BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Trine University is one win away from winning the 2025 NCAA Division III Softball Championship after defeating Virginia Wesleyan University 8-1 in the opening game of the best of three final series.
"The scoreboard doesn't reflect how close that game was," said Head Coach Donnie Danklefsen in his postgame press conference, "They did a great job of quieting a few of our big hitters, but we had great production from some of our unsung heroes. That's really what our lineup and team is all about."
Alexis Michon took the circle for the contest and struggled uncharacteristically during the first inning. The Marlins combined a pair of hits with a sacrifice fly to take the opening 1-0 lead. The bottom half of the same inning saw the top of the Thunder lineup go down in order.
Two more runners reached in the top of the second for Virginia Wesleyan, before the defense buckled down and ended the threat to send it to the bats again.
Tournament standout Macy Rocha finally got the offense going with a one-out single through the middle, followed by an Emma Lee hit to the shortstop that she beat out at first. After a groundout moved the runners to second and third, Danklefsen brought Kennedy Huckeby to the plate as a pinch batter. The junior came up big with a single through the middle of the field that brought in a pair of runs and gave the team the lead at 2-1.
Seemingly galvanized by the offense, Michon settled into a rhythm. Through her final five innings of work, she allowed just two more hits for a total of five on the day. No more runs scored for the opposition, and she recorded three strikeouts in the contest, setting her season total to 201.
"Usually after a team scores a run on me, I just say that's the only run they are gonna get, the only run I'm going to allow," explained Michon, "I'm not worried about allowing hits because I trust my defense. I definitely got more comfortable as the game went on."
The Thunder built on their lead in the fourth with Rocha coming up with her third homer in Bloomington, a two-run line drive over the right field fence.
"It's going up there and knowing its not just for me, but for my team as well," credited Rocha when asked about her success this week, "They are the reason we are here now. Having them at my back is amazing and its great being able to help this team."
That 4-1 lead lasted until the bottom of the sixth inning. Tyra Marcum led off that inning with a single before giving way to Maddie Cortez as a pinch runner. Cortez moved to second on a walk and third on a hit by pitch, before sprinting home on an Emma Beyer sacrifice fly to right field.
It looked like that might be the end of the scoring for the team, with April Sellers coming to the plate for her second at-bat. The senior missed her first chance of the game on the pinch hit by Huckeby and then struck out swinging in the fourth. But in the sixth, for the second time this week, she came up clutch with a towering home run to centerfield, adding three runs to the board and giving the team their final 8-1 victory.
"April has been an unbelievable teammate for four years and we decided to go with her this week for her defense," continued Danklefsen, "It's great to see someone who has never complained, never said a word and done everything you ask get a chance and make the absolute most of it."
Michon closed out the game in the seventh, securing her 25th win of the season. That total is significant in program history, representing a new record for wins by a pitcher in a single season.
"It means a lot," said Michon when asked about the historic win, "It's hard to think about tomorrow being my last day on the field with this team. I give all the credit to my coaches and the team for constantly having my back and making this possible."
The Thunder improve to 45-5 overall after the victory. To secure the national championship they will need one more win, which would tie the program record for wins in a season. Coach Danklefsen isn't counting on that win yet however, with Virginia Wesleyan still in the way.
"I know tomorrow is going to be an absolute dog fight. I think Coach Elliott is probably one of the best in the country at making a gameplan. We've put ourselves in a great spot, but I expect to have to battle hard for another win," said Danklefsen, "We are going to enjoy this win until midnight and then it's gone. We go back to work tomorrow taking it one pitch at a time."
The two teams are currently scheduled to meet for game two of the series at 11 a.m. CT / 12 p.m. ET tomorrow, Wednesday, June 4. Inclement weather is currently forecasted for the next 24 hours, so stay tuned to trinethunder.com for any schedule updates.
