Oregon Tech captures NAIA softball national title in Gulf Shores (original) (raw)

Oregon Tech's Jackie Imhof pitches against Cal Baptist in the NAIA softball national championship game Wednesday at the Gulf Shores Sportsplex. Imhof was named tournament MVP after throwing a four-hit shutout as the No. 18-ranked Hustlin' Owls edged the top-ranked Lancers 1-0. (JOHN DAVID MERCER/Staff Photographer)

GULF SHORES, Alabama -- With the way teams were grouped for the NAIA softball national championships, most observers didn't expect Oregon Tech to advance out of pool play, much less make a deep run in the eight-team double-elimination bracket.

But the Hustlin' Owls upset No. 2-ranked Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.) to win their pool and then did much more, posting a 4-1 record in bracket play capped by a 1-0 win against No. 1 Cal Baptist for the national title Wednesday afternoon at the Gulf Shores Sportsplex.

"There's no doubt that you could term us as 'underdogs,' because we probably didn't have a lot of expectations coming in here from other people," Oregon Tech coach Greg Stewart said. "We haven't had an opportunity as a program to be here since 1997. It just seemed like it was a Cinderella story and you couldn't script it any better than the way it worked out."

Tournament MVP Jackie Imhof (25-6) threw a four-hit shutout with seven strikeouts in the second game against CBU. It was a redemption performance for Imhof, who struggled in the first game after trying to field a line drive with her pitching hand in the first inning. She was pulled in the fourth after allowing three earned runs and the Lancers went on to win 7-0.

"The biggest thing for me was overcoming my hand, trying to put that out of my mind and battle for my team," said Imhof, a senior. "I didn't want to risk getting it cold, so I had my trainer stretch out my arm."

It was Imhof's second consecutive stellar performance against Cal Baptist (66-5) in as many days. She threw a one-hit shutout in a 1-0 Owls victory Tuesday.

"I feel like I'm dreaming," Imhof said. "I've come to nationals a lot of times and I've always blown it, so I can't really comprehend what my team just accomplished."

Jess Plummer produced the lone run for Oregon Tech (42-13) with a single to centerfield in the first inning off Tory Ferreira (19-3), who allowed three hits and walked two in 3D-innings.

"I can't say enough about how proud I am of these kids," Stewart said. "Obviously, a lot of teams could have folded (after losing), especially after getting whooped 7-0 in the first game."

The runner-up finish was a surprising end to Cal Baptist's NAIA run. The 2009 national champs, who were ranked first the entire season, were playing their last NAIA game before beginning the transition to NCAA Division II.

"I'm so proud of what these girls have done," said CBU coach Mike Smith, whose team set a program record for wins. "If somebody would have told me we'd win 60 games, I would have said I don't know if that's going to happen. Not that I didn't believe in them, but I didn't know what to expect after losing the big horses we had last year. This team has been unbelievable. Nothing's going to take away from the entire season we had; hey, we're the second best in the country."

In the opener, Emma Holden (35-2) threw six innings of three-hit ball and was later named the NAIA pitcher of the year. Mara Rodriguez had two hits, including a solo homer, and two RBIs and Sloan McHann added a pair of hits and two RBIs for the Lancers.

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