Click the audio button to hear Manager Justin Gustafson RRN interview.
KALAMAZOO---The Marquette Junior Little League softball team made history on Wednesday. The group of 13 and 14 year olds beat Edwardsburg, 15-7, to advance to the state's Final Four for the first time ever. Maddy Havel had three hits and drove in four runs as Marquette built an early 10-0 lead and coasted from there.
“For them to get to the Final Four, it's hard to explain,” Marquette Manager Justin Gustafson told RRN Sports Wednesday night. “It's hard to put into words. When we kind of took over (the softball program) four years ago, and we went to our first state tournament, it was like, what did we get ourselves into? But now, even the girls, this is like, I can't believe this is happening.”
Marquette will face a program in the semifinals that has won World Series championships: Croswell-Lexington. And if they win that, they will play either another World Series caliber program in Georgetown, or a newcomer in Grand Blanc that is filled with top travel ball players from the Flint area.
Gustafson, though, doesn't care. He's just happy to be experiencing this with the girls.
“The hard work pays off,” Gustafson said. “It's good for them to feel that. The sky's the limit right now. We keep putting the work in, keep playing hard, play as a family, you just never know what's going to happen. These girls, they just put their hearts and souls out on the field. It's awesome to see the work they're putting on in the winter.”
Havel was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle, and she wasn't alone. Lead-off batter Eva Nystrom had three singles, Clare Dewitt had a single and a double, and Makayla Gustafson made it stand up in the circle, throwing 4 2/3 innings and allowing one run on three hits and four walks.
On Tuesday, Marquette lost to Grand Blanc, 17-2, but beat Rogers City, 7-3. to make Wednesday's game meaningful.
“I'm so proud of the girls,” Gustafson said. “These girls deserve this. They've put in the work these last four years. It's fun to see it pay off.”
Marquette faces Croswell-Lexington at 11:30 this morning in one semifinal. The other semifinal sees Grand Blanc take on Georgetown at 9:00. You can watch the Marquette game on GameChanger at this link htttp://web.gc.com/teams/ngTJZIPFf3Iq/live
