LEXINGTON, Kentucky - The Mount St. Joseph softball team defeated Franklin on Saturday in the loser's bracket finals to earn a spot in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship round, but they fell to Transylvania 7-2 to end the 2025 season.
GAME ONE | MSJ 4 - Franklin 1
The Lions sent freshman pitcher
Mollie Sharp to the circle to start the game, and she was outstanding earning her seventh win of the season. She pitch the front 4.1 innings allowing only three hits and one run while striking out three Grizzlies.
Clare Lopeman entered in the fifth inning, getting the final two outs of that inning and pitching the final two innings to earn her first save of the season. Lopeman allowed only two hits over 2.2 innings.
The Mount did all of their offensive damage in the bottom of the first inning, sending all nine batters to the plate and scoring four runs.
Macy Cornelius led off with a walk and quickly stole second base,
Emily McDonald followed with a single and a stolen base to give the Lions runners at second and third with no outs. An out later Kylie Hankenhoff drilled a two-run single in to right center to get the team on the board. With two outs in the inning,
Maddie Kennedy reach on a hit-by-pitch and Lauren Miller walked to load the bases.
Avery Wiltermood then finished the scoring with a two-run single into left field, scoring Kennedy and Hankenhoff.
That was all the offense the Lions needed as the pitching staff locked it down and secure the win and gave the Lions the right to play for an HCAC title.
GAME TWO | Transy 7 - MSJ 2
Transy opened the scoring in game two with two in the bottom of the first inning, the Lions answered back immediately with two of their own in the top of the second. Mack Lawson led off the inning with a single and was lifted for a pinch-runner. Kennedy then dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move Sylar Fletcher into scoring position. Fletcher would score the Mount's first run of the game on a Lauren Miller double to right. Alex Streeval was called on to run for Miller, and she would eventually score on a sacrifice fly off the bat of
Alayna Flynn.
The Lions threatened to score in the third and loaded the bases in the fourth but were unable to come up with the go-ahead hit. Transy thing scored four times in the bottom of the fourth off of a pair of Lions pitchers. The Pioneers would add one more in the bottom of the sixth to secure the 7-2 win.
ALL-Tournament Team
The Lions had a trio of players named to the All-Tournament team,
Shelby Rakosky,
Mollie Sharp and
Avery Wiltermood were named to the 2025 HCAC All-Tournament team for their performances over the weekend.
