May 30, 2023
For the third year in a row, Delaware Technical Community College's softball team competed in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II Softball World Series. Delaware Tech qualified after once again winning the NJCAA Region 19 and Northeast District championships.
"This is going to go down as a special group," Head Coach Guy Wilkins said. "They've accomplished so much and they are an amazing group of players. There were times this year that they just kept fighting and showed a lot of heart and that's what makes them special."
This year's tournament was held in Spartanburg, South Carolina May 23-27. Delaware Tech entered the tournament as the #13 seed and faced #4 seed Parkland Community College in the opening round.
"Despite being here before we still got anxious, but after the first couple of innings it was all fine," sophom*ore Kylie Kruger said. "All the teams could hit from top to bottom and their pitching was good. Every pitcher had speed and spin on the ball and most of the time you only see one or the other."
After suffering an 8-0 loss to Parkland, Delaware Tech fell into the loser's bracket and faced #12 seed Lansing Community College in a must-win elimination game. Delaware Tech fell behind 2-0, but a grand slam home run by sophom*ore Kaniah James in the bottom of the 4th inning was the highlight of an offensive explosion that gave the team a 5-2 lead heading into the 5th.
"I just went in looking to make contact," James said. "I went in with a plan of wanting to at least get a hit. I really wanted to do it for the team and keep the inning going. Nobody goes up wanting to hit a home run, my goal was to just hit the ball and give my team a chance."
Lansing ended up adding three more runs in the top of the 6th to take a one run lead. Delaware Tech tied the game at 6-6 in the bottom of the 6th but couldn't hold Lansing from scoring one final run in the 7th inning which ended Delaware Tech's run in the tournament.
"It felt like the rankings didn't matter," James said. "Teams one through 16 were very good and all of us were here for a reason. It was the Top 16 in the country and everyone played like that."
In the game against Lansing, James finished with two hits, four RBI, and a home run, Kruger had two hits with a double, sophom*ore Jada Courtney had two hits, and first-year sophom*ore Megan Sterling had a home run.
"I always dreamed of coming to this tournament and being able to do it with my best friends was pretty amazing," Sterling said. "Being able to play with them on that field was a once in a lifetime experience. It's hard to make it here once or twice let alone three times, and some of these girls proved they could do it three times. I'm honored to have been part of it this year and I think the group of returning girls can do it again next year."
The NJCAA World Series always features the best 16 Division II teams throughout the country, meaning Delaware Tech always experiences the highest quality pitching, batting, and fielding that most of the players have ever seen throughout the season.
"Anytime you make it to a tournament like this it's something to be excited about and proud of," Elliott said. "Coming down here with this group was really fun and the ones who have been here before helped settle us down and let us know what to expect.
"From a pitching standpoint we definitely saw really good hitters, so getting that experience and the mindset of going into those games will help us next year when we face the teams in our region."
While this year's team was heavily led by second- and third-year sophom*ore players, due to several receiving an additional year of eligibility from the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2024 team will only have five second-year players – Camryn Wingate, Kinley Elliott, Hannah Moore, Ally Marly, and Jax Hackett. Wingate started at shortstop in the second game and played a majority of the game, getting on base twice. Elliott came in as a relief pitcher in the first game and Moore served as a relief pitcher in the second game, while Marly came in as a pinch runner.
"I was definitely nervous, but I had teammates behind me that I trusted so I had to do my best and know they would do what they had to do," Moore said. "Knowing my teammates had my back it shows us what we can do next year. Our sophom*ores lifted us up and we can lift up the freshman next year."
Delaware Tech's 2023 season was both monumental and historical for a variety of reasons. The team won third straight region and district championships to qualify for the national tournament, something the program had never done before, and Wilkins won his 150th game as head coach. On the field, sophom*ore Macey Myers became the fastest player to reach 100 career hits and became the first player in program history to reach 100 career hits, 100 career RBI, and 25 career home runs. Kruger became the second-fastest player to reach 100 career hits, sophom*ore Logan Walls became the third-fastest player to reach 100 career hits, and sophom*ore Kandice Schlabach reached 100 career hits and hit the most career home runs (27) in program history. In the circle, sophom*ore Carly Collins earned her 25th career pitching win, only the third pitcher in the past 10 seasons to win that many games in a career.
"I feel really satisfied with my collegiate softball experience," Courtney said. "It feels really good to say I went to the World Series all three years and I'm very proud to say that I was part of this team the past three years.
"It's been a different type of excitement every year and it never got old."
