Her name is Valor Vallimont.
Or at least that’s what the ESPN announcers called redshirt freshman catcher Lilly Vallimont after the Michigan softball team’s win over Kentucky on Saturday. With the season on the line, Vallimont put everything on the line and, in doing so, kept the Wolverines alive another day.
But the beginning of Vallimont’s stellar performance actually started out with something not so stellar: an injury, an impairing one at that.
Glove poised at the ready, Vallimont steadied herself as freshman right-hander Erin Hoehn unleashed a pitch. As the ball soared toward the Wildcats’ batter, she moved her bat ever so slightly, causing the ball to ricochet off the base of the bat straight into Vallimont’s exposed forearm. Shooting up in pain, Vallimont jogged to the dugout where she — and her rapidly growing contusion — were met by Michigan coach Bonnie Tholl.
As the welt swelled to roughly the size of the softball that hit her, Vallimont remained calm, allowing the Kentucky trainer to wrap the bruise.
Though exiting the game would’ve been a normal response to a debilitating injury, Vallimont soldiered on. Maybe it was adrenaline, maybe it was her competitive drive or maybe it was because Vallimont didn’t want to feel the way she did at the end of last season.
“From the moment we found out last year that our season ended and we weren’t going to be a part of the NCAA Tournament, the group recognized that we didn’t uphold the Michigan softball standard,” Michigan coach Bonnie Tholl said May 11. “I believe that mentally, our upperclassmen went to work right then. … Even though she didn’t play last year, she (Vallimont) had a front-row seat to how we fell short. And they wanted to make a difference and make this right.”
And so, in the most pivotal moment of the season, Vallimont stayed in the game.
“I’ve had my fair share of injuries, but I just love this team so much,” Vallimont told ESPN Saturday. “I’ll give my all to them — I don’t want to leave that field.”
With only one out in the second inning and a runner in scoring position, Kentucky threatened to strike first. Showing bunt, the ball bounced off the Wildcats’ bat toward the back wall. As it fell toward the ground, Vallimont saw a chance to record an out as she dove to the ground. Wincing as she landed on her freshly injured arm, Vallimont’s grimace soon turned into a smile as she successfully made the catch.
Despite her help in mitigating Kentucky’s early offensive threat, Vallimont’s biggest contribution was yet to come. But luckily for the Wolverines, they wouldn’t have to wait very long.
“I couldn’t grip the bat very well, so I was kind of choking up,” Vallimont told ESPN. “But I went for it, and it worked out.”
To say it worked out is an understatement. Batting with essentially only one firm hand on the bat, Vallimont still squared up at the plate, determined to give Michigan a fighting chance.
Staring down the pitcher, Vallimont wound up, flinching at the pain shooting up her arm. Gritting her teeth, Vallimont shouldered through, and on the very first pitch, she rocketed a two-run dinger down the left-field line to give the Wolverines their first runs of the game and much-needed momentum.
Energized by Vallimont’s homer, which served as two of Michigan’s four total runs that game, Tholl delivered the final blow to the Wildcats with a two-run dinger of her own in the following inning.
Vallimont fought through her own pain to ensure that her team didn’t feel the same agony as last year, and in doing so, became a catalyst for the Wolverines’ offensive attack.
And just like the welt on her forearm, Vallimont’s impact on the game was evident. And while her bruise will fade, Vallimont’s contributions to the game are lasting.
The post Lilly Vallimont overcomes injury against Kentucky to power Michigan to victory appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
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