CLERMONT, Fla. - It was a tale of two games as the Bluffton University softball team split a pair to open the 2026 season on Sunday, March 1. Bluffton hammered Johnson & Wales 17-2 in five innings before dropping a 4-3 decision to Chatman in game two.
Bluffton set the tone with five runs in the first inning of game one. Senior Julia Tegeder (Hamilton) plated junior Taryn Hampton (Fostoria/Hopewell Loudon) and sophomore Madison Brentlinger (Indian Lake) with a double to left center for a quick 2-0 lead just three batters into the game. A Grace Gronberg (Danville) single to left drove in Tegeder before freshman Brooklynn Bakle (Paulding) smoked a laser to left center for a two-run dinger in her first collegiate at bat!
The home team on the scoreboard scratched out two tallies in the bottom of the first, but Gronberg more than made up for that with a three-run bomb to center that picked up Brentlinger and Tegeder.
Tegeder, Grant and Gronberg all drove in runs during the third frame, making it 11-2 heading to the fourth inning.
The Beavers blew it open with five runs in the fourth. Tegeder and Grant laced run-scoring singles, setting the stage for Gronberg's second three-run dinger of the game! Junior Halee McDade (Oxford/Talawanda) made it 17-2 with a base hit to center that plated sophomore Leah Ramirez (Elida) who doubled to open the fifth.
Gronberg had a day for the Beavers, going 4-of-4 with two homers, a double and eight RBI. The two long balls equaled Bluffton's single-game record, while the eight RBI was just one shy of the school mark set by all-time great Bobbi Adams in 2021. Tegeder also had a career day, going 4-of-4 with a school record-tying four runs scored and four RBI. Hampton and Brentlinger both scored three runs, while Bakle and Kaylee Grant (Lima/Shawnee) drove in two runs apiece. Brentlinger drew three free passes which tied her for the most walks in Bluffton single-game history.
Showing she can do it in the circle as well as at the plate, Gronberg earned the win after allowing two runs on five hits in five innings of work. She struck out four and walked five.
Following three scoreless frames to open game two, Chatham broke the ice with a run in the fourth. Bluffton bounced back with five base hits in the bottom of the inning. Ramirez singled home Gronberg before McDade drove in Bakle with her base knock through the right side.
Three Beaver errors added up to a pair of unearned Chatham runs in the fifth. Freshman Klary McKay (Salem/Mahoning County Career Tech Center) crossed the dish in the home half, knotting the score at 3-3, but the visitors on the scoreboard answered back in the sixth and they made it stand up for a 4-3 victory over the Beavers.
Hampton, Grant, McDade and Tianna Galbraith (Wayne/Elmwood) all rapped two hits in game two.
Gronberg tossed another 4.1 innings but did factor in the decision. She allowed two runs, one earned, on five hits with six strikeouts and four walks. McKay took the loss, allowing two runs, one earned, on two hits in 2.1 innings of relief. The freshman struck out one and walked two.
The Beavers are right back into it on Monday, March 2, when they play Emmanuel (Boston) and Clark. Game one is slated for 10 a.m. at Hancock Park Field 1.
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