Final bracket
Watch the walk-off hit!
Listen to the game-winning call by ETBU's Mike Midkiff!
Postgame interviews: ETBU head coach Janae Shirley  /  MVP Lauryn McCurry
Photo Galleries: Day 1  /  Day 2  /  Day 3
Tournament stats
Postgame interviews from every game

LEWISVILLE, Texas – Freshman Kristina Cordova beat out a two-out, bases-loaded infield single in the bottom of the seventh to lift East Texas Baptist to a 4-3 win over Texas-Tyler and give the Lady Tigers’ their first American Southwest Conference softball championship in seven years at Toyota of Lewisville Railroad Park.

The conference tournament championship is the sixth overall for the Tigers (36-7), who earn the ASC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament in two weeks, most likely at UT Tyler Ballpark in Tyler. That will mark the official start of ETBU’s national title defense.

Cordova’s dive for first to barely edge UT Tyler second baseman Whitney Wyly capped a day of softball in which ETBU won three straight elimination games by outscoring opponents UT Tyler and Mississippi College by a combined 18-4 count. A 5-4 loss to UT Tyler (34-11) on Friday forced ETBU to have to win three games in one day, including a two-game sweep of the rival Patriots.

The Tigers forced a winner-take-all championship game by pounding the Patriots 8-0 in the second elimination game of the day. ETBU had ousted Mississippi College with a 6-1 win over the Choctaws in the first game Saturday.

In fitting Tiger fashion, ETBU’s game-winning rally in the seventh was unconventional. UT Tyler pitcher Katelynn Thomason (12-7) got two quick outs before walking Lauryn McCurry on a full-count pitch. McCurry was replaced on the bases by Caitlynn Gummelt, who moved to third on Meghan Fisher’s single up the middle.

Alyssa Romero was then walked on four pitches to bring up Cordova, who hit a 2-1 pitch just past a diving Taylor Freudenberg at first base. Wyly, the Patriots’ second baseman, scooped up the ball in the hole and tried to beat Cordova to the bag but the Tigers’ redshirt freshman dove and was safe, allowing Gummelt to score the title-winning run.

Ashton Brey (5-1) came in and got the win in relief of Shelby Parker, who tossed 11 1/3 innings against the Patriots Saturday before running out of gas with a 3-3 tie in the sixth. Brey then stranded a runner at third to end the sixth, and pitched out of a jam in the seventh when UT Tyler’s Brittani Hanna reached third with one out but didn’t score.

Kristin Wersterfer led ETBU’s 12-hit attack in the championship game with a 4 for 4 performance, with a run scored and an RBI.

McCurry, who was 5 for 10 with two doubles and five RBI in the three games Saturday, was named the ASC Tournament MVP. Brey, Parker and Fisher were also named to the All-Tournament team.

-Courtesy East Texas Baptist University Sports Information Department

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Lauryn McCurry, 1B, Jr., East Texas Baptist (Most Valuable Player)

Ashston Brey, OF, Jr., East Texas Baptist

Meghan Fisher, 3B, Sr., East Texas Baptist

Taylor Fruedenberg, 1B, Fr., Texas-Tyler

Brittanni Hanna, C, Sr., Texas-Tyler

Jennifer Jones, 2B, Sr., Mississippi College

Megann Lewis, RHP, Sr., Hardin-Simmons

Kim Mason, RHP, Jr., Mississippi College

Amy Meyer, SS, Jr., Hardin-Simmons

Shelby Parker, RHP, Fr., East Texas Baptist

Jessica Rattan, SS, Sr., Concordia Texas

Stacy Shepherd, RHP, Sr., Texas-Tyler

Erica White, RHP, Sr., Mary Hardin-Baylor