FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PLAYOFF PREVIEW? CHAPMAN AND REDLANDS SPLIT SEASON FINALE

ORANGE, Calif. –  One team is already in, the other will have to wait a week to celebrate. The Chapman University softball team split a doubleheader against the University of Redlands on Sunday at Hart Park. The Panthers won the first game 1-0, but Redlands took the second 5-3. Redlands clinched their third consecutive SCIAC championship on Saturday and earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III playoffs, which begin on May 10. Chapman, an independent school, will have to earn an at-large berth when selections are announced on May 6.

Game 1: Chapman 1, Redlands 0
Add another to the list of ranked opponents that have lost to Chapman senior Maggie Wilder. On ‘Senior Day’, the right-hander allowed just five hits and struck out seven, improving to 14-4 this season. Wilder has now defeated eight top-25 teams this year. The shutout was her fifth this season and 17th in her career.

Freshman IF Melanie Villarroel broke a scoreless tie with a two-out RBI single in the fifth inning, plating junior IF Catherine Hall with the game’s only run. Freshman IF SheaLynn Slover was 2-for-3 for Chapman, which left 10 runners on base in the game.

Game 2: Redlands 5, Chapman 3
Chapman (28-11) finished the regular season with a loss despite scoring a pair of runs early. Hall and Slover each had an RBI in the first two innings, but Redlands (27-10) scored four times in the third and never trailed again. The Panthers rallied for another run in the fourth on an RBI single from senior OF Sandra Burns, but that was all. Redlands out-hit Chapman 12-7 in the game.

Chapman entered the doubleheader ranked No. 1 in the West Region and No. 5 in Division III.

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Game stats available online:
http://www1.chapman.edu/athletics/06-07/softball/ur-cu1.htm
http://www1.chapman.edu/athletics/06-07/softball/ur-cu2.htm