The Bay County Sports Hall of Fame celebrated its 34th annual induction banquet Sunday, November 9 at the DoubleTree hotel in Bay City. Among the honorees were Delta College’s 1999 NJCAA Division III national championship winning softball team and coaching staff.
The championship roster included Tricia Campbell (Bay City), Mary Cintron (Bullock Creek), Lisa Erndt (Bay City), Rachal Ferchau (Saginaw), Janel Hemker (Shields), Kelly Jolin (Saginaw), Rosa Ramirez (Ithaca), Jill Ross (Sandusky), Julie Seebeck (Au Gres), Sarah Smith Holmes (Hemlock), Mary Sullivan (Saginaw), April Vega (Essexville), and Tammi Williams (Kingston). Among the coaching staff for the 1999 season were coaches Mike Wiltse, Shelly Weiss, Lisa Hillman and Kim Savich.
Coach Mike Wiltse took to the podium and opened his speech with, “Isn’t this amazing? 26 years later, we have every one of our players represented here today and their families. We started to build that team camaraderie from an early stage.” Wiltse went on to describe their practice routine that began at 6am for team practice and 8am for pitcher and catcher practice which consisted of a lot of stair climbing and running to help improve their skills by building strength and endurance. “My job as a coach was to set the bar high, inspire my athletes to reach this bar, encourage them and, most of all, guide them in the best possible manner.”
Wiltse also shared a heartfelt letter from Tricia Campbell, the team’s unofficial captain, who wrote, “Together we learned how to work really hard for what we want and we wanted to prove people wrong and show them we could win. We learned how to be people that others could count on. We were there for each other on and off the field in 1999 and we still show up for each other today.”
Delta College’s 1999 softball team were the underdogs of the season. As they entered the 1999 national championship tournament as an unranked team, no other teams saw them as a threat. They dug deep and showed the world what they were made of, closing out the tournament as NJCAA Division III national champions with a 35-15 record—the first and only national championship title in program history. Notably, the team’s pitcher, Sarah Smith Holmes of Hemlock set a World Series record that year with 34 strikeouts and went on to play at the Loyola University Chicago. We had the opportunity to connect with her about her experience.
Q: Coach Wiltse mentioned those early morning pitcher/catcher practices and stair
climbs. How did that extra work shape your performance and confidence during the season?
A: Those extra workouts were torture. At the time, I didn't see the benefits, but in
hindsight, the extra conditioning definitely contributed to our strength and endurance.
We only had two pitchers. If we lost one, we would have been in big trouble.
Q: When you faced Joliet in the championship game after losing to them earlier, what
was your mindset for that winner-take-all matchup?
A: Personally, I was defeated. I was shocked that the coaches decided to start me in
the second game—what turned out to be the championship game. When I warmed up for
that game, all the girls lined up on both sides of me and were screaming and yelling.
Those girls and four coaches reignited my confidence and pumped up the entire team.
I don't think we would have won if we didn't have that spark between the two games.
Q: What did it mean to you personally to help deliver the first and only national
championship in Delta College softball history?
A: At that time in my life, softball was everything. I didn't have much direction otherwise.
Winning that championship was an incredible accomplishment in 1999, but 25 years later,
it means so much more. The fact that all the players returned—one player has passed
away, but her family came from North Carolina—to celebrate our victory proved how
much we meant to each other as teammates in 1999 and now. That win helped me earn
the opportunity to play at Loyola University Chicago and get my bachelor's degree
and play softball and the Division I level. That championship changed my life and
paved my way to a successful career.
Q: What lessons from that season have stuck with you over the years?
A: The power of teamwork. No one on our '99 team cared about individual success or individual
accolades. Each player contributed in one way or another, whether it was a key hit
or homerun or a big defensive play or non-stop cheering. We had an incredible coaching
staff, including three former collegiate softball players. All the coaches brought
a unique skill set to the team and they believed in all of us. As I watch my children
compete now, I very rarely see teams that genuinely gel as a team. We had that and
it's not easy to achieve.
Q: What does it feel like to be honored in the Bay County Sports Hall of Fame after
all these years?
A: I cried my eyes out when I found out we were getting inducted. I still get emotional
thinking about it. As a female, becoming a career athlete back in the 90s was far-fetched.
Being inducted feels like the highest honor that can be achieved as a former athlete.
It is a surreal feeling to achieve that level of success.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to share?
A: I hope local athletes realize the athletic opportunities that Delta offers. The women's
soccer team just won back-to-back national championships. So few athletes are aware
of the programs available at the junior college level. Many four-year universities
recruit from the junior college level, and it's much easier to and cost effective
to start out at a community college and then transfer to a four-year school. Delta
College is such an asset to our community and gives everyone an opportunity to succeed,
on and off the field.
Congratulations to the 1999 Delta College women’s softball team and coaching staff on this well-deserved honor. And a special thank you to Sarah Smith Holmes for sharing her memories of a season that will never be forgotten.
To learn more about Delta College’s athletics programs, visit the Athletics website.
