No. 12 Gaston College advances to its third straight Region 10 championship game

For the third straight season, Gaston College's softball team will be playing in the Region 10 championship game after rallying from behind to defeat Monroe, N.Y., 11-3 in five innings in Friday's second day of the event at Tyger River Park in Spartanburg, S.C.

The No. 12-ranked Rhinos (57-3), who have set the Region 10 Division I wins record during the tournament, are the last remaining unbeaten team in the six-tournament tournament.

Gaston College would have to lose twice on Saturday to not host next week's National Junior College Athletic Association Mid-Atlantic District tournament at Gastonia's CaroMont Stadium. The Rhinos will meet the winner of an elimination game at 1:30 p.m. and even if they lose that contest, a 4 p.m. "winner take all" contest would follow.

In Friday's victory, Region 10 pitcher of the year Kristyn Ezzo threw a complete game eight-hitter with six strikeouts and Sarah Johnson (3 hits, 2 home runs, 6 RBIs), Grace Kealy (3 hits, home run, 3 RBIs), Alayna Patrick (2-run double) and Skye Harrington (1 hit) all made offensive contributions as Gaston College rallied from a 3-1 deficit after after 4 1/2 innings to score six in the bottom of the fourth and four in the bottom of the fifth to close out the victory.

Sarah Johnson had a two-run RBI single to tie the score at 3 in the bottom of the fourth with Region 10 player of the year Alayna Patrick and Skye Harrington added big hits later in the inning as the Rhinos took a 7-3 lead.

After outfielder Kendall Bradshaw snuffed out a potential Monroe rally in the top of the fifth inning by catching a fly ball and throwing out a baserunner at third for a double play, Johnson slugged a three-run home run and Kealy a walkoff home run as Gaston College reached the eight-run lead in bottom of the fifth to stop the game by the "mercy" rule.

The Rhinos defeated Monroe 2-0 in the 2023 Region 10 championship game they won at Lexington, S.C., during their World Series and Gaston College lost 12-5 to Florence Darlington Tech in the 2024 Region 10 championship also at Lexington.

"Obviously it speaks volumes about each group we've had the last three years that we've been consistent enough to be in a region championship game each year," said Rhinos coach Mike Steuerwald, whose team has won a school-record 24 straight games. "We've set high expectations to be successful year-in and year-out.
"This year, a Region 10 title also means we have the opportunity to host the district tournament with a chance to move on to the World Series in front of our home crowd. So we're motivated to win the region championship tomorrow, come home and host the district with the opportunity to go to the World Series."