VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (vwuathletics.com) - The No. 2 Virginia Wesleyan softball team defeated the No. 10 Lions from The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) Sunday afternoon in exciting fashion to close out the 2021 NCAA Regional Tournament. Hanna Hull came in to the game in the bottom of the sixth and went to work earning a save en route to the Marlins 6-5 win over the Lions.
GAME RUNDOWN
- Jessica Goldyn got things going for the Marlins in the bottom of the first inning as she hit a solo shot over the center field wall giving VWU a 1-0 lead.
- The Lions knotted the score at one run apiece as the shortstop Kinnally scored on a throwing error.
- VWU added two more in the bottom of the second to break the tie and go up 3-1 as Haleigh Settle and Kayla Womack both scored.
- Both teams were kept silent in the third and fourth innings until the bottom of the fifth when VWU added three runs to their total. A Danielle Stewart single scored Madison Glaubke for the first run while a Karlee Fretz single to the shortstop scored Julia Sinnett and Brooke Anderson putting the Marlins up 6-1.
- The Lions added three runs to their total in the top of the sixth and a fifth run in the top of the seventh but the Marlins defense and relief pitcher Hanna Hull closed down TCNJ with a pair of strikeouts to win the game and advance to the NCAA National Tournament in Salem, VA.
KEY STATS
- Karlee Fretz came in clutch for the Marlins as she drove in two RBI on her one hit.
- Jessica Goldyn tallied one run, a solo home run, on two hits with an RBI and two walks.
- Emily Seale (W: 21-2) threw 5.2 innings giving up four runs on six hits while walking and striking out two.
- Hanna Hull came in to throw 1.1 innings giving up one run and struck out three to save the game for the Marlins and clinching the Atlantic Regional Championship Title.
COACHES COMMENTS
"We just like to make it interesting. They always pick on me because I say it's a game of 2s and 5s, you want to be up 2 or up 5, and fortunately we were up 5 there so it gave us a little wiggle room there. We've been talking for 2 or 3 weeks about the fighter's fire when you get tested and that's how gold is pure gold. We talked today about boulders and pushing through them and I think they took that literally. At the end of the day, you win games, survive, and advance, and doesn't matter how you did it. These guys figured out a way to get it done like they have all year, and we're going to Salem."
UP NEXT
The Marlins will travel to Salem, Virginia on Wednesday to begin their journey towards the National Championship title.
