‘We play hard, we play for each other’: CMU softball ready to begin season
Central Michigan softball is coming into the 2024 season with fresh faces and unfinished business.
Last year, the Chippewas finished third in both the 2023 Mid-American Conference tournament and the MAC regular season standings.
“We finished at the same spot the last two years in the MAC tournament, and we’re hungry to get further, and we’re hungry for more, so I think that’s what’s feeding us,” head coach McCall Salmon said.
In the preseason coaches poll, CMU is slated to finish third in the regular season, behind Ohio and Miami (OH). Miami (OH) won both the tournament and regular season title last year.
“We’re really excited," senior pitcher Grace Lehto said. "We’re just looking forward to the season. We have a really good squad this year and just a really tight knit group and we’re just taking it one day at a time and doing all of our preparation and so we feel confident stepping on the field.”
Lehto has been a key component to the Chippewas' success during her time in the circle.
Last season, Lehto earned First Team All-MAC honors, as she threw 19 complete games with eight shutouts, including a no hitter against MAC opponent Bowling Green.
“I think we have a great leadership this year and that’s not just seniors, that’s seniors to freshmen. We have everybody stepping up, it doesn’t matter, it could differ from day to day,” Lehto said. “We have a lot of different pitchers, and we all add our own spark to it and we all shine, so I’m really excited to see how everybody works together.”
Both Salmon and Lehto said that this is the most depth they have seen on the roster in their time at Central Michigan.
“We’re deep on the mound, we’re deep behind the plate," Salmon said. "From an outfield and infield standpoint, we’ve got various people that we can shift in different spots and they can produce for us. The name of the game is going to be, you hit, you play.”
Salmon said one of the focuses this year is attacking at the plate.
“We need to produce offensively," Salmon said. "Last year we lost 16 games between one or two runs so getting to a point where that’s not the case anymore. You win half of those and we’re in a completely different spot than we were last year.”
A part of the story for the Chippewas this season will be the freshmen that have added talent to the roster.
“I think our returners bring experience, they bring a sense of calmness for the freshmen. I think our freshmen are extremely competitive,” Salmon said.
Senior Abbey Tolmie is another heavy hitter for CMU. Last year, Tolmie had the sixth best batting average in program history with .394 which helped earn her Second Team All-MAC honors.
“Our biggest goal always is to strive to get to the tournament, win the conference and then win the tournament as well,” Tolmie said. “But I think our goal is each day to attack practice and each game with the opportunity to get 1% better every day.”
Tolmie’s sister, Keira Tolmie, is one of the seven freshmen a part of the new class on Team 46 this year.
“I’m excited for them," Tolmie said about the freshman. "It’s so much fun to be on the road and to be able to play and let all of the hard work, preparation and practice show what we can do and execute when the moment comes."
One more senior ready to contribute on the field this year is Michaleigh Vallimont. Vallimont also earned Second Team All-MAC Honors as she recorded 29 RBIs and scored 35 runs.
“We play hard, we play for each other no matter what and... we’ll fight together,” Vallimont said.
Central Michigan will begin its season Friday, in Mobile Alabama in a three-day tournament at South Alabama with its first game against Eastern Kentucky University at 4 p.m.
“When you talk about depth, you talk about the internal competition we have within this team is constant every single day,” Salmon said.
