It’s been said that there are no breathers in tournament play once you get out of the districts. Every opponent has been a winner earlier this season.
It’s especially true Saturday, when the Wayland varsity softball squad makes the long trip to Berrien Springs to join three other teams in the Division 2 regionals. All four teams sport impressive winning records; there are no Cinderellas.
Coach Cheri Ritz and the Lady Wildcats will take on Hamilton in the semifinal round at 10 a.m. The Hawkeyes have been reported to have posted a 33-6 overall record and they shared the O-K Blue Conference championship with Hudsonville Unity Christian.
Vicksburg and Edwardsburg will clash in the other semifinal at 12:30 p.m. Information about Vicksburg’s overall record is sketchy, with perhaps the best being that the Bulldogs are 20-2-1 and Wolverine Conference champions. They defeated Wayland 10-4 earlier this season at the Gull Lake Invitational.
Edwardsburg is listed as fashioning a 30-7 overall record. The Eddies’ greatest accomplishment has been a 5-1 upset victory in the district finals over defending state champion Stevensville Lakeshore, which claimed Wayland as one of its victims en route to the state title a year ago in an extra inning thriller.
Wayland enters the tournament with a 31-9 overall record and the O-K Gold and district championships under its belt. The district title was the 26th in Wayland’s storied history.
Whoever emerges from this tourney Saturday will play the following Wednesday in a quarterfinal match at Kalamazoo College.
