubling to add to the Knights' highlights.
"[I just told them] that there was a lot of game left and just to work on making adjustments at the plate," Woodard said. "The girls did a good job in the fourth when we scored the four runs. The girls just needed to get a few runs under their belt and relax and execute, and they did that."
It's something the Knights hadn't been able to do in quarterfinal games over the past decade. This was their fourth Elite Eight appearance during that span and third in the past five seasons, including last year's loss to Lakes Valley Conference rival South Lyon, the eventual state runner-up.
This time, they finally broke through and earned a chance to play for a state championship this weekend.
All it took was capitalizing on their opportunities and not giving in to adversity.
"That's what you want to do," Woodard said. "You want to put the ball in play and make the other team have to field the ball, and that's what we did. We got a few bounces, and a little bit of luck went our way, but that's the name of the game."
Northville scores 4 unanswered to beat KLAA rival Howell
Northville had to overcome some early adversity, too.
The No. 4 Mustangs (35-4-1) erased a two-run first-inning deficit by scoring four runs over the next two innings to beat Kensington Lakes Activities Association-West rival Howell, 4-2, to advance to the semifinals against Walled Lake Northern.
The Highlanders (23-16) grabbed a 2-0 lead when Zoey Overton launched a home run to center. Northville answered with three runs in the second inning. Avay Yaldou scored on an error, and Ohio State commit Kennedi Adams drove in Mia Petrovski and Alyssa Spencer with a line-drive single.
Abby Parrinello added a solo home run in the third inning. Jocelyn Burns led the Mustangs at the plate, going 3-for-4.
Aside from the home run, Wayne State signee Mary Gugala was dominant in the circle. She struck out nine, walked two and allowed four hits.
Howell's Allison Ulanowski struck out four, walked three and allowed eight hits.
A win over Northern on Thursday at MSU would send Northville to its first state finals appearance.
Late rally clinches final four spot for Farmington Hills Mercy
Farmington Hills Mercy will return to the semifinals for the first time since 2024. The Marlins will face Ogemaw Heights (27-7) on Thursday (5:30 p.m.) at MSU.
Mercy (20-17) used a three-run rally Tuesday in the sixth inning to beat Carleton Airport (25-6), 4-3, in a D-2 quarterfinal.
You must be registered for see images attach
Vanessa Husband went 3-for-3 and led the comeback. The sophomore blasted a solo home run to knot the score at 1 in the fourth.
After Audrey McGain singled home Taylor Selimi to tie it at 3, Husband scored the winning run on an Avery Wright single.
In the circle, Anna McGavin struck out four, walked four and allowed three earned runs on five hits.
Airport's Julia Dyson struck out nine, walked none and allowed eight hits. Brooklyn Martin drove in two runs with two doubles.
The Marlins will try to reach the state finals for the third time in program history. They lost 10-0 to eventual state champion Hudsonville in the semis two seasons ago. Mercy's lone state title came against Macomb Dakota in 2016.
Brandon Folsom covers high school sports in metro Detroit for Hometown Life and the Detroit Free Press. Follow him on X at @folsomwrites.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: MHSAA softball playoffs: Walled Lake Northern makes program history
Continue reading...
