The Hope softball team saw their elimination game winning streak halted in the Super Regional Round of the 2018 NCAA Division III Softball Championships. The Flying Dutch played in nine elimination games in May, winning eight; Hope tallied four consecutive wins in the MIAA Tournament, added three consecutive wins to take the Regional title last week, and tallied a victory in game two of the three-game set with Case Western Reserve.
Hope (34-12) dropped Friday's opening game to Case Western, 3-2. Sydney Jones went the distance, striking out seven with three walks in the loss; the Flying Dutch mustered just four hits in Game 1, but it was Jo Cook's squeeze bunt in the fifth that helped score one of Hope's two runs of the inning.
Hope responded Saturday with a 3-1 win over the Spartans, with Jones firing a four-hitter from inside the circle with eight strikeouts. Hayley Reitsma went 2-for-4 with a triple, a run scored, and an RBI. But Case Western prevailed in the final game in the best-of-three series, defeating Hope 4-1 to advance.
Hope's 34 wins set a program record.
The finals, hosted by the University of Central Oklahoma and the Oklahoma City All-Sports Association, will be held May 24-29 at USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. All rounds will use a double-elimination format.
Tournament links
NCAA Division III Softtball page
2018 NCAA Division III Softball bracket announcement
