NWF Punches Ticket to the NJCAA Softball World Series After Winning the South Atlantic District B Championship

CLEARWATER, Fla. — On Saturday, Northwest Florida State softball punched their ticket to the 2024 NJCAA Softball World Series following a 9-2 victory over Eastern Florida State in the NJCAA South Atlantic District B Championship game.

The Raiders win was largely attributed to a seven-run fourth inning, highlighted by an Ashlyn Shirah's two-run home run, and a Autumn Vessier's grand slam. However, Vessier wasn't finished yet. The sophomore catcher from Louisiana followed her fourth inning grand slam with a two-run bomb to left field in the fifth, helping the Raiders take a seven-run lead over the Titans

From there, the Raiders pitching and defense shined, keeping the Titans off the score board the remaining two innings, allowing them to seal the win and the automatic bid. 

Cailyn Heyl earned the win for Northwest Florida, pitching another complete game. She gave up nine hits and two runs over seven innings, striking out one and walking two. Walters started in the circle for Eastern Florida State. The Titans starter surrendered five hits and four runs over three innings, striking out none and walking none before being taken out in the fourth inning.

Following a disappointing day at the plate the previous day. Northwest Florida's bats were looking for a big spark in a must win game. They succeeded by piling up 11 hits, two home runs and 20 total bases. Britt Bourgoyne went 3-for-3 at the plate to lead Northwest Florida State in hits while Vessier led the game in RBIs with six.

Borkey and Theisen each collected two hits for Eastern Florida. Davis led the Titans with two runs batted in, going 1-for-2 on the day.

Following the win, Autumn Vessier, Britt Bourgoyne and Caitlin Heyl were each named to the FCSAA All-Tournament Team following their exceptional performances on the diamond this week. Vessier batted .444 with three home runs and eight RBIs, including her two home runs and six RBIs in Saturday's win. Bourgoyne batted .583 with a .615 on base percentage and four runs, including a three-for-three day at the plate in today's game. Heyl appeared in every game for the Raiders, pitching 24.1 innings of work with a 2.58 eared-run average, going 3-1 for the week.

With the win, the Raiders have secured a spot in the NJCAA Softball World Series in Oxford, Ala. beginning May 20. The Raiders will await results from around at the country and see which seed they draw ahead of the tournament. The Raiders have been ranked No. 2 nationally the entire season and only carry four losses on their record - one coming this week against the FCSAA Champions, Indian River.