IRVING, Texas - The Tigers fought hard against the No. 3 nationally-ranked Texas Lutheran University Bulldogs but fell 5-1 in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship. TLU jumped out to an early 2-0 lead before Jordyn Williams (Clayton, Calif. / Clayton Valley) hit a two-out single to cut the early deficit in half. The Bulldogs then went on to score three unanswered runs and ultimately win 5-1. The Tigers finished the season with a record of 21-24. 

Sammie Whitman (Austin, Texas / Lake Travis), Abigail Miller (Winnetka, Calif. / El Camino Real), and Cat Patterson (West Columbia, Texas / Brazosport Christian) were named to the SCAC All-Tournament Team for their impressive performances. Whitman hit .555 in the tournament and collected five runs batted in. Miller also had a strong presence at the plate going 9-for-19 (.473) with one double and three runs batted in. Patterson posted a record of 2-2 with one save in five appearances in the circle over the tournament. The senior tossed 31 innings and posted an ERA of 1.58. 

The Rundown

Whitman led off the championship contest with a single but the Tigers were unable to score any runs from that. Patterson sat the Bulldogs down in order in the bottom half of the inning. In the top of the second, Marina Delaluna (Concord, Calif. / Concord) reached first after being hit by a pitch. Sydney Watson (San Antonio, Texas / San Antonio Christian) then singled to right field to put runners on first and second. With two outs, Jenna Kash (Flower Mound, Texas / Flower Mound) loaded the bases up with a single of her own but the Tigers were unable to produce a run and take the early lead. Patterson retired the next three batters in the bottom of the second. 

Brianna Pena (La Porte, Texas / La Porte) singled to lead off the third inning and moved over to second on a sacrifice bunt but was ultimately stranded on second to end the half-inning. TLU led off the bottom of the third with a single but that runner was thrown out on a fielder's choice a batter later. The Texas Lutheran runner then stole second and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. The Bulldogs then delivered with an RBI single to the shortstop to take a 1-0 lead. 

Texas Lutheran added another run in the bottom of the fourth to extend their lead to 2-0 with three innings of championship softball remaining. 

With two outs in the top frame of the fifth, Miller singled. Diamond Elizondo (San Antonio, Texas / Stevens) pinch ran for Miller and eventually scored on a two-out single from Williams to cut into the deficit and make the score 2-1. The Bulldogs scored two more runs in the fifth and one in the sixth to increase their lead to 5-1. The last six hitters for Trinity were retired to keep the final score 5-1 in favor of TLU. 

Season Outlook

The Tigers conclude their season at the SCAC Championship against the No. 3 nationally-ranked Texas Lutheran University Bulldogs. Trinity made the conference championship for the first time since the 2016 season. The Tigers started the year losing their first 12 games but found a way to come together and finish out the season with a record of 21-12. The Tigers also finished as the No. 3 seed in the conference with a SCAC record of 15-8.