JACKSONVILLE, FLA. - CIU softball continued its strong postseason run Wednesday with a pair of victories, defeating No. 3-seeded University of Fort Lauderdale 2-0 before rolling past No. 2-seeded Paine College 7-0 to advance to the NCCAA South Region Championship for just the second time in program history. With the wins, the Rams improve to 38-18 on the season and will compete for the South Region title tomorrow.
Game One: CIU 2 Fort Lauderdale 0: In a tightly contested game, the Rams broke through in the fourth inning. Lilli Petty provided the spark, launching a solo home run to give CIU a 1-0 lead. CIU added an insurance run in the sixth. Hannah Murphy reached and moved into scoring position before Caydon Thompson delivered an RBI single to extend the advantage to 2-0. Fort Lauderdale threatened in the seventh, loading the bases with one out, but Ragan shut the door with back-to-back outs to secure the victory.
Petty led the offense with a 2-for-3 performance that included a home run and a double. Thompson added an RBI, while Murphy, Tristan Phillips, and Raleigh Stewart each recorded a hit. In the circle, Ragan was dominant, tossing a complete-game shutout. She allowed just five hits and one walk while striking out four.
Game Two: CIU 7 Paine 0: The Rams broke through in the second inning as Caydon Thompson got things started with a solo home run to put CIU in front. Later in the frame, Carmella Korte added an RBI single to extend the lead to 2-0.CIU maintained control behind a dominant performance in the circle from Stewart, who worked out of an early jam in the second inning. The Rams broke the game open in the sixth. CIU plated five runs in the frame, highlighted by a two-RBI double from Kami Meekins. Petty followed with an RBI single, and the Rams capitalized on a pair of Paine errors and wild pitches to stretch the lead to 7-0.
CIU finished with nine hits, and Korte led the way with two hits and an RBI. Thompson added a home run and an RBI, Meekins drove in two runs, and Petty also recorded an RBI. In the circle, Stewart was dominant, tossing a complete-game shutout while allowing just four hits and striking out eight with no walks.
Up Next: The Rams take on No. 4-seeded Baptist University of Florida in the NCCAA South Region Championship tomorrow, Thursday, May 7, at 1:00 P.M. CIU needs to defeat the Eagles twice in order to clinch the championship.
