FREEPORT, ILL. - A strong pitching effort keyed the Madison College softball team to three victories and a second consecutive NJCAA Region IV Division II District B Tournament Championship. The top-seeded WolfPack, who are ranked #8 in the NJCAA Division II Poll, allowed six hits and one unearned run over 20 innings en route to a 4-1 over #4-seeded Triton College, and wins of 8-0 and 7-0 against #2 Prairie State College in the semifinals and championship. The region title is the second in program history and will result in a second straight appearance at the NJCAA Division II National Tournament in Clinton, Mississippi, from May 22-25.

Game #1: (1) Madison College 4, (4) Triton College 1 (7 innings)

Facing a familiar North Central Community College Conference opponent for the fourth time this spring, Madison College found their toughest test of the postseason against the Trojans. The WolfPack scored first when freshman Irene Tomasovic blooped a single over third that allowed Maegan Brookins to score from second in the first inning. Triton College (30-25) evened the score in the second when a lead-off walk issued by starter Maddie Fink was followed by an error to make it 1-1. However, the 'Pack regained the advantage an inning later when Brookins again crossed home, the result of a sacrifice fly by Paige Hintz. Madison College added a little cushion late with a pair of two-out, fifth-inning runs. Sophomore Dany Gumz smashed her team-leading eighth home run of the season with a solo blast to left. Tomasovic followed with a double, and two batters later, Montana Platts brought her home with a line drive single to left.

Fink, a native of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, threw a no-hitter over four innings, allowing an unearned run and issuing two walks. She struck out four batters to reach 14-2 on the season. Fellow first year arm Jordan Martin entered for the final three innings to pick up her second save of the season. She surrendered three hits and a walk, while also striking out four.

Madison College outhit the Trojans by a 9-3 margin, led by the trio of Brookins, Gumz, and Tomasovic. The two through four hitters in the WolfPack lineup each went 2 for 3, with Brookins scoring two runs and the other two each posting a run scored and one batted in.

The WolfPack finished 3-1 against Triton College in 2019 and are 22-11 in the all-time series. The two programs had never met in the postseason prior to this year.

Game #2: (1) Madison College 8, (2) Prairie State College 0 (6 innings)

Madison College squared off with the second-seeded Pioneers in the semifinal after Prairie State College defeated Carl Sandburg College 12-2 in their opener. The first meeting in three years between the two teams was completely dominated by Jordan Martin. The freshman pitcher allowed just one hit in the game - a lead-off double in the second - and issued one walk in completely shutting down the opposition. The native of Hortonville, Wisconsin, struck out four batters on her way to improving to 15-2 on the year.

Once again, the WolfPack struck first thanks to freshman Maegan Brookins. The speedy outfielder from Poynette, Wisconsin, drew a walk, stole second, advanced to third on a sac fly, and then scored on a wild pitch. The lead jumped to three runs in the third when another Brookins walk was followed by a Dany Gumz double. Gumz then scored on sacrifice fly to center by Irene Tomasovic. The 'Pack racked up three runs on four hits in the fourth, with Paige Cornelissen, Brookins, and Tomasovic each picking up a RBI. The game ended in the sixth when Paige Hintz drove a ball to right field that allowed Brookins and Gumz to both score, giving the WolfPack a run-rule walk-off and a third consecutive appearance in the Region IV title game.

Brookins finished 1 for 2 with two walks and one run batted in, while matching a career-best with four runs scored. Cornelissen, Tomasovic, and Platts each tallied a pair of hits, with Cornelissen scoring a run and driving in another, and Tomasovic racking up two RBI. Paige Hintz also had two runs batted in, while Dany Gumz scored twice.

Game #3: (1) Madison College 7, (2) Prairie State College 0 (7 innings)

Needing one more win to secure the program's second appearance in the national tournament, the WolfPack knew they would be facing a familiar foe, with the winner of Prairie State College and Triton College being the next challenge. The Pioneers won that elimination game, 8-7, setting up a rematch with Madison College, and as had been the case all weekend, it would be pitching that decided the outcome.

Starter Maddie Fink recorded seven strikeouts, scattered two hits, and issued one walk over the first four innings. In the fifth, she handed the ball over to Jordan Martin, who promptly struck out the first three batters she faced and eventually retired all nine opposing batters. (See video of final out and celebration in the story image above.) Fink earned the win to match Martin at 15-2 on the year, while Martin picked up five K's to move her season total to 136, eight shy of the program's single season record.

While the WolfPack pitching had the opposing bats stymied, Madison College slowly pulled away. Irene Tomasovic and Paige Hintz both drove in a run in the first to make it 2-0. An error in the second allowed the team's third run to cross, and in the third, NIcole Ferch doubled in Hintz and Hannah Grahl's sacrifice fly scored Morgan Dercola. Still leading by five in the sixth inning, the 'Pack plated two more with a Gumz sac fly and a Prairie State College (27-20) error.

Madison College is now 5-2 all-time against the Pioneers, while also improving their all-time record in the Region IV Tournament to 11-7 since moving to Division II in 2015.



Up Next: 

Madison College (41-10) will play in the 2019 NJCAA Divison II Softball Championships for the second consecutive season. In 2018, the WolfPack posted a 2-3 record and finished sixth in the nation. Team seeding, tournament matchups, and game information will all be released by the National Junior College Athletic Association following the upcoming weekend. Eight of the 16 spots have already been filled for the double-elimination tournament. 

2019 NJCAA Division II Softball Championship Information

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