Here's an update on Bluffton University spring sports.

MEN'S GOLF
The Bluffton University men's golf team hit the road early Tuesday morning for midweek match at the Legacy Golf Club in Ottawa Lake, Mich., hosted by Lourdes University from Toledo. The Beavers finished their Tuesday, April 13, with a team score of 342.

Sophomore Clay Quellhorst (St. Marys/Memorial) led the way with an 81 which was tied for 33rd individually. Three shots back was senior Takoda Pratt (/Mansfield/Shelby) and three shots off Pratt's pace was Carter Mumbower (Newport, MI/Airport) who took advantage of his early wakeup call.

Junior Nick Offenburger (Lexington) and Justin Metsker (Burbank/Wickliffe) capped off the day for Bluffton with scores of 90 and 95, respectively.

The Beavers will jump back into action this weekend when they host the HCAC Preview on Saturday and Sunday. Hidden Creek will be the site of the 2021 Heartland Conference Men's Golf Championships.

WOMEN'S SOCCER
Bluffton University had two players earn All-Heartland Conference recognition for the 2020-21 season when the post-season honors were handed out on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. Maddie Huffman (Maineville/Little Miami) took home second team honors, while fellow senior Taylor Steinke (Findlay) was selected Honorable Mention All-HCAC. Huffman marked Bluffton's first Second Team All-HCAC honoree since Brittany Huff in 2017.

Leading the Beavers in scoring for the second straight year, Huffman found the back of the net twice this season. That comes on the heels of a junior campaign when Huffman paced Bluffton with six goals and 16 points. The two-time All-HCAC honoree finished her career with eight goals (three game winners) and four assists for 20 points. She played in 61 matches with 59 starts as a Beaver.

Steinke collected her first All-Heartland Conference award while she is downsizing from two sports to one for the next four weeks. She spent the month of March shuffling between the soccer pitch at Salzman Stadium and the Bluffton University Softball Field southwest of Alumni Field. Steinke finished her distinguished career with 35 starts and 60 matches played for Beaver Soccer. She drilled a game winner for soccer in 2018 and is currently pounding the softball at a .381 clip with a homer and 12 RBI.

MEN'S SOCCER
A pair of Bluffton University sophomores were honored when the Heartland Conference doled out its 2020-21 all-conference awards on Monday, April 12, 2021. Elijah Grieser (Wauseon/Pettisville) and Maxwell Kennedy (Strongsville) were selected Honorable Mention All-HCAC after a most unique season that spanned nearly eight months.

Grieser led the Beavers with four assists and eight total points. He finished the season with 20 shots, including seven on frame. The sophomore found the back of the net two times, once at MSJ on March 10 and again three days later in a 3-1 victory at Anderson when he scored one goal and had assists on the two other Bluffton tallies. He has 17 career points after scoring two goals as a freshman along with five assists in 2019.

Kennedy doubled his scoring output this season, scoring two goals after netting one during his freshman campaign. He put up Bluffton's lone goal in a home loss to Transylvania and then just less than three weeks later he put up one of Bluffton's season-high four goals in a waxing of Anderson in the HCAC Tournament.

The Beavers showed tremendous growth and improvement during Head Coach Robert Richardson's first season at the helm, battling a laundry list of injuries that kept key personnel off the field for, in many cases, all year. Coach Richardson and Assistant Coach Harry Kirwan helped guide the Beavers through Covid-19 and because of their steady hands and leadership, the Bluffton Men's Soccer Program is in a much better place than it was 10 months ago.

TRACK AND FIELD
On Saturday, April 10, 2021, the Bluffton University Track and Field Team traveled to Manchester University and competed in the rain. 

The throwers did especially well in the hammer throw last weekend. In the women's competition, freshman Maggie Hartzler (Rittman/Norwayne) placed 3rd with a throw of 39.14m, sophomore Emma Payne (Hicksville) was close behind with a throw of 38.61m and Amanda Scott (Millbury/Lake) with a throw of 36.38m.  Bluffton's ladies are currently listed 4,5,6, and 7th in the conference for the hammer throw.

In the men's hammer throw competition, sophomore Wyatt Walker (Farmland, Ind./Monroe Central Jr./Sr.) threw a 43.18 and Michael Lindhorst  (Lindsey/Woodmore) gave it his all with a toss of 41.86m.

"The throws had an increase meet this weekend!" said Head Coach and Program Director Kaylea Jachno. "Through heavy rain and lightning delays the group came away with nine PRs on the day. They came to compete and earned every mark. Standouts of the day were Maggie Hartzler with a hammer throw of 39.14 and sophomore (freshman season) Wyatt Walker with a hammer throw of 43.18. I am excited to see what they will do next!"

In the men's 110 meter Hurdles, freshman Desmond Gist (Detroit, Mich./Trenton) took top honors with a time of 15.47, making him number one in the conference. Gist also finished 2nd in the men's long jump competition (6.48m), putting him at number one in the conference in that event as well.

Distance Coach Brendon Moody said, "The distance/mid-distance crew were highlighted by personal-best performances from Miranda Billmann (Castalia/Margaretta) and Alex Montross (Perrysburg). Many other athletes continue to show improvement!"

Freshman Miranda Billmann had a PR in the women's 1500 meter race with a time of 5:19.63, raced another PR in the women's 800 meter race with a time of 2:36.98 and was a key contributor in the women's 4x400 meter Relay.

In the men's 1500 Meter race, freshman Alex Montross finished with a time of 4:19.48 with his teammate, Ethan Ly (Celina), at his heels finishing with a time of 4:19.54. Montross also competed in the men's 4x400 meter relay.

The Beavers put together another great meet and are continuing to train, leading up to the Heartland Conference competition at the end of April.

BASEBALL
The Bluffton University baseball team put it all together on a beautiful Monday, April 12, 2021. Bluffton swept a pair of mercy-rule contests with the Lions thanks to timely hitting and two outstanding pitching performances by seniors Garrett O'Reilly (Galena/Orange) and Tommy Siemer (Liberty Township/Lakota East). The Beavers improved to 9-15 overall and in the Heartland Conference. MSJ fell to 8-16 on both accounts.

After two and a half quick innings to open game one, Bluffton pushed two runs across the dish in the bottom of the third. A bases-loaded walk to Parker Reynolds (Avon) was followed by a wild pitch that sent Jacob Latkofsky (Temperance, MI/Ida) scurrying home for a 2-0 lead.

The floodgates opened an inning later when Bluffton put together five runs on the strength of five hits and two MSJ errors. Lenny Winiarski (Cincinnati/LaSalle) was in the middle of it with a two-run single and Jake Baumgartner's (Toledo/Start) base hit plated Reynolds for a 7-0 Beaver lead after four frames.

Four walks and a two-run double by sophomore Jack Towell (Batavia/West Clermont) set up Nathaniel DeWeese (Columbus/Hilliard Davidson) for some seventh-inning heroics as the sophomore pinch hitter laced a single to left that ended game one 10-0 in mercy-rule fashion!

O'Reilly tossed a gem on Monday, allowing just three hits in his complete-game shutout. He struck out five and walked three while improving to 2-3 on the season.

Towell went 3-of-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. Reynolds and Winiarski both chipped in with two RBI, while Latkofsky and Jaxon Rogan (Marysville) both scored three times in game one.

Siemer took the handoff in game two and ran with it, striking out nine Lions through the first three innings. His offense gave him all the runs he would need with a four-spot in the bottom of the first. Reynolds doubled home Latkofsky and Jeff Strayer (Columbus/Thomas Worthington) delivered Reynolds and Towell with his triple to right field. Luke Hanson (Somerset/Sheridan) made it 4-0 when his ringing double to left plated Strayer.

Rogan ripped a stand-up triple to open the second and he walked in thanks to a single from Reid Ruhl (Hamilton). The Lions scored their first run of the day in the top of the fourth, but Bluffton responded with four more tallies in the bottom half. The home team caught MSJ napping after a Luke McDonald (Findlay/Liberty-Benton) bunt single and three errors later, the Beavers were up 9-1 going to the fifth inning.

An RBI double from Ruhl in the fifth followed by a Lion tally in the sixth had the good guys up 10-2 midway through inning seven. With the bags full of Beavers, Towell lifted a ball that got caught in the jetstream, allowing Ruhl and Rogan to cross the dish and put MSJ out of its misery with the second mercy-rule finish in three hours!

Siemer was on fire, fanning 10 Lions in 5.2 innings of work while improving to 4-1 on the season! He allowed six hits and two walks before sophomore Jaden Jaques (New Palestine, IN) wrapped it up with four outs over the next five batters.

Ruhl went 3-of-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. Towell knocked in three and Rogan scored three runs for the second time on Monday. Strayer drove in two runs, while DeWeese crossed the dish twice.

Bluffton will be back at Memorial Field on Thursday, April 15, when the Beavers welcome rival Defiance College to Allen County for the second time in 13 days. The first pitch is slated to go off at 4:15 p.m.

SOFTBALL
The Bluffton University softball team was on the wrong end of a sweep at the hands of Case Reserve for the second straight weekend. The Spartans won 11-2 in five innings and then 13-10 in seven as Bluffton fell to 5-15 on the season, while Case improved to 18-6 overall.

The visitors went up 2-0 in the top of the first when senior Taylor Steinke (Findlay) doubled home Lily Tate (Mount Gilead/Northmor) and then she crossed the dish courtesy of a Case error with Taylor Shimp (St. Marys/Memorial) at the plate. The celebration was muted when the home team put up four in the bottom of the frame. Case added one in the second and six more in the third en route to the 11-2 mercy-rule victory in five innings.

Seniors Sydney Bowen (Convoy/Crestview) and Riley Langstaff (Findlay) finished with two hits apiece. Junior Grace Fillinger (Hinckley/Highland) fell to 1-6 after allowing 10 runs on 10 hits in just 2.1 innings of work. Senior Katie McCord (Lawrenceburg, Ind.) closed it out for Beavers, limiting Case to one run over the final 1.2 innings.

Case led 9-1 through three innings before the Bluffton offense got some traction in game two. Bowen's two-run double to left center in the fourth followed an RBI single by Tate as Bluffton pulled within three runs at 8-5. Bryn Cisco (Lancaster/Fairfield Union) scored on a wild pitch in the fifth, but Case added two runs in the home half and three more an inning later for a 13-6 lead heading to the seventh frame.

Bluffton went to work in the final inning, rapping four hits to go along with a pair of Spartan errors as the Beavers forced Case to bring their ace, Sidney Brannam, back in to close the door as Bluffton put a four-spot on the scoreboard. Freshman Katie Fleshman (Delaware/Rutherford B. Hayes) and Brianna Baker (Defiance/Ayersville) drove in runs as Bluffton kept battling. A Lexus Rutledge (Henderson, KY/Henderson County) single to center plated Fleshman and Emily Dyson (Payne/Wayne Trace), making it 13-10, but Brannan nailed down her second save of the season with a pair of punchouts to end the threat.

Sophomore Erin Norman (Pleasant Hill/Newton) slipped to 2-4 after giving up four runs on five hits in one inning of work. Tate and Felshman both finished with two hits for the visitors, while Bowen and Rutledge added two RBI apiece.

The Beavers will be back at Bluffton Field on Wednesday, April 14, when they welcome Mount St. Joseph for a pair of Heartland Conference clashes. The first contest is slated for 3:30 p.m.