Lansing Catholic vs. Fowler – – Hall of Fame Softball Classic Quarterfinal – – The Bleacher Denizen – – May 19, 2026 – – by Chuck Krafft

It is now time for the second game of the Softball Classic sponsored by the Greater Lansing Area Sports Hall of Fame. This game will feature the Cougars from Lansing Catholic competing with the Eagles from Fowler. I also covered tonight’s previous quarterfinal between DeWitt and Holt; you can read about that game here. https://thebleacherdenizen.com/2026/05/19/dewitt-vs-holt-hall-of-fame-softball-classic-quarterfinal-the-bleacher-denizen-may-19-2026-by-chuck-krafft/

Here are the starting lineups.

Fowler will be the home team and Lansing Catholic will bat first.

LANSING CATHOLIC

Austynn Arellano cf

Avery Dunneback 3b

Taylor Dunneback c

Zoey Gruber p

Alyssa LaConte ss

Katy Howard 1b

Sydney Convey dp

Ava Garcia lf

Leah LaConte 2b

Soryn Ellis will play right field, but will not bat.

FOWLER

Selena Stump p

Kerigan Pung c

Saige Miller ss

Addy Spicer 3b

Bristol Miller 2b

Molly Schlak lf

Payton Rademacher dp

Ayanna Canfield 1b

Rachel Wirth cf

Neelah O’Rourke will play right field, but will not bat.

The weather is misty and threatening rain, but we hope we can get the game in!!

Let’s take a look at the events of this game through the occasionally observant eyes of an Aging Bleacher Denizen who never had much of a career in softball. He was showing some promise as a pitcher, but his career collapsed when the softball powers that be rules he could no longer shoot his pitches out of a shoulder cannon. When the pitch velocity dropped, so, unfortunately, did the amount of time your Bleacher Denizen spent in the pitcher’s circle.

Austynn Arellano doubled to right field to lead off the top of the first inning for Lansing Catholic. Austynn Arellano took third base on a groundout to second base by Avery Dunneback. Taylor Dunneback was hit by a pitch. Zoey Gruber doubled to right field; Austynn Arellano and Taylor Dunneback both scored. Alyssa LaConte doubled to right field and Zoey Gruber scored.

Katy Howard walked. Fowler Pitcher Selena Stump retired the next two Cougar batters on a fly to second base and a strikeout to end the inning.

Lansing Catholic scored three runs in the top of the first inning to take a 3-0 lead.

Selena Stump walked to lead off the bottom of the first inning for Fowler. Kerigan Pung doubled to right field and Selena Stump advanced to third base; Selena Stump scored on a throwing error. Zoey Gruber struck out the next Eagle batter. Kerigan Pung took third base on a groundout to third base by Addy Spicer. Zoey Gruber retired the next Eagle hitter on a fly to left field to end the inning.

Fowler scored one run in the bottom of the first inning to trim the Lansing Catholic lead to 3-1.

Fowler Shortstop Saige Miller made a great throw to get Catholic’s leadoff batter in the second inning out. (The ball had tipped off the pitcher’s glove and she had to really fire the ball to get the batter out.) Austynn Arellano reached first base on an error and went to second base when Avery Dunneback walked. Austynn Arellano went to third base and Avery Dunneback to second base when Taylor Dunneback singled to center field.

Selena Stump struck out the next Cougar batter and got the third out on a grounder to second base to hold Lansing Catholic scoreless for the inning.

Zoey Gruber struck out the first two Fowler hitters in the bottom of the second inning. Ayana Canfield was hit by a pitch. Zoey Gruber struck out the next Eagle batter to end the inning.

Katy Howard singled to center field to lead off the top of the third inning for the Cougars. Sydney Convey lined a single to left field and Katy Howard advanced to second base. Leah LaConte lined a single to center field. Katy Howard took third base and Sydney Convey second. Katy Howard scored on a sacrifice fly to deep center field by Austynn Arellano. Catholic made its third out on a fielder’s choice grounder to third base.

Lansing Catholic scored one run in the top of the third inning to boost its lead to 4-1.

Selena Stump beat out an infield single to lead off the bottom of the third inning for Fowler. Zoey Gruber retired the next two Eagle batters on a popup to third base and a strikeout. Addy Spicer singled up the middle and Selena Stump moved to second base. Zoey Gruber struck out the next hitter to end the inning.

Selena Stump retired the first Cougar batter in the top of the fourth inning on a sharp line drive to the shortstop. Zoey Gruber doubled to center field and scored on a single to center field by Alyssa LaConte. Alyssa LaConte advanced to second base on a throw to the plate. Selena Stump retired the next two batters on a fly to right field and a fly to the shortstop to end the inning.

Lansing Catholic scored one run in the top of the fourth inning to push its lead to 5-1.

Molly Schlak beat out an infield single to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning for Fowler. Cougar Catcher Taylor Dunneback fired the ball to second base to retire the runner attempting to steal. Zoey Gruber struck out the next two Eagle batters to end the inning.

Selena Stump struck out Fowler’s leadoff batter in the top of the fifth inning. Leah LaConte drew a walk.

Neelah O’Rourke came in to pitch for Fowler. Selena Stump moved to right field.

Austynn Arellano singled to right field and Leah LaConte advanced to third base. Austynn Arellano took second base on a throw to third base. Despite a great diving effort by Rachel Wirth in center field, Avery Dunneback’s drive fell for a double. Leah LaConte scored and Austynn Arellano went to third base on a wild pitch. Neelah O’Rourke struck out the next Cougar batter and got the third out on a grounder to shortstop to end the inning.

Lansing Catholic scored two runs in the top of the fifth inning to extend its lead to 7-1.

Zoey Gruber struck out the first two Fowler hitters in the bottom of the fifth inning. Cougar First Baseman Katy Howard made an excellent running catch of a foul fly to record the third out.

Alyssa LaConte singled to left field to lead off the top of the sixth inning for Catholic. Katy Howard singled to left field and Alyssa LaConte advanced to third base. Brooklyn Gorski entered the game to pinch run for Katy Howard. Sydney Convey singled to center field to drive Alyssa LaConte home. Brooklyn Gorski advanced to second base.

Neelah O’Rourke struck out the next Cougar hitter. Brooklyn Gorski was out at third base and Leah LaConte safe at first base on a fielder’s choice grounder to the shortstop. Sydney Convey advanced to second base. Neelah O’Rourke got the final out of the inning on a bouncer to the pitcher.

Lansing Catholic scored one run in the top of the sixth inning to take an 8-1 lead.

Zoey Gruber retired the first two Eagle batters in the bottom of the sixth inning on a fly to left field and a fly to center field. Bristol Miller bounced a single to left field.

Avery Dunneback walked to lead off the top of the seventh inning for Catholic. She took second base on a wild pitch and third base on a passed ball. Avery Dunneback scored on an RBI groundout to the shortstop by Taylor Dunneback. Zoey Gruber belted a home run over the left field fence.

Alyssa LaConte singled to right field and went to second base when Katy Howard singled to left field. Alyssa LaConte went to third base and Katy Howard to second base on a wild pitch. Alyssa LaConte scored and Katy Howard advanced to third base on an RBI groundout by Sydney Convey. Fowler Third Baseman Addy Spicer made an excellent backhanded stop and threw to first base to get the third Cougar out.

Catholic scored three runs in the top of the seventh inning to boost its lead to 11-1.

Zoey Gruber retired the three Fowler batters in the bottom of the seventh inning on a popped up bunt to third base, a grounder to third base and a strikeout to end the game.

Lansing Catholic won 11-1 and will play DeWitt in Thursday’s semifinal.

Kerigan Pung had a double for Fowler. Selena Stump, Addy Spicer, Bristol Miller and Molly Schlak each had a single.

Selena Stump pitched 4 and one third innings for Fowler and and struck out three batters. Neelah O’Rourke pitched two and two thirds innings and struck out two batters.

Zoey Gruber had a home run, two doubles and three RBI for Lansing Catholic. She also pitched the complete game and struck out twelve batters. She was named player of the game.

Alyssa LaConte had a double, three singles and two RBI for Catholic. Katy Howard had three singles. Austynn Arellano had a double, a single and one RBI. Sydney Convey had two singles and two RBI. Avery Dunneback had a double and one RBI. Taylor Dunneback had a single and one RBI. Leah LaConte had one single.