NORTHPORT, Ala. – Grit and determination highlighted the Stillman College softball team's run through the HBCU Athletic Conference Softball Championship. The Tigers had to win the first game to force a decisive championship and accomplished the task, 4-3. However, Stillman could not overcome a hot start in the final matchup by the Dillard University Lady Bleu Devils and fell 10-7, giving Dillard the tournament crown on Wednesday at River Run Park.
Game 1: Stillman 4, Dillard 3
Stillman jumped out immediately in the first inning.
Anna Sullivan opened the scoring with an RBI double to left-center, bringing home
Alex Erwin. Moments later,
Olivia Hobson followed with a two-run single to right field, plating Sullivan and
Avary Lumpkin to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead.
Dillard chipped away in the middle innings. Jessica Battiste doubled in a run in the fourth to cut the deficit to 3-1. In the sixth, Grace Hunter delivered a two-run double and advanced to third on an error, tying the game at 3-3.
Stillman answered in the bottom of the seventh. With the game tied, Lumpkin came through with a clutch RBI double to right-center, scoring
Lily Stone and giving the Tigers a 4-3 advantage.
Karli Crocker made that lead stand, tossing a complete game and allowing three runs on nine hits to secure the win.
Game 2: Dillard 10, Stillman 7
Dillard set the tone early, scoring twice in the first on a two-run home run from Ja'Lise Stewart. The visitors added three more in the second, highlighted by an RBI double from Sa'Vya Sutherland and a two-run single from Haley Weatherspoon to extend the lead to 5-0.
Stillman responded in the third inning. Lumpkin doubled to bring home
Alex Erwin, and
Katelyn Lankford followed with an RBI single to cut the deficit to 5-2.
Dillard answered quickly, pushing two runs across in the third on an RBI single and a sacrifice fly, then added two more in the fourth to build a 9-2 advantage.
Stillman mounted a strong comeback in the middle innings. Hobson delivered an RBI single in the fifth, and
Addison Nuspl followed with an RBI double in the sixth. Erwin then sparked the rally with a two-run home run to right-center, and Sullivan added another run on a groundout to trim the score to 9-7.
Dillard added an insurance run in the sixth on a bases-loaded walk to push the lead to 10-7.
Despite totaling 15 hits, Stillman could not complete the comeback as Dillard closed out the game in the final innings.
The Tigers now await an opportunity to continue the season with a hopeful at-large bid for the NAIA National Softball Tournament.
