Softball Perched On The Brink of a Fresh Season

Photo from MHCC Softball

Adam Elwell

The Advocate

MHCC’s longtime athletic dynasty is off to another hot start. The softball team is 13-1 so far this season, despite — or maybe because of — a majority-freshman roster. Only four players returned from last year’s team; the remaining 17 are freshmen. 

Softball assistant coach Taylor Gould gave credit where it was due. “Historically at Mount Hood, I think softball has always been one of the more dominant sports… A lot of recruitment went into the process. We had to fill vacancies from our 2024 team that won, so we needed impact players to come in right away as freshmen.” 

Impactful, indeed. Two MHCC players have already been voted NWAC Players of the Week. Freshman Sadie Guyette posted a monstrous .778 batting average over the first eight games, along with three home runs and 30 RBIs. Meanwhile, on defense, sophomore Gracie Huston is coming off a no-hitter in a 9-0 win against Yakima Valley. 

For any other team, it might be too early to think about the postseason. But for MHCC’s dynasty, the championship is always on the radar. Having come up just short last year — and now rebuilding the roster — hasn’t seemed to faze sophomore Keilani Crichton-Tunai. 

“I mean, it’s more of a mental game, if anything. So if you’re not in the right mental state, then you’re not going to really do good in the game,” Crichton-Tunai said. 

On the road to the championship, MHCC still has to square up with Lower Columbia, the other softball hegemon in the South Region, sitting at 9-2. Crichton-Tunai said she’s “most excited” for the matchup at LCC, calling it a “pretty big confrontation.” The two teams are scheduled to face off on April 3. 

In the meantime, the Saints are looking forward to their home opener this weekend, starting March 14 at noon. Freshman Maddie Brock echoed her teammates’ excitement. “Our bats have been really hot. We’re all hitting really well… Top to bottom, our whole lineup is really solid.”

FEATURED ATHLETE

MHCC’s Sadie Guyette was voted NWAC Player of the Week in February

• FEB. 22 NWAC ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

• .778 BATTING AVERAGE OVER eight GAMES

• 30 RBIS OVER eight GAMES 

• 3 home runs over eight games

• Can probably smell fear