Williamsburg, KY – The No. 4 Patriots Softball team punch their ticket to the 2024 NAIA World Series for the second consecutive year after taking down the College of Coastal Georgia in the Williamsburg Bracket. The one-seeded Pats bested the third-seeded Mariners in dominating offensive fashion, 7-1. The UC offense record seven runs on 10 hits, seeing a solo shot from Bailey Turnbow and a three-run blast from Amber Gainer. The Patriots bullpen recorded two strikeouts and held the Mariners to five hits and one run through seven innings.

PLAY-BY-PLAY
In the first inning, the Mariners threatened early with the first hit of the game but a clutch strikeout from Morgan Radford ended the threat and sent the Patriots to the plate. UC continued their offensive hot streak, sparked with an Amber Gainer walk before she swiped second. With two outs, an RBI single from Makenzie Keatts saw the Patriots hit the board first, 1-0. Keatts quickly stole second to place her in scoring position, seeing Amber Atkins rip an RBI single to right field to give UC a 2-0 advantage. In the top of the second, a three-up, three-down inning with Morgan Radford's inning ending strikeout retired the Mariners side. The bottom of the second featured a Kaysee Dale two out single to left field, followed by a Carly Oliver single to place runners on the corners but were unable to add to their lead.

The Mariners continued to be aggressive on offense, recording two hits, but left two on base as a groundout to Emily Bryant closed the top of the third. Jade Gainer led off the bottom of the third with a bunt for a single, seeing Keatts record a sacrifice bunt to place Jade Gainer in scoring position. An Atkins ground out advanced Jade Gainer to third but was ultimately left stranded. The fourth frame saw the Mariners reach safely on two fielder's choice plays, but a routine fly out to centerfield from Morgan Radford terminated the threat. Back on offense, the Pats looked to strike again but were unable to find a gap as they held on to their two-run lead after the fourth frame.

The top of the fifth saw the Mariners with offensive substitutions, but the Patriots' defense kept them quiet with a one, two, three inning. An electric fifth inning was sparked by Amber Gainer showcasing her speed with a bunt for a single before swiping second. With a runner in scoring position and two outs, Keatts rips her second RBI single of the day to add an insurance run for the Pats, 3-0. The top of the sixth saw the Mariners with a leadoff hit, but relief pitcher Lindsey Shope held the Mariners to one run off two hits, making the score 3-1. Looking for another insurance run, Turnbow quickly delivers with a leadoff solo shot to deep right centerfield to elevate UC to a 4-1 advantage. Quickly falling to two outs, Dale ignited a two out ally with a single to left field paired with an Oliver walk. With a pair of runners on base, Amber Gainer blasts a no doubter three-run shot to left centerfield to secure the Patriots final runs of the day, 7-1. An exciting top of the seventh was another one, two, three inning to punch the Patriots ticket back to the 2024 NAIA World Series with a final score of 7-1 against the Mariners!

LEADERS
Leading the way offensively, Amber Gainer was 2-3 at the plate with three RBIs and three runs while Keatts was 2-2 with two RBIs and one run. Dale went 2-3 at the plate with one run while Oliver, Jade Gainer, Atkins, and Turnbow each recorded a hit apiece.

Pitcher Morgan Radford was dubbed her ninth win of the season after tossing five innings, recording two strikeouts, and only allowing four hits. Pitcher Shope earned her fourth save after tossing two innings and only allowing one hit.

Cumberlands will travel to Columbus, GA to compete in the 2024 NAIA World Series starting Thursday, May 23 and running through Wednesday, May 29. Opponents and seeding will be determined at a later date.

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