The Chattanooga Mocs softball team had its memorable 2019 season come to a close after falling 2-1 to Southeast Missouri State in the first elimination game of the NCAA Tournament, Oxford Regional, on Saturday afternoon on the campus of Ole Miss.
Chattanooga finishes the season 37-17 (.685) following the loss. The 37 wins are the most since 2012 while the WL percentage is the best since 2015. SEMO improves to 46-17 and advances to face No. 11 seed Ole Miss in the second elimination game of the regional.
Freshman Mariah Ramirez earned the start in the circle for Chattanooga in the team's second elimination game of the season (SoCon Championship) after tossing a pair of solid innings last night.
Ramirez retired six of the first seven SEMO hitters to begin the game, allowing just a two-out walk in the top of the second.
She struck out a pair during the opening stretch.
Devan Brown provided a spark for the offense in the top of the third, belting a leadoff homerun over the left field seats to put UTC ahead 1-0. The round tripper was Brown's second of the season while it was the team's fifth of the leadoff variety.
SEMO's Ashley Ellis belted her 17th homerun of the season, a solo shot, in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game up 1-1. The OVC-champs ranked 25th in NCAA DI with a 1.18 homeruns per game average entering Saturday.
The Redhawks took a 2-1 lead in the fifth on a Mykaela Arellanes RBI single up the middle. An error on a stolen base attempt at second allowed the runner to advance to third before scoring on the single.
Morgan Kazerooni led the sixth inning off with a pinch-hit single to right to create some momentum. Chattanooga couldn't string together a rally behind Kazerooni's single and left a runner stranded after a 4-3 double play ended the inning.
Williamson roped a two-out single to left in the top of the seventh, sparking late hope for UTC. A pop-out two pitches later ended any comeback efforts.
Ramirez (12-3) suffered the loss in the circle despite tossing a complete game and allowing just two earned runs and six hits. She struck out three while walking two.
Notable performances: Mariah Ramirez (CG, 2ER, 3K), Halie Williamson (2-for-3), Devan Brown (1-for-2, HR, RBI)