NEED TO KNOW:
Score: Piedmont 8, N.C. Wesleyan 6
Record: Piedmont, 22-11; N.C. Wesleyan, 20-17
 
DEMOREST, Ga. – Piedmont and N.C. Wesleyan flipped the script on Sunday in the USA South Softball Championship Series' deciding game three. After splitting a pair of pitcher's duels on Saturday, the Lions and Battling Bishops went back-and-forth in a slugfest in game three with the Lions ultimately emerging as champions with an 8-6 win.
 
Freshman EMMA MCBRAYER was named the tournament MVP after the game in which she earned the win and allowed just one run in her 3.1 innings of relief work in the circle. At the plate, McBrayer totaled five RBIs thanks to three hits, including a thunderous game-tying grand slam in the Piedmont half of the third inning.
 
As the conference tournament champions, Piedmont advances to the NCAA National Tournament as the conference's automatic qualifier. Their first round opponents and game locations will be determined during the tournament selection show on May 17.
 
N.C. Wesleyan started fast and scored an early run after Nichole Mooney tripled to lead off the game, then scored two batters later on a sacrifice fly from Meredith Mize. Mooney just barely beat the throw from HANNAH SMITH thanks to hook slide on the outer side of the plate.
 
The Lions produced traffic on the bases early as well as REBEKAH STEGMAYER and MACKENZIE DAVIS each singled to center to lead off the first and second innings, respectively, but both runners were ultimately stranded on second base.
 
Mooney got things started again in N.C. Wesleyan's half of the third when her two-out double to left center sparked a string of three-straight hits for the Battling Bishops that saw their lead grow to 3-0. Logan Winstead and Mize each tallied RBIs in that streak.
 
Those three hits chased Piedmont starter MARTINA MALOCH from the game in favor of McBrayer.
 
Another run came home in the inning after Kayla Molivas reached on an error from MACIE ALLEN at short and Mize was able to score from second as the ball squeaked into shallow left center.
 
After threating a couple times in the first two innings, the Lions finally broke through with a huge five-run inning in the bottom of the third.
 
Stegmayer and Isley each singled with one out before KATELYN PERRY reached on an error on a deep fly ball to left field. That set up a game-tying grand slam from McBrayer that just cleared the left centerfield wall. That one swing ignited the Piedmont offense and the dugout after being stagnant for most of the series to that point.
 
Davis tripled to deep right center field in the next at-bat, then scored on HANNAH MORGAN's RBI triple two batters later to give the Lady Lions a 5-4 lead.
 
The two teams began trading blows at that point as the Battling Bishops tied the game back up at 5-5 after loading the bases in the fourth and pushing a run across on a fielder's choice RBI from Winstead.
 
Piedmont struck back yet again with what turned out to be the deciding blows in the bottom of the fourth. With two outs, four consecutive hits from Isley, Perry, McBrayer, and Davis plated three more runs and put Piedmont up 8-5.
 
Maloch returned to the game after that inning and worked a clean fifth but ran into trouble in the sixth when a walk and a pair of singles plated a run for N.C. Wesleyan, narrowing the gap back to 8-6.
 
McBrayer returned to the circle and managed to get out of the inning with no more damage, leaving the bases loaded after getting Beth Braswell to ground out to short to end the inning.

N.C. Wesleyan got the go-ahead run to the plate in the seventh, but McBrayer got Meredith Boone to groundout on a comebacker to end the instant classic game and send Piedmont on to the NCAA Division III National Tournament as the USA South Tournament Champions.  

STANDOUT PERFORMANCES:
 - McBrayer pitched 3.1 innings in her two stints, allowing just two hits and one earned run. She also went 3-for-4 at the plate with five RBIs, including her grand slam in the third inning.
- MACKENZIE DAVIS went 3-for-4 on the day and totaled five hits in the series. On Sunday, she tallied a double, a triple, one RBI and stolen a base.
-  REBEKAH STEGMAYER and KAITLIN ISLEY combined for four hits (two each) and three runs scored in the game, setting the table for the heart of the Piedmont order.
 
UP NEXT:
- Next up for the Lions will be the opening round of the NCAA National Tournament. Their first-round opponents and game locations will be determined during the tournament selection show on May 17.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW:
- To stay up to date on all information regarding Piedmont College Athletics, be sure to visit PiedmontLions.com and connect with the Green and Gold on social media. Follow the Lions on Twitter: @PiedmontLions, Instagram: @PiedmontLions, and Facebook. To follow each Piedmont athletic program on social media, use the Social Media Directory at PiedmontLions.com or click here.