Middle Tennessee State softball staves off elimination, advances to Tuscaloosa Regional final
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Middle Tennessee State softball staved off NCAA Tournament elimination with a 3-0 win over Central Arkansas on Saturday at Rhoads Stadium.
The Blue Raiders (41-19) will advance to face Alabama again, this time needing to beat the Crimson Tide twice to advance out of the Tuscaloosa Regional. The first game will be at 1 p.m. Sunday. Alabama beat the Blue Raiders 12-5 earlier on Saturday behind an eight-run inning.
The two wins in this year's NCAA Tournament are the first ever for the Blue Raiders in the program's third appearance. For coach Jeff Breeden coaching in the NCAA Tournament -never less reaching a regional final - is a dream come true.
"Long time ago before I took this job at middle, I would be watching this on TV wishing one day I could be doing what I'm doing. Now I am, in the setting that I think is the best in America," Breeden said. "...What else can I ask for? I got kids that play their butts off, and we get to play some of the best people in the country tomorrow and I can't ask for anything else."
The Blue Raiders scored their first run in the fourth inning before adding two more in the fifth, It was all they needed as Gretchen Mead shut out the Bears.
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Early pitchers duel
Middle Tennessee State turned to All-CUSA second-teamer Mead, while Central Arkansas threw Jordan Johnson, the ASUN Pitcher of the Year. The two pitchers matched zeros on the scoreboard for almost four innings. Mead allowed three hits while striking out two through four. Johnson had four strikeouts but three walks and a hit led to MTSU scoring the first run in the fourth.
MTSU used four pitchers in its first game Saturday, so Mead pitching all seven gives them more options for Sunday.
Offense takes advantage
It wasn't always pretty, but the Blue Raiders were able to take enough advantage of opportunities to score runs. The first came after a walk paired with an RBI single in the fourth inning. The next opportunity came in the fifth with a two-out rally with three straight hits that scored two runs.
The offense only managed four hits, but all four were vital in the three runs scored.
This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: MTSU softball advances to Tuscaloosa Regional final with win over UCA
