Spartans See Season End Against St. Leo in NCAAs

SAINT LEO, Fla. – The University of Tampa Softball Program sees its season end as they fall to top-seeded Saint Leo in extras of game six of the South Regional 1.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

Records: #5 Tampa 36-14, #1 Saint Leo 47-3-1

Location: Mary Cannon Cabot Stadium | Saint Leo, Fla.

History: Today's matchup marked the 150th all time meeting between the Spartans and the Lions with the series deadlocked at 75 wins each.

Final: #5 Tampa 0, #1 Saint Leo 1

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Tampa entered the day today knowing they would need two wins to advance to the super regionals, but they would have to start with winning one. The sixth game of this regional saw a matchup of First Team All-South Region pitchers with Gwen McGinnis taking the ball for the Spartans. Despite both pitchers having dominant numbers over the course of the season, both teams were able to generate their fair share of base runners throughout the game. The biggest chance for the Spartans came in the third inning when Aubrey Zechmann got a two out base hit to put runners on the corners, but Tampa was unable to convert on this opportunity. McGinnis was every bit as dominant as the Lions were unable to get a runner safely to third base over the course of the regulation seven innings. There would be action on the base paths once again in the eighth as Jenna Neupaver led off the inning with a single and was duely bunted over to second to leave the go-ahead run in scoring position. However, Tampa was once again unable to take advantage of this opportunity. The Lions would comeback strong in the home half of the eighth as there would be runners on second and third with two outs. At this juncture, McGinnis would throw back-to-back walks to bring in the game's lone run. 

INSIDE THE STATS:  

• McGinnis - L (26-6): 7.2 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 7 SO, 2 BB 

• Neupaver - 3-4, 2B (5)

• Zechmann- 2-3

() - Season total