CLERMONT, Fla. (Softball) – The Lake-Sumter State College (LSSC) softball team competed in the 2023 Florida College System Activities Association (FCSAA) Division II / National Junior College Athletics Association Region 8 Softball Championship from Thursday, May 4 to Saturday May 6. The Lakehawks defeated Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC) in game 7 on Saturday to secure the program's first-ever state championship.
Lake-Sumter entered the tournament as the number one seed. Their first game was on Thursday against the number four seeded Pasco-Hernando.
The Lakehawks defeated the Bobcats 5-1 in game one. Ali Shenefield recorded the complete-game win with 13 strikeouts, allowing just one run on five hits and two walks.
LSSC advanced to the winner's bracket game against South Florida State College on Thursday night. The Lakehawks defeated South Florida State in nine innings 4-3.
The Panthers took a 2-1 lead after the first inning and maintained it until the top of the seventh inning when the Lakehawks tied up the game in their last chance at bat.
In the top of the ninth, Darian Pippin and Raquel Camuglia came up with a pair of doubles to score two runs and break up the tie. The Panthers put one up in the bottom of the ninth but were not able to edge out the win.
Pippin recorded the win on the mound after throwing seven innings. She allowed two runs on five hits with no walks and two strikeouts.
The Lakehawks remained the only team left undefeated going into Friday afternoon.
PHSC eliminated St. Johns River State College from the tournament Thursday evening and went on to eliminate South Florida State on Friday morning to meet Lake-Sumter once again for the championship game.
In order for the Bobcats to win the Region 8 title, they had to beat Lake-Sumter twice. In their first meeting on Friday, Pasco-Hernando defeated Lake-Sumter in a close 3-1 game forcing game 7, better known as the "if" game on Saturday afternoon.
The Lakehawks came out swinging in the final game of the tournament taking a 3-1 lead over the Bobcats in the first inning. The Bobcats put a late run on the board with a solo homerun in the bottom of the fourth, but Lake-Sumter kept the lead for the remainder of the game.
Pippin recorded the win on the mound with five innings pitched. She allowed two runs on seven hits with five strikeouts.
Shenefield recorded the save after pitching the last two innings, allowing no runs on one hit with three strikeouts. Pippin improved to 15-7 on the year and Shenefield improved to 18-2.
Head Coach Jay Miller expressed his excitement for the team after the game, "Today was the epitome of this team. A diving play by Tatum Mcgrath in the first inning, a running catch by Molly Bender, a runner caught stealing by Kreighton Steinke, pitching performances from both Ali and Darian, all the way to the final out with an amazing stretch by Makenzi Heaton.
"It was a complete team effort on defense after scoring three runs in the top of the first.
"Today was a dream come true for this team and the program; something that in 2015, we did not know was possible," said Coach Miller.
The Lakehawks put five on the all-tournament team, Kreighton Steinke, Ali Shenefield, Raquel Camuglia, Molly Bender, and Darian Pippin. Shenefield was named Most Outstanding Pitcher, Camuglia was named Most Outstanding Player, and head coach Jay Miller was named the 2023 Coach of the Year.
For the tournament, Camuglia was 7-for-11 with three doubles, three RBIs, three walks and four runs scored. Shenefield went 2-1/1 on the mound for the tournament with a 1.49 ERA and 24 strikeouts.
The Lakehawks add another accolade to this historic season with a program-first state championship. Lake-Sumter now advances to the South Atlantic District Championship.
The Lakehawks will host the Region 10 champions Louisburg College from Louisburg, North Carolina. They will play a three-game series next weekend with the winner advancing to the national championship in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
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