DUNCAN, S.C. – Eighth seed North Greenville University and top seed Francis Marion University advanced to the 2025 Conference Carolinas Softball Championship final with wins on Sunday.
North Greenville advanced to Monday’s championship contest as the undefeated team with a 2-1 win over 10th seed Emmanuel University. The Lions grabbed the lead in the third inning on an Abby Rocco single. However, the Trailblazers responded in the bottom of the inning on a Virginia Bishop home run. In the fourth inning, Ari Day singled to score Ali Day and give North Greenville a 2-1 lead. Karley Green entered in the circle and only allowed two hits over the final two and two-thirds innings to give North Greenville the 2-1 victory.
Francis Marion then continued their way back through the loser’s bracket behind an Alyssa Poston shutout against third seed Barton College. Poston only allowed three hits and struck out five while Rylee Gray and Samantha Turnage drove in two apiece to lead the offense. Gray drove in two with a single in the third before Turnage added two in the fifth. Emily Konz added another run in the fifth to give Francis Marion the 5-0 win.
Francis Marion then jumped ahead of Emmanuel with two runs in the first and added five in the second inning. The second frame was highlighted by a two-run single from Paige Strickland, giving the Patriots a 7-0 lead. Emmanuel fought back with a run on a Gabby Buffington double in the fourth. In the fifth inning, Jaryn Gibson lifted a three-run home run to pull the Lions within 7-4. However, Abby Williams entered in the circle for Francis Marion and only allowed three base runners over the final two innings to give the Patriots the 7-4 victory.
North Greenville and Francis Marion will square off for the title on Monday with first pitch at 12:00 p.m. at Tyger River Park in Duncan, South Carolina. The Trailblazers need one win to take the title while Francis Marion will need to defeat North Greenville twice.
CHAMPIONSHIP PAGE | BRACKET | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
2025 Conference Carolinas Softball Championship
Tyger River Park | Duncan, South Carolina
Play-in Round – Friday, April 25
Game 1: No. 8 North Greenville defeats No. 9 Young Harris, 2-1
BOX SCORE
Game 2: No. 10 Emmanuel defeats No. 7 King, 3-2
BOX SCORE
Game 3: No. 5 Chowan defeats No. 12 Shorter, 8-0
BOX SCORE
Game 4: No. 6 Southern Wesleyan defeats No. 11 Converse, 9-5
BOX SCORE
First Round - Friday, April 25
Game 5: No. 8 North Greenville defeats No. 1 Francis Marion, 4-3
BOX SCORE
Game 6: No. 10 Emmanuel defeats No. 2 UNC Pembroke, 1-0
BOX SCORE
Game 7: No. 4 Mount Olive defeats No. 5 Chowan, 10-2
BOX SCORE
Game 8: No. 3 Barton defeats No. 6 Southern Wesleyan, 7-6
BOX SCORE
Second Round - Saturday, April 26
Game 9: No. 8 North Greenville defeats No. 4 Mount Olive, 12-4
BOX SCORE
Game 10: No. 10 Emmanuel defeats No. 3 Barton, 5-3 (F/8)
BOX SCORE
Game 11: No. 1 Francis Marion defeats No. 6 Southern Wesleyan, 3-2
BOX SCORE
Game 12: No. 2 UNC Pembroke defeats No. 5 Chowan, 3-0
BOX SCORE
Game 13: No. 1 Francis Marion defeated No. 4 Mount Olive, 4-0
BOX SCORE
Game 14: No. 3 Barton defeated No. 2 UNC Pembroke, 6-4
BOX SCORE
Semifinal Round - Sunday, April 27
Game 15: No. 8 North Greenville defeats No. 10 Emmanuel, 2-1
BOX SCORE
Game 16: No. 1 Francis Marion defeats No. 3 Barton, 5-0
BOX SCORE
Game 17: No. 1 Francis Marion defeats No. 10 Emmanuel, 7-4
BOX SCORE
Championship - Monday, April 28
Game 18: No. 1 Francis Marion vs. No. 8 North Greenville, 12:00 p.m. (Field 1)
Game 19: Winner Game 17 vs. Loser Game 18, 2:30 p.m. (Field 1; If Necessary)