PENSACOLA, Fla. — The University of West Alabama Softball team's historic 2026 campaign came to an end on Friday after losses to No. 7 UAH and No. 2 West Florida in the NCAA South Regional.
No. 3 UWA (44-14-1) fell to No. 7 UAH (38-22) in a pitcher's duel, 3-1, before losing the elimination game to No. 2 West Florida (44-14) later in the day, 4-1.
No. 3 UWA vs No. 7 UAH: Chargers 3, Tigers 1
West Alabama's lone run came from an Ann Marie Stanbridge solo home run, while UAH capitalized on eight hits to secure its victory.
Megan Roe got the start for West Alabama and went 6.0 innings, allowing just one earned run. Katie Bracken got the start for UAH and went 5.0 innings, striking out 10 batters while only allowing one run on two hits.
The Chargers took the lead in the third inning with a sacrifice fly by Mia Brown, bringing in Jill Cockrell. An error allowed Brittany Slaten to score, making it 2–0.
In the fifth inning, UAH added another run on a fielding error, increasing its lead to 3–0.
UWA responded in the sixth inning when Stanbridge hit a solo home run to left center, reducing the deficit to 3–1. The Tigers threatened to score more in the inning as they put runners on first and second with no one out, but couldn't push anymore runs across.
With three outs to work with, West Alabama's Carolyn Cagle, Jessica Rose, and Haley Shannon were due up. All three put the ball in play but hit it right at a Charger defender to conclude the ball game.
No. 3 UWA vs No. 2 UWF: Argonauts 4, Tigers 1
West Alabama's offense managed only two hits in the game, while the Argonauts capitalized on two UWA errors and hit two doubles to push across enough runs to secure the victory.
In the first inning, UWF capitalized on two errors to take an early lead. Miranda Harmon walked, stole both second and third, and scored on a throwing error. Hannah Harper doubled and later scored on another throwing error, giving the Argonauts a 2–0 advantage.
West Alabama had an opportunity to respond in the second. Kayla Morris reached on an error before La'taviona Parke singled, putting runners on first and second. The Tigers weren't able to move Morris and Parke as they went to the bottom half, trailing 2-0.
West Florida extended their lead when Jessie Baughan scored on a double by Meg Fountain, followed by an RBI single from Harmon to make it a 4-0 game.
UWA broke through and got on the board in the fourth inning. Trinity Hatcher doubled, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Morris, and scored on a safety squeeze from Ella Watson, narrowing the gap to 4–1.
De Block held the Argonauts in check for the remainder of the game but West Alabama's offense wasn't able to push across anymore runs, resulting in their 4-1 defeat.
West Alabama ends their 2026 season with a record of 44-14-1. 44 wins is the most in school history while the Tigers also captured the first GSC Tournament Championship in the program's history since 1997.
