Click the thumbnails to see photos and a few video highlights taken by Brad Landis at last week's Norse home games and Sophomore Night.
ALPENA---The Bay College Norse women's softball season officially ended on Sunday with 19-6 and 18-5 losses to the Alpena Community College Lumberjacks, which capped off a grueling six games in three days to finish up the MCCAA North Conference schedule.
The Norse also lost four games to first place Grand Rapids Community College on the trip, and finished their season with an 0-33 record.
In Sunday's first game, the Lumberjacks scored six runs in the third inning to build a 10-1 lead, and they cruised to the win in five innings. The Norse put the bat on the ball, though, with Joelle Jordan collecting a single and a solo homer run, and Rylee Gerow had two doubles and drove in three runs. The Norse couldn't keep up with Alpena, though, as they had 17 base hits and slugged four home runs off losing pitcher Nina Bower. Bower was charged with all 19 runs (13 earned). She walked five and struck out three.
In Sunday's second game, the Norse lost, 17-5, in a game that went the entire seven innings. Bay jumped off to a 3-0 lead in the first inning as Montana Fonder walked with the bases loaded, and then Bower got a base hit to bring home two runs. The Norse added a run in the second inning when Taylor Jackovich singled home Jordan, who had two more base hits.
Jackovich, meanwhile, escaped damaged in the circle in the first two innings. She held Alpena off the scoreboard despite giving up a single and a double in both innings. But Bower caught a line drive at shortstop to end the first inning, and then Gerow made the play at shortstop to strand two more runners in the second inning.
Jackovich also gave up a hit in the third inning, but was able to get out of the inning unscathed.
But in the fourth inning, Alpena scored six runs to take a 6-4 lead, and eventually added seven more runs in the top of the seventh inning (the Norse were the home team on the scoreboard).
Bay ended up with nine base hits, but the Lumberjacks pounded out 20 hitts. Jackovich was charged with all 18 runs (ten earned) and allowed all 20 of the hits.
On Friday and Saturday, Bay played the first place Grand Rapids Community College Raiders. The Norse lost, 15-0 and 13-3, on Friday. But on Saturday, the Norse played perhaps their best game of the season, falling to GRCC just 5-2. The Raiders scored three runs in the first inning, but Bower put up three straight goose eggs to keep the game close.
Then in the top of the sixth inning, the Norse rallied.
Bower drew a walk with one out, Hope Varoni was safe on a dropped third strike, and Jackovich came threw with a two-run double down the left field line.
It was the only base hit the Norse got off of Raiders pitcher Lillian Klopp, but it came at a good time, and it had Bay within 4-2 against a GRCC team that scored 39 runs in a single game earlier this season against Mid Michigan.
GRCC ended up getting another run to win, 5-2, and improve their record to 36-8 as they head into the playoffs. But the performance was a moral victory for the Norse, as they try to get to where the Raiders program is.
While the season ended with an 0-33 record, Norse Coach Tim McIntyre says he saw improvemnt in his team as the season went on, and he is already recruiting to bring girls to Escanaba for the 2026 season, which is just four months away.
