On a weekend when the current team will finish its season with a record-low win total, the softball program will celebrate one of its greatest teams.

CMU hosts Bowling Green and Toledo to close out the year. Friday’s doubleheader against Bowling Green will begin at 1 p.m., then a two-day series against Toledo begins at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Coach Margo Jonker said she is more concerned with winning in general than playing the spoiler role.

“I don’t care about the other teams, I just want to win,” Jonker said. “We have to show heart so we can go into next year with a mentally of knowing how to win.”

CMU is honoring the 1982 softball team, who had a 51-12 record and won a Mid-American Conference title.

All-American pitcher Linda Pagett-Young will have her No. 11 jersey retired.

BGSU and UT are tied with Buffalo (6-12 MAC) in the race for the eighth seed.

Toledo ended a nine-game losing streak with a 3-1 win against Akron on April 18. The Rockets’ tournament hopes were kept alive with wins against Kent State and Buffalo.

Senior Pitcher Ali Pettit will pitch for the last time this weekend.

“(I want to be known for) doing whatever it took to take care of the team and also that I gave my best effort every game,” she said.

Pettit garnered a number of individual accolades in her CMU career: tenth place in wins (41), fourth in strikeouts (354), eighth in complete games (54), seventh in innings pitched (534), fourth in appearances (118) and tied in fifth for saves (five).

Sophomore Amanda Patrick said she feels like a big piece of the team is going to be gone after this weekend.

“Losing our seniors is a big loss,” Patrick said. “They were like the parents of the team and we are going to miss them so much.”

Patrick said she wishes the team could have sent the seniors out with a better showing.

“They were the glue to our team and I feel bad that we didn’t go anything big for our seniors this season,” she said.

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E-mail the author: James Falls