KINGSPORT, TENN. - CIU softball wrapped up its season in the fourth round of the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Tournament with a hard-fought 13-9 loss to top-seeded Reinhardt. Despite the setback, the Rams closed out a historic year with their best regular season record at 23-23 and their deepest run ever in the AAC Tournament.

Reinhardt 13 CIU 9: The Rams came out strong in the top of the first with RBI singles from Dallas Mayers and Lilli Petty, but Reinhardt quickly answered with three runs to take a 3-2 lead after one. The Eagles extended their advantage with nine more runs over the next two innings, building a 12-2 lead by the fourth. CIU battled back with a six-run fourth inning fueled by six hits, highlighted by a two-RBI triple from Megan Stolzenbach to cut the deficit to 12-8. Reinhardt added an insurance run in the bottom half, and while Petty's RBI double in the sixth scored Caydon Thompson to make it 13-9, a double play in the seventh ended the Rams' comeback hopes.

Box Score Highlights: 

• Stolzenbach, Mayers, and  Thompson led the team with three hits. 

• Macey Drye and Petty notched two hits, with Petty recording three RBI. 

• Abby Ragan closed the game with six strikeouts in 3.2 IP and no earned runs. 

What Head Coach Sara Allen is saying, "This team showed incredible passion from the very beginning when we first came together in the fall. They've wanted success together more than any other CIU softball team even though they had some big obstacles to overcome. Their drive to go beyond led to incredible historic success, including the 2 wins in our first time qualifying for the AAC tournament. I'm so grateful to our 4 seniors who led the way with historic seasons of their own and created a legacy that will be carried with their teammates into future seasons. They have done so much for this program on and off the field during their time here that has helped fuel our growth both culturally and competitively. It's beautiful that we have so many young players who were able to train with and learn from them. We are still a very young squad with several freshmen and sophomores who caught on fire this week and had big contributions to our wins. I know competing so fiercely in the tournament lit a desire in them to continue setting new standards of success for our program. It was a heck of a ride this year and a joy to be a part of every day!"