SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – It was not in the cards for the St. Edward's Softball team Saturday afternoon as the Hilltoppers lost an early lead and the ballgame, falling to Cameron, 3-2, in an elimination game at the 2014 South Central Regional Tournament at Mayer Field.
 
St. Edward's (33-26) took an early 2-0 lead in the first inning. Breah Whitten led off the inning with an infield single. She stole second with one out and moved to third on a single by Emily Mayfield. Kendall Lucas plated Whitten with a bunt to make it 1-0. Lauren Brode knocked in E. Mayfield with a single to centerfield to put St. Edward's up, 2-0.
 
Cameron (31-10) answered in the third inning when two of the first three batters reached base. Breezy McComas put the Aggies on the board with a three-run home run.
 
Katelyn Klug, the Hilltopper starting pitcher buckled down from there, keeping the Aggies off of the board for the rest of the game.
 
Cameron's starting pitcher Sam Betts was equally as tough on the mound for the Aggies as she only allowed one hit after St. Edward's tallied four base knocks in the first inning.
 
The Hilltoppers had their best chance to get back into the game in the third inning when Whitten, again, led off an inning with a single. Alex Mayfield also reached base on an error. After a sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position, St. Edward's could not come up with the big hit in two-straight at-bats.
 
"We came into this weekend with a plan, and did a pretty good job of sticking to it," head coach Lindsay Gardner said. "Unfortunately, we were not able to capitalize on some big opportunities during both games, which led to two tough losses."
 
Klug (14-12) wound up with the loss for the Hilltoppers, allowing three runs on six hits, while walking one and striking out three in 6.1 innings of work.
 
St. Edward's ends its season with a 33-26 record after advancing to the NCAA Regional Tournament for the third-straight season under head coach Lindsay Gardner. It was also the eighth time in school history the school made it to the Division II postseason.
 
Gardner also stated this about her team: "I am extremely proud of how hard our girls fought through adversity this season. To be selected to post-season play for the third year in a row is quite an accomplishment. Having the experience of competing at regionals again will make our team that much stronger next year. We did a lot of great things and have so much talent returning for the 2015 season. I'm excited about the future of St. Edward's softball."