Mt. Hood Walks Off to Win NWAC Softball Title 8-7 over Bellevue

SPOKANE, Wash. – A tournament that featured numerous walk-off finishes had its encore performance as the Mt. Hood softball team won 8-7 in eight innings over Bellevue on a walk-off single by McKenzie Kosmicki on Sunday at the Dwight Merkel Sports Complex.

With two outs in the bottom of the eighth and the score tied 7-7, Kosmicki stepped to the plate with runners on first and second. She drove a pitch through the right side of the infield, bringing home Hope Burke from second to earn the Saints their sixth-ever NWAC championship.

The Saints came back from down 6-0 through the first two innings, eventually tying the score in the bottom of the seventh on a RBI single by Leslie Main, scoring Kosmicki. Alexia Geary had a two-RBI single in the sixth to pull the Saints to within one heading to the final inning.

Marley Johnson was outstanding in relief for Mt. Hood. Entering the game with no outs and the bases loaded in the second and already trailing 6-0, Johnson struck out two and forced a lineout to hold the Bulldogs off the board and keep the deficit to six. She pitched seven innings while allowing only one run, inducing 11 ground ball outs to give her offense the chance at the comeback.

The Saints went undefeated 5-0 at the NWAC Championship but faced their toughest test in the Bulldogs. Bellevue's lineup was nearly unstoppable all tournament long, scoring 79 runs in seven games played.

The Bulldogs got out to a quick start, scoring four runs in the first inning, followed by two in the second. Kelci Studioso went 3-for-4 with two runs scored, while Haley Winckler and Christiana Tadvick had a pair of hits and RBIs each.

Hailey Davis for Mt. Hood was named the Tournament Most Valuable Player. Davis was the most dangerous hitter all weekend going 12-for-16 with five home runs, 22 RBI and nine runs scored while playing great defense behind the plate.

Bellevue took second place, the highest finish in program history. Clackamas finished third and Walla Walla placed fourth.

Below is the full all-tournament team, with players selected from the top-four finishing teams.

MVP
Hailey Davis, Mt. Hood

All-Tournament Team
Rylie Bennett, Walla Walla
Haylee Brown, Walla Walla
DeLaney Duchek, Mt. Hood
Emily Dugan, Clackamas
Kathirin Hylton, Clackamas
Kaci Imus, Bellevue
Marley Johnson, Mt. Hood
McKenzie Kosmicki, Mt. Hood
Matlyn Leetch, Mt. Hood
Morgan Shults, Bellevue
Kelci Studioso, Bellevue
Morgan Sunchild, Bellevue
Aliah Wilsey, Clackamas