WESTMINSTER, Md. – The first two games of the 2015 Centennial Conference (CC) softball tournament came and went fairly easily for host McDaniel. The Green Terror opened the tournament with an 8-0, no-hit run-rule victory over Muhlenberg and a pitcher that enter the day 7-0 lifetime against McDaniel. Day two saw another run-rule victory. This time by a 10-1 count over Gettysburg.
The Bullets (30-13) returned as the championship-game foe for their hosts to the south on Sunday. The Green Terror clawed ahead 1-0 before Gettysburg tied the game with two outs in the top of the seventh inning, eventually forcing extra innings in hopes of forcing the if necessary game.
McDaniel, conference champions last when it hosted the 2012 tournament, loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Stacie Maring (Woodbine, Md./South Carroll) came to the plate and sliced the first pitch she saw to right field. Lindsey Miller (Gettysburg, Pa./New Oxford) retreated to the third-base bag before sprinting towards the play. The throw sailed up the line but it wouldn't have mattered anyway. Miller had reached the plate standing, scoring the championship-clinching run.
The Green Terror (29-10), after plating 18 runs on 29 hits over the first two games of the tournament, mustered just six on Sunday but also drew four walks. With the championship, McDaniel earns the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament and will find out on Monday morning its draw for regional play next weekend.
With two outs in the bottom of the fifth, Roxana Aviles (Manassas, Va./Osbourne) drew a walk. On the next pitch, Maring sent a line drive to the wall in right field to score Aviles from first for a 1-0 lead.
An error allowed Megan Hisgen to reach to lead off the seventh inning.
After a strikeout, pinch-hitter Mykaela Twitchell drove a ball to the warning track in left field but Hisgen was held at third.
With two outs, Sam Misurell drew a walk to load the bases before Melissa Tighe also worked a walk to force in Hisgen with the tying run.
A groundball sent the game to the bottom of the seventh still tie.
Each team could muster only one baserunner each over the next four half-innings before Miller laced a ball back up the middle to lead off the home half of the ninth.
Taylor Fletcher (Linden, Va./Fauquier) was hit by a pitch before a shallow popup got Gettysburg its first out of the inning.
Aviles then worked a walk to load the bases before Maring sent the fly ball to mid-range right field with the game-winning sacrifice fly to give her both RBIs on the day.
Caroline Brehm (Hanover, Pa./New Oxford) struck out five to win her 23rd game of the year. The senior was named tournament MVP after pitching all 21 innings with 19 strikeouts and a 0.33 earned-run average. She allowed just nine hits, including tossing her fifth career no-hitter on Friday.