EAST PEORIA – Hardin-Calhoun's Grace Baalman was close to perfect Saturday afternoon. She allowed only one run and scattered three hits and led her team to the first IHSA Class 1A state softball championship in school history.
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Baalman gave up her first run in her last 95 innings, but hit a pair of home runs herself and struck out 18 as Hardin-Calhoun defeated Somonauk 4-1 at East Peoria's EastSide Centre to claim the 2015 IHSA Class 1A Softball Championship. The Warriors finished the season with a 35-4 mark, while the Bobcats finished at 27-6.
The Warriors got out of the blocks quickly. Becca Oswald – the team's only senior – singled to start the game and, one out later, Baalman smacked a two-run homer to deep center field to give them a 2-0 lead.
The Bobcats halved the lead in their half of the second when Tayler Fall tripled to open the inning and, after Avery Sexton struck out, Baalman uncorked a wild pitch to bring Fall home and end her long shutout innings streak. Baalman, however, fanned Jensen Parks and Kylee Fall to end the inning.
In the Warrior fifth, an Oswald double brought home Abby Baalman to extend the lead to 3-1, and in the seventh, Grace Baalman crushed a pitch to deep left-center over the fence to give the Warriors a 4-1 lead. Grace Baalman ran into trouble in the bottom of the seventh as a single, walk and hit batsman loaded the bases, but she struck out the side to give Calhoun their first state softball championship and their first overall state crown since the football team won back-to-back Class 1A titles in 1992 and 1993.
