GMC softball wins conference, heads to national tournament

Published 1:47 pm Tuesday, May 9, 2017

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — The Georgia Military College softball team hosted and won the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association tournament April 27-29, earning a spot in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division 1 tournament in St. George, Utah.

GMC sophomore Jordan Crews was named tournament MVP, finishing 6-for-15 with a home run, a triple, a double and nine RBIs. Kylie Rediger, Danielle Downs and Taylor Krause were given All Tournament Team honors and Madason Messer put up a 2-1 record on the weekend from the rubber, including a shutout win in the championship game.

The Bulldogs entered the loser’s bracket with a 6-5 loss to East Georgia early on in the tournament, but battled back for a championship rematch April 29.  They came through with 9-2 and 7-0 victories over East Georgia to win the double-elimination tournament and the GCAA title for the second year in a row.

“Returning to the conference tournament and being able to host it here at home was huge for us,” said seventh-year head coach Ashley Bunn. “The fact that we got to play on our home field, but that we also got to play in front of our home fans.”

Bunn led her team to a 46-15 season, setting a school record for wins and making GMC the first GCAA school to play in the national tournament in back-to-back years since 2002. The Bulldogs recorded a .343 batting average on the season, putting up a 20-3 home record and finishing 19-9 in their conference.

After facing the top seed and being eliminated with two straight losses in the 2016 NJCAA tournament, Bunn says she has hopes for a better showing this year.

“This year we’re hoping to go in a little bit higher, so that way we can have a better seed,” Bunn said. “I’ve got eight sophomores that were there last year, so hopefully they remember what it’s like and they can kind of keep our freshmen intact so we don’t get overwhelmed in the scenery or the tournament itself, that we realize we’re out there to play ball first and foremost.”

Seeding for the tournament will likely be released by May 15 and games will be played May 17-20 in a double-elimination format.

Bunn said her team would continue a rigorous practice schedule in the days leading up to the tournament.

“We’re going to scrimmage a couple of times, play each other, try to see some live pitching, play some defense, just simulate games as much as possible to prepare to go out there,” Bunn said. “We’re not going to change much of what we’ve done to get us to this point. I mean, it’s worked for us so we’re just going to try to keep going, keep everyone motivated and focus on the goal at hand.”

Brackets, video streams and information on the tournament can be found at njcaa.org.