Grand Rapids Reporter

The Ferris State University softball team has begun their postseason campaign with strong performance in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament. On Thursday, they secured an 8-1 victory against Roosevelt in their first tournament game at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Illinois.

The team jumped to an early lead, scoring three runs in the first inning and adding four more in the second. This victory places Ferris State in the tournament's winner's bracket. As a third-seed, they will face the second-seed Grand Valley State on Friday at 2:30 p.m. (ET).

During the game, Ferris State recorded six hits while holding Roosevelt to four. The Bulldogs initially established a 7-0 lead by the second inning. Both teams managed to add a single run in the fifth inning, concluding the scoring for the game.

Sophomore pitcher Cecilia Bell achieved her 10th win of the season, playing four innings without allowing any earned runs. Bell gave up two hits, recorded two strikeouts, and issued a walk. Catherine O'Donohue pitched briefly, giving up one run on two hits, while Ella Covill-Marter ended the game, pitching two and two-thirds innings without allowing runs or hits and earning one strikeout.

Ferris State's offensive was distributed among six players, each contributing a hit. Maddie Gkekas made the only extra-base hit with a triple, adding an RBI along with Alexis Kozlowski, Brooklyn Verbeek, and Emily Killion. Abby Meyer, Jadyn Joseph, and Ella McDonald also contributed hits. Meyer and Kozlowski each had a sacrifice, Joseph stole a base, and Kozlowski managed two steals during the game.

The winner between Ferris State and Grand Valley State on Friday will proceed to Saturday’s games while the loser will play in an elimination game later on Friday at 5 p.m. (ET).

Ferris State maintains its sixth-place ranking in the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Rankings and continues to aim for a national tournament spot.

Viewers can watch the GLIAC Tournament games via a pay-per-view service streamed by FloSports.