Photo courtesy Paul Snyder/Exponent Newspaper
Grass Lake High School pitcher Morgan Conrad won both games last weekend at the MHSAA Division 3 state final in East Lansing.
Photo by Jeff Steers
By Jeff Steers
Contributing writer
Longtime Grass Lake High School softball coach Roger Cook said he has had more talented teams.
But none as cohesive as the 2025 teams.
That cohesive unit won a pair of tough games last weekend giving the Warriors its first state title in softball.
Grass Lake defeated Algonac 4-2 in the Division 3 semifinal at Michigan State University last Friday.
The Warriors scored four times in the top of the seventh inning in the championship game against Clare for a 5-4 win and its first softball championship.
The Warriors (40-4) have averaged more than 35 wins over the past five seasons but have fallen in during MHSAA tournament games.
“There is a cohesiveness and calmness created by our three seniors this season,” Cook said prior to the Warriors’ win over Algonac. “Bree Salts, Nadene Hubbard, and Emily Brown are great teammates.”
All three played key parts for the Warriors in the win over Algonac in the semifinal matchup.
The Muskrats took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but Grass Lake took the lead for good on a two-run double by Hubbard.
Salts gave Grass Lake a 3-1 lead in the fourth inning on a single.
Grass Lake scored its final run of the game on an infield single by Brown – her third hit of the contest – a single by Leilah Smith, and an Algonac error.
Morgan Conrad was the answer for the Warriors on the mound. The junior struck out 11 batters and allowing only five hits in the contest.
“My curve and rise (ball) kept them (Algonac) off balance,” Conrad said after the win. “I knew my team would have my back (defensively).
“We have played so well together this season … everyone is so positive.”
Algonac finished the season with a 24-15-1 record.
Grass Lake High School picked a good time to have a big inning in the championship matchup against Clare.
The Warriors scored four times in the top of the seventh inning earning a 5-4 win over Clare in the MHSAA Division 3 state final Saturday.
Grass Lake erased a 2-1 deficit on one hit by Reese Lape and two errors by Clare.
Bree Salts had an RBI sacrifice fly in the inning for GLHS.
Conrad pitched her second consecutive complete game in two days with eight strikeouts in the championship game.
Smith finished with two RBIs in the contest for Grass Lake and Brown added two runs.
Clare stranded two runners on the bases in the bottom of the seventh inning after scoring a pair of runs.
Grass Lake finishes the 2025 season with a 40-4 overall record.
