May 1, 2016
ASC TOURNAMENT: TYLER, Texas (5/1/16) - When the final out was caught in right field, the celebration was on as the East Texas Baptist University softball team captured the program’s eighth American Southwest Conference championship with a 2-0 win over #1 University of Texas-Tyler Patriots. This is the second ASC Championship in four years and they now automatically qualify for the NCAA Regional Tournament.
ETBU had four players named to the All-Tournament team including Alexis Padilla, who went 2-for-3, Jessica Bowden, and Lacey Lindsey, who went 2-for-3 including driving the only two runs on a single. For her performance of this game as well as the tournament, Kelly Jo McLendon was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament with seven shutout innings allowing five hits and four strikeouts while going 3-0 in the tournament.
After ETBU failed to score in the first inning, UTT had two runners on base and one out before McLendon retired the next two hitters on a fly out and strikeout in the bottom of the inning. ETBU's threat in the second was thrashed off by a double play but they would bounce back in the next inning. ETBU broke through in the third on a two-run double by Lindsey to make it 2-0.
McLendon would continue to be on cruise control in the third, fourth, and fifth innings at UTT couldn't score. In the sixth, the Patriots had two runners on base before a fly out to Lindsey Vasquez stopped the rally and kept the Patriots scoreless.
After a strikeout and line out to third to start the seventh inning, UTT would send the tying run up following a triple by Kaylee Prather. But Ravin Rodriguez would send a fly ball that Perez would catch for the final out giving ETBU the championship.
This is the fourth straight year that these two teams have played for the ASC Championship and also the second time that ETBU has knocked off UTT for the championship when they were #1 in the nation. In 2013, ETBU took the same route to the championship winning games 10-9 and 6-2.
ETBU will now wait to find out where they will be placed in the NCAA Regional Tournament to be played May 13-15.