Lightning never strikes in the same place twice, or the so the old adage goes, although the 2013 rendition of Grand Valley State University softball has refused to let the adage stand without putting it to the test.
With the bases loaded, seniors Kayleigh Bertram and Katie Martin each belted grand slams in the same game.

“We had two grand slams in that game,” said GVSU head coach Doc Woods. “Katie Martin hit one and then Kayleigh Bertram – that really sets the tone in that second game (against Wayne State Saturday afternoon). One was in the first inning and one was in the second inning. They hit them well – the wind was blowing in and they got them out.”

Earlier in the season (Mar. 30), during a 16-run first inning game one outpour against Lake Erie, Bertram and Martin hit the first grand slams of their respective and distinguished careers. The game ended in a 23-0 mercy. Two weeks later, little had changed as the Lakers dispatched of the Wayne State Warriors 17-2. It was the seventh time this season GVSU has produced double digit run totals in a game and the third time the Lakers have surpassed the 15-run mark. Just as before, Bertram went first, contributing her second career grand slam in the first inning with a flash. Martin’s four-run shot followed in the second inning.

“I had the second one, Kayleigh had the first one,” Martin said. “That was pretty cool, especially because the last time we both of us hit a grand slam was in the same game, too. The funny part is that neither of us had ever had one (until this season). Two times in a row.”

Winning the first game of the doubleheader against Wayne State 7-2, GVSU departed from downtown Detroit with two more victories safely secured. Heading into Saginaw Valley State University to play on Sunday, for once this season GVSU seemed to get the better half of the weather coin. As snow flurries accumulated on GVSU turf, the Lakers played in the sun.

“We just came out really excited and we definitely wanted to take all four (games) this weekend, starting with Wayne State,” Martin said. “We just took it one game at a time and hit the ball – everyone was on. It’s great when every single person on the field is on.”

The Lakers grinded out the first of two games against SVSU 7-6. Freshman pitcher Sara Andrasik was called on to close the game out, which she did neatly, before rolling out a 2-0 shutout in game two.

“Well that was a great game, too (game one against SVSU),” Martin said. “Just battling – we’d score, they’d score, we’d score. We had the lead the whole game, which is always a good thing. We just gutted it out, had some good timing hits, got runners in when we needed to and had some homeruns, which was great.”

In the first at-bat of the second inning of the second game against SVSU, junior Miranda Cleary propelled a ball into the stratosphere to put GVSU on the board.

“That was the longest homerun I have ever seen in my life,” Martin said. “It was ridiculous – it went over a (set of) bleachers. That ball probably went 250-275 (yards), at least.”

Woods, who has had a front row seat to many a homerun during his 23-year tenure, couldn’t recall seeing a more powerful blast.

“Well today in that second game, the 2-0, Miranda Cleary hit one of the longest homeruns I’ve seen,” Woods said. “She hit it out of the park, over their soccer stands and then it landed in the middle of their soccer field. It was not cheap, it was really crushed.”

With games scheduled back at home Wednesday beginning at 3 p.m. against Lake Erie, the 27-3 (15-1 GLIAC) Lakers are anxious to continue their winning ways in the ten scheduled games left in the season.

The weather has been unpredictable this spring and will continue to be an unknown as the 2013 season proceeds. The GVSU results however have been steady, especially when their cumulative hitting, pitching and fielding talents have collided to create the perfect storm.

“It’s great to get four wins, especially on the road,” Martin said. “We haven’t been on the road in a while so it’s really exciting and just fun, you know? Just doing it.”
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