Calhoun's Grace Baalman drives for two of her points that helped get her to the 1,000-point plateau.Calhoun’s Grace Baalman accomplished what few others do as a sophomore against Illini West on Saturday, topping the 1,000-point margin.

Grace said it was a great feeling to top the 1,000-point plateau on a three-point shot midway through the second quarter. At 6-foot-2, Grace can still shoot from any place on the court either outside the three-point line or right under the basket.

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“I couldn’t ask for any better than how things have been so far this season,” she said. “I knew going in after achieving 500 points last year I had a chance to break 1,000 points this year."

Grace is quite an athlete, as an all-state softball pitcher and a standout volleyball player for the Lady Warriors. She said she definitely wants to play softball in college.

She enjoys softball the most of her sports, but she loves to play all sports. The Baalman name and athletics are one in the same in Calhoun.  Grace is the daughter of Matt and Cindy Baalman.

While such a competitive athlete on the court, off the court Grace has an artistic flair about herself and is a painter.

“I would like to go into something in the art field,” she said.

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Calhoun coach Aaron Baalman had nothing but praise for his sophomore sharpshooter.

“To score 1,000 points as a sophomore is a testament to her work ethic, “ he said. “Grace is just a monster on the inside and her teammates do a great job of finding her in the offense. This is a great group of girls that enjoy playing the game together. This team has really developed on both the defensive and offensive side.’’

Grace said she hopes her team can go much beyond what it did last year this season in post-season play.

Grace’s secret to success is simple, but this is her motto: “If you keep doing what you need to do, good things will happen.”

 

Calhoun 63, Illini West 52

Calhoun leading scorers

Grace Baalman, 30 points; Emma Baalman 14 points; Kassidy Klocke, 11 points.

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