OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University captured the Sooner Athletic Conference softball tournament championship with an 8-6 triumph over Lubbock Christian (Texas) on Saturday at Hall of Fame Stadium.

The Stars, ranked 11th in the NAIA, added the SAC Tournament crown after sharing the conference regular-season title with Lubbock Christian. OCU (44-12) secured a berth in the NAIA Championships on May 19-25 in Gulf Shores, Ala.

The NAIA will announce its final softball rankings and national-tournament qualifiers on Tuesday. The pairings for the NAIA Championships will be revealed Wednesday. Eight-time national champion OCU will make its NAIA-high 25th national-tournament appearance after finishing as national runner-up last year.

Sixth-ranked Lubbock Christian (50-9) forced a winner-take-all game for the SAC Tournament championship by defeating OCU 4-2 earlier Saturday. The Stars prevailed in the second game using three seventh-inning runs after the lead changed hands three times in the final three innings.

In the seventh inning of the nightcap, OCU loaded the bases with no outs as Nathalie Timmermans reached base on a hit by pitch. Brittany Caruthers drew a walk to force in the run that tied the game 6-6. LeeAnn Lopez put OCU ahead on a base hit to shallow center field off new pitcher Meagan Navarette. The Stars tacked on another run on Kylee Rounsaville's groundout.

In the bottom of the seventh, Lily LaVelle worked a 1-2-3 inning to end the game. LaVelle finished the contest by striking out Kim Frazier.

Melissa Hartkop put Lubbock Christian up 6-5 in the bottom of the fifth with a two-run single to right field. Lopez brought in a run on a single that gave OCU a 5-4 edge in the top of the fifth.

LaVelle, a junior from Bridge Creek, Okla., completed a weekend where she picked up every decision for the Stars in the tournament. LaVelle (27-8) worked the final 2.2 innings, allowed a hit and a walk and fanned four. She notched four wins in the tournament.

Lopez, a sophomore from Grand Prairie, Texas, went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs for OCU. Katie Proffitt, a junior from Tulsa, Okla., was 2-for-3 with three RBIs, while LaVelle went 2-for-3 with a run scored and a run driven in. Rounsaville went 2-for-4, scored a run and drove in a run.

Hartkop finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs, and Andrea Argee went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Argee cranked a two-run home run over the left-field fence to give Lubbock Christian a 4-2 third-inning advantage. Amanda Longorio fell to 11-2 on the year.

In the first championship game, Lubbock Christian erased a 1-0 deficit with three fifth-inning runs. Argee tied the game on an RBI single, then Kayla Van Dieren scored on a passed ball. Latainna Eltsosie drove in another run on an infield hit.

Timmermans crushed a solo homer to left in the sixth, but Lubbock Christian answered on Priscilla Fagaines' run-scoring base hit in the bottom of the inning. Lubbock Christian turned a double play to end the game.

Navarette moved to 17-0 after striking out two in five innings. LaVelle took the loss while picking up seven strikeouts in six innings.

Timmermans went 2-for-3, and Magean De Le Torre, a sophomore from Plano, Texas, went 1-for-3 for the Stars.

Argee went 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI to lead the Lady Chaps. Van Dieren went 2-for-2 and scored, and Eltsosie went 1-for-2 and drove in a run.

Lubbock Christian advanced to the title contest with an 8-1 victory over Oklahoma Christian. Lubbock Christian scored eight unanswered runs.
Game 1 Boxscore
Game 2 Boxscore