BROOKINGS, S.D. - Omaha softball, the top seed in the 2025 Summit League Championship, overcame two three-run deficits Friday as the Mavericks (38-10, 14-4 Summit) toppled (2) South Dakota State (20-25, 13-5 Summit) 8-6 in a nine-inning showdown.
Mavericks second baseman
Katherine Johnson belted the home run to end it, a two-run shot to walk-off the bottom of the ninth inning.
After South Dakota State plated a run in the first and a pair in the second inning, Omaha responded with a three-spot in the fourth, beginning with a
Marra Cramer RBI single, scoring
Sydney Thomason. With one out in the frame,
Haley Wilwerding singled through the right side, scoring Cramer and Johnson to even the score at three-all.
The Jackrabbits knocked in a run in the fifth, but Omaha was unable to respond, leaving Johnson at second after a double to left.
South Dakota State got a pair of one-out runs in the visitor's seventh and
Mike Heard's Mavericks responded with a trio of runs of their own. After a
Rylan Ewoldt lead-off walk,
Rylinn Groff singled down the left field line to bring home Ewoldt and move
Maggie O'Brien to third. Thomason knocked in a double to score O'Brien and move R. Groff to third base.
A sacrifice fly off the bat of Johnson made it a 6-6 ballgame and the Mavericks ended regulation with the game-winning run stranded at third.
Unable to move O'Brien after a single in the eighth, Omaha's defense –– which made four stellar plays on defense –– held the Jackrabbits to a single in the ninth.
A leadoff single by Thomason set the stage for Johnson's seventh home run of the season.
Johnson finished the day 4-for-4 with three RBI, two runs scored and a sacrifice fly. Wilwerding went 1-for-4 with a pair of runs batted in.
Maddia Groff threw all nine innings for Omaha allowing six earned runs with two strikeouts in 44 batters faced on 139 pitches.
Omaha now advances to its fifth-straight Summit League tournament final, facing the winner of (2) South Dakota State and (3) South Dakota on Saturday, May 10 at 1 p.m. CT in Brookings, S.D. at Jackrabbit Softball Field. The
if necessary game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. CT tomorrow. Both contests will air on the Summit League Network, powered by Midco Sports Plus.
As an athletic department, Omaha has now qualified for 16 conference championship games since the 2021-22 academic year.
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