ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University softball team has announced three days featuring an array of clinics over the next two months, open to eighth through 12th grade athletes. The first is scheduled for Sunday, August 31 with the others coming on Sunday, September 21and Sunday, September 28. The team announced the addition of a another day of camps on Sunday, October 19, following the same schedule as September 28.
Pitching clinics are still available on September 28 and October 19 during the morning session, running from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. The clinic carries a cost of $50 and is limited to 15 attendees.
Hitting clinics will be offered on all dates. On September 21 it will run from 9:30 a.m. until noon, while the rest of the dates will run from 12:30 p.m. until 3 p.m. The clinics carry a cost of $60 and are limited to 35 attendees.
Finally, a defensive clinic is scheduled for each day. On September 21 it will run from 1 p.m. until 3:30 p.m., while on the other dates it will begin at 3 p.m. The clinics also carry a cost of $60 and are limited to 35 attendees.
Those interested in attending should register online. Any questions can be directed to head coach Donnie Danklefsen.
All three clinics offer the unique opportunity to learn the skills and techniques that have captured the Thunder two of the last three NCAA Division III National Championships, including this past spring's edition of the competition. The coaching staff, led by head coach Donnie Danklefsen, was named 2025 NFCA Division III Coaching Staff of the Year after the championship.
This season was Danklefsen's 21st at the helm, he is the only coach in Trine's NCAA Division III history. He ends this season with an overall record of 684-206 and a .769 winning percentage. The Thunder have reached the championship series three of the past four seasons and have reached the final site in six of the past 11 tournaments. This season was the seventh year that Danklefsen and his staff have been recognized as the regional coaching staff of the year and the second national edition of the award.
Statistically, Trine was one of the best offenses in the country. They were second in home runs (75), home runs per game (1.47), RBIs (378) and slugging percentage (.598). They were the top five in hits (480), RBIs per game (7.41), scoring (7.78) and total runs (397).
The Thunder pitching staff was the most precise in the country. They led the nation with an 8.00 strikeout to walk ratio and with 43 walks while finishing second with three hit batters. They were third best with 0.90 walks and hits per inning pitched (WHIP), sixth with 17 shutouts, 12th in hits per seven innings (5.34) and 26th with a 2.07 ERA.
Backing up it all was the defense which turned in the third best fielding percentage in the country at 0.978 while tying for seventh with just 28 errors during the season.
