Northwest Florida Falls to Florida SouthWestern, 7-6, in FCSAA Championship Game

CLEARWATER, Fla. — No. 2 Northwest Florida came up just short of its first FCSAA State Championship on Friday afternoon, falling 7-6 to No. 1 Florida SouthWestern in a back-and-forth battle in the championship game.

Florida SouthWestern struck first with two runs in the opening inning, capitalizing on a pair of Raider defensive miscues to take an early 2-0 lead. Northwest Florida responded in the third, as Karson McGowan delivered a two-run single down the right field line to even the score at 2-2.

The Raiders took control in the fourth inning with a three-run frame. Anna Grace Griggs gave Northwest Florida its first lead with an RBI single, while additional runs came across following a Buccaneers error and a bases-loaded walk drawn by McGowan to make it 5-2. Northwest Florida added another run in the fifth when Griggs recorded her second RBI hit of the afternoon, extending the advantage to 6-2.

However, the momentum shifted in the top of the fifth as Florida SouthWestern capitalized on several Raider miscues, plating five runs to retake a 7-6 lead. The Buccaneers used timely hits from Noelani Livingstone and Stephanie Basso, along with a sacrifice fly and another unearned run, to complete the comeback.

McGowan continued her stellar postseason, reaching base in all four plate appearances while going 3-for-3 with a walk and three RBIs. Griggs added two hits and two RBIs in the loss.

Marlee Parsons started in the circle for Northwest Florida, pitching 5.0 innings while allowing seven runs, five earned, and striking out four. Savannah Carter came on in relief and tossed a scoreless inning.

Despite the loss, Northwest Florida's run in Clearwater is not over. The Raiders will return to action Saturday at 9:00 a.m. (CDT) in the consolation championship against either No. 6 Santa Fe or No. 11 Eastern Florida. The winner will secure the region's second at-large bid to the NJCAA World Series in Oxford, Ala.