Conway, Ark.-The Lady Eagles softball team opened fall play in the Warrior Softball Fall Tournament hosted by Hendrix College on Saturday, October 11.

With the help of returners Kayla Gray, Krysten Shavers, and Michelle Edmiston as well as a group of twenty newcomers, Ozarks rallied to a 12-11 win in game one over the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The win marked the second win over an NCAA Division I opponent in the program's history.

The winning run was scored by freshman Kaley Coppock, who started the seventh inning rally with a triple to far right field. Later in the seventh, freshman Beth Massey delivered a clutch walk-off single with two outs to right field to score Coppock and give Ozarks the 12-11 victory.

Erika Henderson and Hailie Gilbert each finished with three hits apiece for the Lady Eagles, while Bethany Mason, Hannah Oler, and Coppock each had two.

Gilbert and Abby Mork pitched in the winning contest.

"I'm really proud of our team," said Head Coach Laurie Adkins. "They're young, but these freshmen aren't playing like freshmen, and the main thing is just how well they gel."

Despite a strong outing by Oler, a left-hander from Needville, Texas, Ozarks fell 3-1 to Central Baptist College in game two of the weekend's tournament.

Mason, the lead-off hitter, scored the team's sole run on a wild pitch.

Adkins was still proud of her young team's effort despite the outcome of the second game.

"There was just a lot of young leadership on the field," she said. "Laken Gray is a sophomore transfer for us that has a captain's commanding presence on the field and has brought some experience and infused it in the right spot. We're going to be bringing a lot of young strength into the spring."

The completion of the tournament wrapped up the Lady Eagles' fall season. The team will open their spring season at Concordia-Texas on February 13, 2015.

By Emily Black, Student Assistant for Sports Information