ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The top-ranked Saint Leo University softball team closed out the regular season with a program-best 44 wins on Saturday afternoon. The Lions saw their historic win-streak snapped at 38 games with a 4-2 loss in game one at Eckerd. The offense got back to its explosive ways in the regular season finale exploding for 12 runs on 14 hits as they began a new win streak. Saint Leo ends the regular season with a program best 44-3-1 record, as well as setting new marks with a 29-1 Sunshine State Conference record. Eckerd's season ends with a 33-13 overall record and a 21-9 conference record.
In the first game,
Izzy LaRoche led the Lions at the plate, going 2-for-2 with a run scored, while
Marissa Martinez drove in both Saint Leo runs.
Haleigh Thomas started in the circle before Bella DiJulio entered in relief. A two-run shot by the home team in the bottom of the sixth proved to be the difference.
Saint Leo exploded offensively in game two, rolling past Eckerd 12-1 in six innings behind 14 hits and a complete-game effort from
Alex Wright.
Briana Neal powered the lineup with a two-hit, three-RBI performance as she extended her team lead to nine home run, while
Alexis Barber went a perfect 4-for-4 with three runs scored.
Abigail Hynes added three RBI,
Izzy LaRoche drove in two with a double, and Wright helped her own cause with two hits in the win. In the circle, Wright pitched her fifth complete game of the season, allowing just one run on seven hits while striking out five to improve to 11-0 on the season.
GAME 1: ECKERD 4, #1 SAINT LEO 2
- Eckerd struck first in the bottom of the first on an Abby Lucas sacrifice fly before Saint Leo answered in the second. LaRoche singled, Maddie Antioco walked and stole second, and Martinez brought LaRoche home on an RBI groundout to tie the game at 1-1.
- The Tritons moved back in front in the fourth with a sacrifice fly from Taylor, but the Lions responded again in the top half of the inning when pinch runner Sommer Spears scored on another Martinez RBI groundout to even the score at 2-2.
- Eckerd broke the tie in the sixth with a base hit and a two-run shot to left center, as the home team took a 4-2 lead. Saint Leo put one hit on the board in the seventh but could not complete the comeback ending its 38 game-win streak.
GAME 2: #1 SAINT LEO 12, ECKERD 1 (6 inns.)
- Saint Leo put the woes of game one in the rear view mirror and wasted no time jumping ahead, plating two runs in the first inning before adding two more in the second. Neal delivered an RBI sacrifice fly in the opening frame, while the Lions capitalized on timely hitting and pressure on the bases to quickly build a 4-0 lead.
- The Lions extended the advantage in the fourth inning with three more runs. LaRoche ripped a two-run double and Antioco followed with an RBI single to push the margin to 7-0. Eckerd answered with its lone run in the bottom half of the inning, but Wright stranded additional traffic to limit the damage.
- Saint Leo put the game away in the sixth with a five-run outburst. Neal launched a two-run homer, Hynes added a two-run single, and Cline lifted a sacrifice fly as the Lions stretched the lead to 12-1. Wright closed out the bottom of the sixth to secure the run-rule victory and the series split.
UP NEXT
The 2026 NCAA Division II Softball selection show is set for 10 a.m. on Monday, May 11. With a regular season SSC title in the books, the Lions have earned the SSC's automatic bid and have positioned themselves to host the regional.
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