Softball season ends in SCIAC Tourney championship game

REDLANDS, Calif. – The Chapman University softball team fell 6-2 to Redlands in the SCIAC Postseason Tournament Championship game. Senior Mykala Tokunaga went 3-for-3 in the final game of her career.

The Bulldogs – hitting in the top half of the inning – were on the board right away with a three-run home run from Kalyn Kershner in the first.  Tokunaga doubled to lead off the second but was left stranded on third. In the fourth, Tokunaga and senior Zela Chahbazian ripped back-to-back singles to put two on with two out but a strikeout ended the threat.

Tokunaga also tossed the last two innings of the game, allowing two runs (one earned) on a pair of hits in the sixth. Freshman Simi Lauwers allowed just three hits but walked four and allowed four runs over five innings.

Redlands added a run in the fourth and two more in the sixth. Junior Julia Muniz breathed some life into the Chapman offense with a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth to get the Panthers on the board. The Panthers continued to rally in the sixth with back-to-back singles from junior Rani Lauwers and Tokunaga. Chahbazian sent a deep fly ball into center but it was tracked down just in front of the wall as she missed a game-changing home run by just a couple of feet.

Sophomore Emily Hayes cashed in Tokunaga with a pinch hit single before a line out ended the inning. The Panthers went down in order in the seventh as Bulldogs celebrated the SCIAC Tournament Championship.

The loss brings Chapman's season to an end with a 10-13 overall record. The Panthers finished in second place in the standings and the tournament, going 8-7 in SCIAC games in 2021.

By Steven Olveda
Sports Information Director

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