DAHLONEGA, Ga. – In the closing moments of a heavyweight slugfest between the top two teams in the Southeast Region that lived up to its billing, the second-seeded Lincoln Memorial University softball squad matched a program record for highest number of wins in a single year on Friday in the winner's bracket, declawing the top-seed and host Nighthawks of North Georgia in the NCAA Tournament to leap one step further to the school's first postseason trophy in history.

Win #38 of the spring was arguably the sweetest for the Lady Railsplitters (38-6), who knocked off the 2^nd-ranked team in the country per the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, putting an emphatic end to UNG's 16-game winning streak to boot. Only 24 hours after pulling out a two-run flurry in the 6^th frame vs. Young Harris in the opening round, LMU duplicated that feat in the 7^th period against North Georgia, silencing a 3-3 tie for the dramatic 5-3 victory.

Off the heels of one of the most monumental wins in the history of Lincoln Memorial softball, Head Coach Ritchie Richardson's group now awaits an opponent yet to be determined at the time of writing, facing off with either Tusculum, Young Harris, or North Georgia once more with the Southeast Region Championship at stake on Saturday at 12:00 noon. Since the Lady Railsplitters are the only team of the six that entered the bracket without a loss in Dahlonega this week, LMU's Saturday opponent must vanquish the blue and gray consecutively in order to achieve the upset, whereas LMU only needs one more W to capture their second regional crown in school history and book a trip to Denver, Colorado for the 2021 NCAA Division II Women's College World Series as one of the final eight teams in America left standing.

For the second straight day, the Lady Railsplitters tallied a six-hit count in the tight win, held by six different batters on Friday. Junior catcher McKenzie Henry and outfielder Grace Cochran crunched the biggest swings of the afternoon for LMU, with the former booming a two-run homer in the top of the 2^nd to hand the blue and gray a gallon of momentum and the latter being the recipient of ultimately the game-deciding blow for the second time in as many days.

Add in yet another masterful performance in the circle from sophomore ace Emma Frost, who again threw a complete game on five K's and only six hits given up against one of the most complete teams in the nation, and the Lady Railsplitters held just enough gas in the tank for the second consecutive high-profile outing to reach the Southeast Regional Finals less than 24 hours from now.

Catching the Nighthawks off guard in the 2^nd inning of the top-five clash, Henry secured her third home run of the semester past the leftfield wall to put LMU in front by a deuce, also scoring first baseman Emma Webb, who walked earlier in the period.

McKenzie's younger sister Madison Henry extended the advantage to 3-0 in the next inning on a ground-rule RBI double towards the opposite side of the park, bringing outfield mate Bella Buccellato home for the score. The offensive rhythm that didn't rear its head until late the day before appeared from the get-go on Friday against one of the most potent defenses in all of Division II.

Frost and the LMU infield consistently left the Nighthawk batters frustrated through the majority of the game's first half, that is until Madison Simmons equaled Henry's two-run long-ball in the bottom of the 4^th frame, also wrangling in Kaylyn Anthony. North Georgia's fortunes kept rolling into the next inning once Olivia Sinquefield sliced an RBI-single past right field to suddenly even the affair at three apiece.

Despite the Nighthawks' impending propulsion, the Lady Railsplitter defense maintained their composure and delivered as advertised over the final seven batters, downing each opposing player in 1-2-3 fashion in the bottom of the 6^th to set up another breathtaking late-game sequence in the final inning.

With pinch runner Victoria Conley occupying 1^st base after a McKenzie Henry walk, Cochran stepped up to the plate and bounced an RBI-double past the UNG shortstop to hand LMU the lead for good, solidifying her status as one of the most clutch performers in the entire country having done nearly the exact same thing versus Young Harris the round prior. Cochran herself was rewarded with the last run of the afternoon when South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year Ty-Kella Goins doubled to the right side, planting the two-run final decision in another exhilarating finish.

Hoisting her impressive personal record to 20-3 with 14 innings thrown over the past two outcomes, Frost's 227 total pitches since Thursday have played a pivotal role in the Lady Railsplitters' advancement to the Southeast Regional Championship. Kylee Smith was saddled with the L for the Nighthawks in a 10-strikeout performance during the penultimate day of the regional bracket, where UNG must now compete against the winner of the Young Harris-Tusculum matchup for the right to face LMU a second time on Saturday, where they would have to get past the blue and gray twice in a row in order to steal the regional title bid from Coach Richardson's squad.

Another chance to break a school record approaches the Lady Railsplitters in the regional championship bout, as they now stand just seven innings away from their 39^th win of the season, which would beat out the 2019 team for the most wins in a single semester across the history of Lincoln Memorial softball. Not only that, but LMU could do so with a double whammy and a trip to the Women's College World Series with one more victory on Saturday.
 
Up Next
 
Patiently waiting for clarification on who LMU's championship round opponent will be at the time of writing occurring before the conclusion of Friday's events in Dahlonega, the Lady Railsplitters do know that they will throw out the first pitch at 12:00 against either the Nighthawks, Mountain Lions, or Pioneers for a shot to move on to the final eight in Denver.

Already besting Young Harris prior to defeating North Georgia by a 2-1 clip on Thursday and with a 2-1 record against Tusculum thus far in 2021, the Lady Railsplitters will officially know on Friday evening who stands in their way for a Southeast Regional Championship trophy. For now, they'll celebrate one of the most prodigious wins in school history until it's back to business the next afternoon.
 
How to Follow
 
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms —@LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram — for more LMU softball coverage across the 2021 postseason.