Story courtesy of TLU Sports Information
TYLER, Texas - Texas Lutheran's record-setting softball season came to a close Sunday in the 2016 NCAA Division III Softball Championship Tyler Regional final with a 7-2 loss to third-ranked University of Texas at Tyler.
TLU, ranked fifth in the latest NFCA national poll for NCAA Division III, finished as the regional runner-up for a second time in three seasons.
The Bulldogs concluded the year with a school-record 43 wins and a school-best winning percentage of .896 (43-5).
UT Tyler (42-4) advances to a DIII softball super-regional, which the Patriots will host next weekend in Tyler.
At UT Tyler's Suddenlink Field, the Patriots used a seven-run, second inning to pull away from the Bulldogs. Kaylee Prather doubled to left field to score two at the start of the big inning.
TLU fought back with a run in third, on a Jennifer Gallagher RBI single, and a run in the fourth, on a UT Tyler throwing error.
Kelsie Batten (30-3) went the distance for the Patriots. The senior right-hander allowed six singles and one earned run.
Veny Pizana (11-3) took the loss for the Bulldogs. Amanda Lochte tossed 3-2/3 innings in relief, allowed two hits and struck out two.
Taylor Grissom, the senior right-hander and three-time SCAC Pitcher of the Year, concluded her brilliant TLU career with a scoreless inning of work.
Three-time All-SCAC selection Grace Estes, the senior shortstop from Willis, went 2-for-3 in her final game as a Bulldog. Estes stole a base and scored a run.
Kaymee Gooden also scored a run and stole a base.
Lochte, Estes and left-fielder Kirsten Whiteside were named to the Tyler Regional All-Tournament Team.
The Bulldogs, winners of three consecutive Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships, played in their third straight Tyler Regional.
The 2016 TLU squad ends its year with numerous school marks, including team marks for: batting average (.384), slugging percentage (.544), on-base percentage (.449), stolen bases (164-for-178), doubles (104), home runs (25), and walks (149).
Sunday's contest was the final collegiate softball game for seven Bulldogs: Estes, Gallagher, Grissom, Pizana, first baseman Taylor Yancey, second baseman Megan Armistead and third baseman Heather Hummel.
The majority of this senior class was part of Wilson's first full year of recruiting at TLU. (Wilson just completed his fifth year at TLU.) The class combined for an overall record of 146-32 with a conference record of 89-4. The seniors won one American Southwest Conference West Division title, three SCAC Championships (regular-season and conference tournament titles) and played in three consecutive NCAA regionals.
