GULF SHORES, Ala. - After winning the first two games played on Monday and Tuesday of the 2022 NAIA Softball Opening Round Tournament in Gulf Shores, Ala., the University of Mobile Softball team faced the Saints of Our Lady of the Lake University in the championship game on Wednesday, May 18 with a spot to the final site of the 2022 NAIA Softball National Championship on the line. Mobile defeated the Saints 5-3 in extra innings, scoring four unanswered runs to claim the victory at the Gulf Shores Sportsplex.
Prior to the start of the opening round tournament, OLLU entered the Gulf Shores bracket as the No. 3 seed, while Mobile was awarded the top seed in the NAIA. Due to double-elimination rules, the Rams needed just one win over OLLU on Wednesday to earn a trip to the 2022 NAIA Softball World Series. Meanwhile, OLLU needed to defeat Mobile twice, but suffered a crushing comeback defeat to the top-ranked Rams.
How It Happened
Despite hitting the scoreboard first in the top of the second inning with a two-out RBI single from Katie Head, the Saints of OLLU pushed across three runs in the bottom of the fourth, bidding for an upset victory and attempting to force a second game on Wednesday evening in Gulf Shores. However, the Rams answered with two equalizing runs in the sixth, one off the bat of Kristen Black who started the rally with a triple to the gap. Jaden Morace then laid down a perfect bunt that scored Black from third on the next play to tie things at three runs a piece. The game remained tied at three at the end of the seventh inning, forcing the game to extras.
In extra innings, the Rams rallied with two more runs in the top of the eighth to reclaim the lead, 5-3. Fifth-year senior Kaylee Pullin smoked a line drive to third base that went off the glove of OLLU's third baseman and rolled down the left field line. The play scored Katie Head and Jaden Morace, who both reached base to start the inning with back-to-back walks. OLLU pitching limited the damage in the eighth, turning a 1-2-3 double play and allowing just the two Mobile runs.
In the bottom of eighth, the Saints managed to load the bases with no outs, placing the tying run at second base and the winning run at first. Brinkley Goff relieved starting pitching Emily Butts in the inning and forced the first batter she faced to pop out for the first out of the inning. One batter later, Goff pitched into ground ball play which third baseman Chloe Buck fielded and threw to home for the force out. Buck made several gems of plays at the hot corner throughout the ballgame on Wednesday.
With the bases still loaded and two outs on the board, Goff struck out the final batter swinging to end the game and hand OLLU a heartbreaking defeat. The Rams charged the field and celebrated the 5-3 comeback win to earn Mobile the opening round championship trophy of the Gulf Shores bracket.
In the victory, Katie Head reached base all four times in the game, finishing 2-for-2 with two walks and a RBI. Designated player Caitlin McRee finished with a 3-for-5 batting line for Mobile, being the only Ram to record three or more hits. Kaylee Pullin's lone hit was a big one on Wednesday, tying the game back in the sixth with her two-run double. Pullin continues to lead Mobile on the season with 55 RBIs.
From the circle, Emily Butts pitched a gutsy performance, throwing seven innings of work and recording six scoreless frames. Butts allowed three runs in the bottom of the fourth for all the OLLU scoring, while striking out two batters. She was awarded the win to improve to 22-0 this year for the Rams as Brinkley Goff picked up her second save on the season after escaping the bases-loaded jam in the eighth and final inning.
2022 NAIA Softball World Series On Deck
The opening round championship victory means Mobile will be one of 10 teams in the NAIA to punch a ticket to Columbus, Ga. for the 2022 NAIA Softball World Series from May 27 - June 1. The Rams will enter the World Series with an NAIA-best 49-2 overall record and as the top seed, while in search for the program's second NAIA National Championship banner.
All games will be played at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga. The official schedule and participants are TBA later this week by the NAIA.
About the University of Mobile
The University of Mobile is a Christ-centered liberal arts and sciences institution with a vision of higher education for a higher purpose, founded to honor God by equipping students for their future professions through rigorous academic preparation and spiritual transformation. Core values are: Christ-Centered, Academically-Focused, Student-Devoted and Distinctively-Driven. The university offers on-campus and online bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in over 75 academic programs. Founded in 1961, the University of Mobile is affiliated with the Alabama Baptist State Convention and is located 10 miles north of Mobile, Alabama on a campus of over 880 acres.
For information about the University of Mobile, areas of study, admissions and more, visit umobile.edu, connect with UM on social media @univofmobile, or call Enrollment Services at 1.800.WIN.RAMS or 251.442.2222.
