Softball: Big plans at Holy Cross for Grant's Bengston

Already muscling softballs over outfield fences with regularity, Erin Bengston figures to get stronger, even if she likely won't get taller.

"I'm done growing," Grant's 5-foot-1 junior slugger said.

Bengston is not done growing as a softball player, and apparently College of the Holy Cross head coach Jen Lapicki recognizes that. Lapicki offered Bengston a scholarship last week, and the offer was accepted.

Holy Cross, which competes at the NCAA Division-I level in the Patriot League, is located in Worcester, Mass., and is one of the oldest colleges in the country.

"(The campus) is on top of a hill and the softball field, of course, is at the very bottom," said Bengston, who visited Holy Cross on Easter weekend. "When I was talking to the softball girls, they all said they dread the hill, but (laughing) you'll have crazy calves when you leave."

Bengston's hitting numbers this season for Grant? Crazy.

She's batting a staggering .606 (43 hits) with 13 homers, 8 doubles and 6 triples. She's knocked in 49 runs, scored 43 and walked eight times. Her .667 on-base and 1.485 slugging percentages add up to a crazy 2.152 OPS.

"Erin is absolutely electric as a softball player," Grant coach Chris Van Alstine said. "She holds nothing back when she swings, but the fact that she can control that much power the way she does is impressive."

Maybe a pitcher ought to throw Bengston a ball in the dirt or heave one to the backstop.

"They try (pitching around me)," Bengston said. "But if it's my pitch, I'll go ahead and take a whack."

Bengston was taking hacks at a softball camp in New Brunswick, N.J., in January when she caught the eye of Lapicki, who was one of many college coaches in attendance.

"We met when I was hitting," Bengston said. "She said she was so impressed because of my size how hard I hit the ball."

On her visit to Holy Cross, Bengston got the campus tour from current Crusaders and says she had that "special feeling" about the college. Outside of that hilly terrain students have to negotiate, she loved it all.

"The campus is absolutely beautiful," Bengston said. "It's very small and very old-time. There are not a lot of modern buildings. They're all brick and there's ivy everywhere, up and down the buildings."

But, oh, that hill.

"I guess I'll be in good shape," Bengston said with a laugh.

Bengston was Grant's starting catcher the last two years and earned all-conference honors each season. She's made the switch to third base this spring and has exploded offensively after batting .472 with 3 homers as a sophomore.

"She is a fantastic third baseman and really handled the transition from catcher to third in such a professional way because she knew it was the best move for the team," Van Alstine said. "One of the things I am most impressed with is how she is with her teammates. She loves this team and enjoys every second she is around the girls and the coaches. I couldn't have asked for a more complete player and overall person to be around every single day."

Bengston has never used her small frame as an excuse.

"I don't let that get me down," said Bengston, the youngest of three children of John and Cheryl. She credits her brother, Michael, and her dad for making her the athlete that she is today.

"In the summer, when I'm with my travel team, people assume I'm a 12-year-old. Then I just take a few swings, show them what I got."

Bengston committed to Holy Cross following Grant's home game last Friday. She immediately shared the news with her teammates on the field.

"After the phone call, they were all there to hug me," Bengston said. "We cried a little, and then the next day we went out together as a team and had a nice lunch to celebrate."

She'll have reason to celebrate again her senior year when she signs her letter of intent.

"Holy Cross is my school," Bengston said. "I'm proud to be a Crusader."