TOURNAMENT HOMEPAGE
 
PENSACOLA, Fla. – The No. 2-ranked University of West Florida softball team will play for a trip to the NCAA Championship on Friday afternoon, after a thrilling 6-3, comeback win over No. 4 Florida Tech in Thursday's Division II South Super Regional. The Argonauts used a four-run sixth inning to propel them to victory, marking their fourth consecutive win this postseason when tied or trailing in the sixth inning.
 
The action on Friday is scheduled for a 1 pm start at the UWF Softball Complex. West Florida needs just one win to advance to the NCAA Championship, and Florida Tech will need two wins to move on.
 
UWF scored the final five runs of the game to earn the win, despite trailing 2-0 after an inning as a result of a Vanessa Rubio home run in the first frame. Jacquelynne Poling scored the first West Florida run of the game, on a Courtney McLellan grounder in the second inning.
 
Grace Gilbert delivered three scoreless innings of relief to earn the win and improve to 23-4 for the season. She retired 9 of the 11 batters she faced in the game, allowing only one hit.
 
Trailing 3-1 in the fifth, Rhiannon Sassman delivered a single through the right side to score Teala Howard and cut the deficit to 3-2. That was the first of UWF's five unanswered runs in the last two offensive innings for the team.
 
Gilbert's biggest inning was the sixth, after Sassman's single. The sophomore went 1-2-3 against the top of Florida Tech's order to keep momentum on West Florida's side for the four-run sixth.
 
The scoring in the sixth began when McLellan hit a sharp liner toward first base that dropped and brought in pinch-runner Mallory Vining to even the score, and a high chopper to third from Rachel Wright scored the game-winning run when Sara Spears beat the throw home.
 
Gilbert scored on a wild pitch just a batter later, and Wright scored on Teala Howard's second hit of the day, stretching the lead to 6-3.
 
Gilbert and Thursday starter Kelsey Sweatt have combined for a 1.14 ERA over 67.2 postseason innings this year, and Gilbert is 6-0 with a 1.03 ERA and three complete games. She is also hitting .409 at the plate, ranking second on the team with 9 hits in postseason play.
 
The Argonauts got the win over FIT starter Melanie Murphy, a first team D2CCA All-South Region selection who had not been charged with a loss since March 9 – a time spanning 22 appearances. UWF drew four walks and added four hits against Murphy, who dropped to 25-6 and is expected to get the start in the circle again on Friday.
 
Howard extended her hitting streak to 15 games with a 2-for-3 day at the plate, and she stole two more bases. She has been successful in her last 23 steal attempts, and she is hitting .529 in the postseason. 
 
UWF will face Florida Tech at 1 pm on Friday for a chance to go the NCAA Championship in Denver, Colorado, next week. West Florida advances with a win, and Florida Tech would advance with two wins.