Top seed Georgia Gwinnett College received timely hitting and strong pitching – from the same player – to advance to the championship round of the 2024 Continental Athletic Conference Softball Championship Tournament, defeating No. 2 seed Florida National University 5-0 on Friday afternoon at the Grizzly Softball Complex.

CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL

Junior pitcher Annalise Jarvis struck out 13 batters in tossing her eighth shutout of the 2024 season. She began the contest by striking out eight of the first nine batters she faced, and 37 of the right hander's first 45 pitches were strikes through four innings. Jarvis ended up allowing one hit to improve her record to 15-5 on the season.

Jarvis also contributed mightily to the Grizzlies (28-15) at the plate as well, lining an RBI double to center field to open the scoring. She later legged out a triple as part of a 2-for-3 performance – getting more hits herself than she allowed inside the pitching circle.

Senior Kloey Goins had a two-run single to center field in a three-run second inning that saw the tournament hosts seize control of the winner's bracket contest.

GGC pushed across two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, with sophomore Summer Hickson lining a double down the left-field line to bring home junior Makenna Talcott. A wild pitch allowed senior Logan Oller to score another insurance run later in the frame.

GGC outhit Florida National (22-21) by a 9-1 margin with Goins, Jarvis and Talcott each contributing two hits.
  "The team's mentality today was focusing on hitting the top of the ball like we started doing late in yesterday's contest. We made really solid contact. It is hard to put into perspective how important is it to see your pitcher strike out eight of the first nine batters. It allows your team to settle down and be on the right side of the game," said Head Coach Kat Ihlenburg.
  After threatening in the first inning, the Grizzlies put three runs on the scoreboard in the second inning. Junior Annalise Jarvis lined an RBI double to center field that scored classmate Jane Hoover. A few batters later, senior Kloey Goins delivered a single to plate a pair of runs. Those runs were enough as Jarvis tossed her eighth shutout of the season in the pitching circle.
  Bottom of Second
Annalise Jarvis lined an RBI double to center field that opened the scoring
Kloey Goins hit a two-run single that extended the Grizzlies' lead to 3-0
 
Bottom of Sixth
Summer Hickson lined a double down the left field line
Logan Oller scored following a wild pitch for the team's fifth run of the contest
 

• The Grizzlies outhit Florida National by a 9-1 margin
• Junior pitcher Annalise Jarvis struck out 13 batters in recording her eighth shutout of the season
• Freshman Morgan McQuagge had three putouts at third base
• Three GGC players tallied two hits in the victory

• GGC improves to 28-15 on the season; Florida National is 23-21 this spring
• The Grizzlies were ranked No. 13 in the final NAIA Top 25 poll of the 2024 regular season
• Georgia Gwinnett College is the top seed in the tournament; Florida National is the No. 2 seed
• GGC has won six straight conference tournament titles

Georgia Gwinnett College advances to the championship round of the 2024 Continental Athletic Conference Softball Championship on Saturday, May 4, at the Grizzly Softball Complex, starting at 11 a.m. This means the team will be one of the CAC's two qualifiers for the Opening Round of the NAIA national tournament.