Hutchinson CC Sports Information
OXFORD, Alabama – The Hutchinson Community College softball team's best season in program history came to an end in its third game of the NJCAA Division I Softball World Series at Choccolocco Park.
Just a couple of hours after No. 2 Indian River State dropped No. 15-seed Hutchinson into the losers' bracket of the 20-team double-elimination field on Tuesday, the Blue Dragons fell to another Florida team, No. 16 Lake Land College, 5-2, in an elimination game.
Making their first every appearance in the NJCAA World Series after winning the program's first regional championship since 1987, the Blue Dragon close their historic season with a 47-12 record, the most wins in program history.
The 2024 Blue Dragon sophomores won 92 games, the 2023 Jayhawk Conference championship – the program's first in 32 years – at the 2024 Region 6 championship. Head Coach Jaime Rose completes her 20th season with the Blue Dragons with 618 wins.
Falling quickly behind 2-0, the Blue Dragons immediately responded in the bottom of the first. After Bailey Backhaus' leadoff single and a walk to Olivia Sandoval, they both moved up on a wild pitch. Alexis Mastin's sacrifice fly to center scored Backhaus and an RBI groundout by Jaeleigh Darnell plated Sandoval with the tying run.
From that point, the Dragon offense was quiet as Lake Land pitchers Tinley Beecham and Bryanna French allowed just two Hutchison base runners to reach on an error in the third and a walk in the fifth. The Blue Dragons were held to a season-low one hit.
Lake Land took a 3-2 lead in the fourth with a Karah Moore RBI single. The Lakers scored two unearned runs as insurance in the top of the seventh to build three-run lead.
Freshman Morgan Tomlinson (16-3) started and worked the first 3 1-3 innings. She allowed seven hits and three runs with three strikeouts and three walks. Dakota Lake finished the game with 3 2-3 innings or work. She had three strikeouts and allowed three hits, two unearned runs and a walk.
POSTGAME NOTES:
+ Dakota Lake completes her freshman season with 216 strikeouts in 138 1-3 innings, second most in Blue Dragon single-season history.
+ The 2024 Blue Dragons break the team record for season batting average hitting .406 over 59 games.
+ Bailey Backhaus finished with 104 hits, the most in Blue Dragon single-season history.
+ With Backhaus's 104 hits, Olivia Sandoval's 96 hits and Jaeleigh Darnell's 88 hits, that trio behind the first team history with 80 or more hits in the same season.