Greater Lansing's best: Before coaching success, Everett's Carol Hutchins starred at MSU

In conjunction with the United States celebrating its 250th birthday this year, USA Today Co. newspapers in Michigan have been looking at some of the top athletes to come out of each region in the state.

Over the last few weeks, the Lansing State Journal has unveiled some of the top athletes to come out of Greater Lansing. This story is among the last in our daily series taking a look at the top 10 male and female athletes from the region. These athletes are determined by more than just high school performance. Accomplishments in college and as a professional were also taken into consideration when determining the area's best.

The athletes are not ranked in order. Here is a look at our latest female athlete.

Carol Hutchins

Hutchins is known for her success at the University of Michigan where she ended her career as the winningest softball coach in NCAA history with 1,707 victories. But the Lansing native experienced success in athletics before that as a player.

After high school success where she was an All-City basketball player at Everett from 1973-75, Hutchins went on to be a two-sport athlete at Michigan State and was inducted into the school’s athletic hall of fame in 2001. She was part of the Spartans’ Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women national championship squad in 1976. Hutchins was MSU’s starting shortstop as a freshman in 1975 and wound up leading the Spartans in RBIs during their national championship season. She also was a contributor in basketball and was a captain in 1978-79.

Hutchin also was a member of the Lansing Laurels, a successful amateur softball team that placed as high as fifth at the ASA national tourney.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Greater Lansing's best: Before coaching success, Everett's Carol Hutchins starred at MSU

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