Lexington, Ky. – The Transylvania softball team's 2021 campaign came to a close in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Championship game at Hall Field with a 5-1 loss to the Mount St. Joseph University Lions in the on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss, the Pioneers' record falls to 28-10, while the Lions improve to 30-8 following the game. The game was the Pioneers' fourth-straight appearance in the HCAC Tournament Championship.

After a strong performance in yesterday's loss to the Lions, Cece Wittry got the start in the circle for Transylvania on Saturday as the Pioneers aimed for an early afternoon win to force an if-necessary second championship game in the double-elimination format tournament. Wittry yielded five runs and struck out two batters over 2.1 innings of work as the Lions manifested an early lead to take charge.

Kameron Bowling turned in another stellar performance pitching in relief of Wittry. The senior scattered three hits and tallied three strikeouts over 3.2 scoreless innings of work.

Mount St. Joseph took the lead in the bottom of the second inning by combining four hits with two Transylvania errors to score three runs.

The Lions added two more runs on three singles in the bottom half of the third inning to take a commanding 5-0 lead over the Pioneers.

The Transylvania offense sparked to life in the top of the fourth when Wittry smacked a triple to centerfield. Later in the inning, Taylor Senter drove in Wittry with a hard-hit double to right field, cutting the Lions' lead to just four runs.

Despite the mini-rally by Transylvania, the Mount St. Joseph defense held firm, allowing just a single by Alyssa Nunn over the final three innings of play to secure the tournament crown for the Lions.

Wittry, Abby Frazier, and Annie Schuck were each named to the HCAC All-Tournament Team for their impressive performances over the weekend.

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