Jensen is a junior and after two stellar seasons at Delta Community College, she took her talents to Illinois and signed with the University of St. Francis softball team. Her first season as a member of the Fighting Saints has been nothing short of amazing. Jensen signed with St. Francis a year after the team finished with a 31-17 record overall.

The addition of Jensen helped the Fighting Saints take a giant leap forward as St. Francis recently won its first ever Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) tournament with a 6-2 victory over the team who eliminated them a season ago, Olivet Nazarene.

Jensen has started 33 games for St. Francis and has been played a key role in the teams success on the mound and at the plate.

Jensen currently holds a .311 batting average (32 hits in 103 at-bats) to go along with 14 runs scored, seven walks, one home run, 10 doubles which is good for fourth on the team and ranks sixth on the team in RBI with 21 as the team’s designated player.

Courtesy Photo Kalen Tchorzynski awaits a pitch during a softball game. Tchorzynski put together a stellar freshman season which came to an end on Thursday as Delta Community College lost to Macomb in postseason play.

Jensen has also played an important role on the mound as she holds a 6-1 record with one save, 24 strikeouts and a 1.87 ERA across 48 2/3 innings of work. Jensen is one of just three pitchers to take the mound this season for St. Francis and has appeared in 11 games, while starting 10 of them.

“I have put in much practice time this season on increasing velocity on my fastball and movement on my pitches. I am playing the best competition that I have yet to in my career so it was vital I do that to best help my team when I’m in the circle,” Jensen said.

The Fighting Saints are currently 41-5 overall and finished with a 21-3 record in the CCAC. Their efforts thus far have helped St. Francis secure a spot in the 2017 NAIA National Softball Tournament.

“This is the most successful team I have ever been apart of and we are not done yet,” Jensen said.

The Fighting Saints head into the tournament are ranked ninth in the nation and will be the No. 1 seed for opening round of the tournament that begins Monday when St. Francis travels to Bowling Green, Kentucky where they will square off against Indiana Wesleyan (41-13) in what will be a four team double elimination style opening round.

“It’s nice to have such a well rounded team where we all have one goal in mind, which is to take the team as far as possible. Being a member of this team has taught me so much and I love that we all have the same winning mindset. It makes the game fun,” Jensen said.

Kalen, like Jensen, started her career at Delta and has put together a solid freshman campaign.

Kalen has played and started in all but one game for the Pioneers this season. Over those 43 starts, she has also been dominant on the mound and at the plate.

“I’m very happy I chose to play softball for Delta this year. This program has molded me into a stronger, smarter pitcher and has built up my bat tremendously,” Kalen said.

Kalen holds a .398 batting average (49 hits in 123 at-bats). Her 49 hits also rank fourth on the team. She has scored 23 runs to go along with 18 RBI, 13 walks, one stolen base and five doubles.

On the mound, Kalen has made 16 starts and holds a 10-4 record with 11 complete games, with 35 strikeouts over 70 innings. She leads the Pioneers staff in both wins and ERA with a 1.80.

“From workouts, conditioning and pitching practice every day, I’ve gained confidence and focus on the mound and have been able to keep my ERA low to put my team in a position to win,” Kalen said. “I’ve also grown as a batter by becoming more selective at the plate along with hitting for power and average.”

Kalen has been a big part of the Pioneers success this season as they currently hold a 28-16 overall record and qualified for the NJCAA Division II Softball Tournament. Delta lost its first game of the double elimination tournament 6-3 to MCCAA rival Macomb Community College on Wednesday, but bounced back to defeat Sinclair Community College 8-3 Thursday.

Delta lost to Macomb 10-1 (five innings) later on Thursday and finished the season with a 28-17 record.

Jonny Zawacki can be reached via email at jzawacki@thealpenanews.com or by phone at 358-5690.