KOKOMO, Ind. – The Earlham College softball team won the 2026 HCAC Championship with a walk-off single by
Malaya Tanglao in the bottom of the seventh inning in game two of the Championship series.
On the day,
Morgan Cooksey pitched 9.2 innings, allowing three earned runs on 10 hits with two strikeouts. Cooksey was named Tournament MVP after going 3-1 with three complete games, a 1.22 ERA and six strikeouts.
Shelby Messer started game two, and tossed 4.1 innings with one earned run and two strikeouts.
The Pioneers won game one on the day, scoring two runs on three hits in the top of the third inning.
As a team, the Quakers tallied just two hits, with a single by
Ashley Lewis in the fifth and a double by
Shelby Hill in the sixth.
Jade Green went 3-4 in game two, with an RBI. The freshman also scored the winning run in the bottom of the seventh. Hill scored two hits, with a double and three RBI.
Mack Harvey went 3-3 with a double.
After two hits in the bottom of the first inning, the Quakers left two runners on base with a strikeout.
The Pioneers recorded their first hit of the game with a leadoff single in the top of the third inning, and scored two runs after a fielding error.
In the bottom of the third,
Cierra James reached on a leadoff bunt, and advanced on a double by Harvey.
Bo Shelton earned a one-out walk to load the bases for Hill, who cleared the bases with a double to the center field fence. Green then brought Hill home with a single down the right field line for a 4-2 Quaker lead, chasing away the Pioneer starter.
Transylvania struck back in the top of the fifth, scoring two runs on three hits and an error to tie the game back up at four. A pair of hits in the top of the sixth gave the Pioneers the lead 5-4.
After Hill ended the top of the seventh inning catching the Pioneers trying to steal second, Earlham took its final opportunity to bat trailing by one.
Down to her last strike,
Emmerie Stump hit a two-out single through the left side to represent the tying run. Green singled to put the winning run on base, and Lewis earned a walk to load the bases for Tanglao with two outs. The junior second baseman laced a single into right field just under the Transylvania outfielder's glove, bringing in two runs, and winning the conference tournament for the Quakers in just their third season of competition.
Following the game, Cooksey was named tournament MVP, while Hill and
Macie Ferguson placed on the all-tournament team.
The Quakers will take the automatic qualification into the NCAA Tournament, and play next weekend at a Regional event. The NCAA Selection Show tomorrow at 11 am will tell the Quakers where they will continue their season. The selection show can be found on NCAA.com
