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VALDOSTA, Ga. – Starting pitcher Kelsey Sweatt turned in one of her best starts of the season on Wednesday, leading the University of West Florida to a 2-1 win over Rollins in the NCAA Tournament. West Florida will next face 1-seed Auburn Montgomery on Thursday at 1 pm ET at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park in Valdosta, Georgia.

The Argonauts improved to 31-14 with the win – the team's 15th NCAA Tournament win since 2017 – and Rollins dropped to 19-3. Sweatt is now 15-3 on the year, ranking second in the Gulf South Conference in wins, third in strikeouts (122), and fifth in opponent batting average (.202). 
 
The Argonauts got Sweatt some run support early on, with Teala Howard and Mika Garcia drawing walks to lead off the game. Ally Merrill hit a grounder through the left side to score Howard and put UWF ahead 1-0, and Courtney McLellan's grounder brought in Jacquelynne Poling just two batters later, after a throw to the plate was dropped by Rollins.
 
That 2-0 lead was plenty for Sweatt, who cruised through her seven innings of work. The Jacksonville, Florida, native allowed just two hits and a walk in the game, striking out six batters along the way.
 
Sweatt retired 11 batters in a row, from the end of the third inning into the sixth. The Tars' lone run came on a solo homer from second baseman Raiven Bryant in the seventh inning. Sweatt quickly struck out Lindsay Gehring for the final out just one batter later.
 
Sweatt also got a bit of defensive help in the second inning, when center fielder Kara Wilson charged in to make a catch in shallow right-center before doubling off the Rollins baserunner with a sharp throw to Merrill at first.
 
Over her last nine appearances, Sweatt has a 1.49 ERA that spans across 37.2 innings, with 46 strikeouts, a .165 opponent batting average, and a perfect 5-0 record.
 
UWF chased Rollins starter Ashley Worrell after just a third of an inning. The Argonauts scored two runs against Worrell, who entered the game with a 0.92 ERA over 83.1 innings this year.
 
First pitch for Thursday's game against Auburn Montgomery is slated for 1 pm ET in Valdosta.