DAHLONEGA, GA – Lincoln Memorial softball falls to the (5) Lander Bearcats 7-8 and (1) #3 North Georgia Nighthawks 4-6 Saturday in the NCAA Southeast Regional Tournament to conclude the 2026 season.
In game one of the day against Lander, the Bearcats came out firing as they added two in the top of the first and five in the top of the second to give the Bearcats the 0-7 lead. Lincoln Memorial got things going in the bottom of the second when
Jordann Reagan scored an unearned run from a Lander error and
Gracie Palmer hit a single RBI to right field to bring in
Cassidy Hack to decrease the deficit 2-7. The Railsplitters continue to score in the top of the third as Reagan crossed home plate, unearned and
Nicole Couvertiere scored off of a single RBI to right field from
Alyssa Maples. The scoring run continued as Lincoln Memorial then brought the score within one as
Gracie Palmer hit a single 2RBI to bring in
Cassidy Hack and
Hanna Bogoski to end the inning.
The Railsplitters continued their momentum as they didn't allow Lander to score in the top of the fourth and tied up the game in the bottom as
Kristin Griffin scored off of a Couvertiere sac fly. The Bobcats got the lead back with one run before going into top of the fifth. Lincoln Memorial was unable to add any more runs, falling to (5) Lander 8-7 to move to the loser's bracket to face North Georgia, for the second time this tournament, at 5 pm.
In game two of the day against North Georgia, the first 1.5 innings remained scoreless until the bottom of the second where Palmer hit a sac fly to bring in Couvertiere to give Lincoln Memorial their first lead of the game. The Railsplitters continued to extend the lead to 3-0 in the second when Maples and Hack were brought home by a
Reese Vivrette 2RBI double. LMU scored for the third consecutive inning when Reagan scored on a throw off.
In the fourth, UNG tied the game back up by scoring four runs and gained the lead with one run in the fifth and one in the seventh, giving North Georgia the 4-6 win.
With the two losses, Lincoln Memorial ends their 2026 season in the NCAA Southeast Regional Tournament. The Railsplitters concludes their season with a 26-24 overall record and claimed their first SAC Championship title since 2023.
