In 2nd appearance, Leslie wins 1st Hall of Fame Softball Classic in school history

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - A year ago, the Leslie softball team was just fortunate to be invited to its first ever Greater Lansing Hall of Fame Softball Classic.

This year, Rich Bradford’s Blackhawks took that experience and ran with it, as his team steamrolled through this year’s invitational, outscoring their three opponents 20-4, capping it with a 7-1 win over DeWitt Friday night to take their first title in school history.

“It means a lot actually, but not really,” Bradford said when asked if he was surprised by his team’s tournament win. “If we play well, we can play with a lot of teams. We just came in hoping to play well and if we play well, we’ll take our chances.”

Leslie got to DeWitt standout pitcher Kyra Shadduck early, taking a first-inning lead after a lead-off Gabby Waldofsky triple eventually turned to a run after Jalen Fossitt’s sacrifice fly to center field.

Shadduck settled in on the hill and at the dish, where in the third inning she roped a base hit down the third-base line to level the game at one.

From there, the highly-anticipated pitching matchup delivered, as both Shadduck and Leslie standout Ada Bradford went inning-for-inning, racking up a handful of strikeouts, as both finished with eight on the night.

“I’ve been with her [Ada Bradford] group since they were like five or six, so it’s been a long process,” Rich Bradford said of his daughter. “It makes it really special to be in the dugout with her and work through the ups and downs of a softball season.”

The stalemate was broken in the top of the sixth, where freshman Adrianna Fogg stepped up with two outs and the go-ahead run standing on third base.

Fogg calmly took Shadduck’s pitch and singled it out to center, bringing in the go-ahead run.

Fogg also knocked in another run in a big seven-run seventh, before Bradford capped a complete game with one final strikeout to end things.

For her clutch and timely hitting, Fogg was named the Player of the Game.

“She’s done it a couple times this year, so it’s pretty impressive to watch her,” Bradford said. “She’s done a really good job batting in the order for me and coming up with key hits when we needed one.”

“I like to stay calm. I feel more content and don’t think about the pressure of things,” Fogg said of her clutch sixth and seventh inning. “You have to be confident when you’re hitting.”

With the win, Leslie, which is honorable mention ranked in Division 3 in the final Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association poll, became the second straight first-time winner of the tournament, following up what Fowlerville did a season ago.

Leslie will host a pre-district game on Saturday, June. 3 when Lansing Catholic comes to town.

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