FLORENCE, Ala. (March 8, 2025) – After sweeping day one of the UNA Tournament, the University of North Alabama softball team fell in a pair of tight contests on Saturday with a 9-8 loss to Samford and a 3-2 loss to Detroit Mercy at Hilda B. Anderson Softball Stadium.
 
The Lions — who rank No. 21 in the D1 Softball Mid-Major Top 25 — fall at home for the first time this season, ending a seven-game home winning streak. UNA enters Sunday with a 17-5 record. Samford improves to 16-8 and Detroit Mercy becomes 3-12.
 
The Lions struggled in the field with three errors in each game, as both opponent used unearned runs to gain the advantage. Although UNA battled back both in the circle and at the plate, both games ended with seventh inning rallies for the winner and the tying run stranded for the Lions.
 

Game 1 — Samford 9, North Alabama 8
 
The first game had five lead changes, including scores by both teams in the final seven half-innings, but Samford held off a UNA rally to win a 9-8 thriller in the Saturday opener.
 
UNA trailed 5-4 in the bottom of the sixth, but a spark was lit by Laura Leigh Wheeler with a go-ahead two run homer. However, Samford surged back ahead with four run inning in the top of the seventh. The Lions mounted a comeback rally with back-to-back leadoff homers from Bayleigh Rouse and Katie Davis, but three of the next four at-bats were outs to end it.
 
The Davis homer was unique, as a missed diving catch near the left field line led to an inside-the-park home run.
 
The Lions took a 3-1 lead into the fifth inning, but were put in a tough position with a pair of unearned runs to lose the lead. A bases loaded walk to Davis tied the game in the fifth, but a groundout stranded the bases loaded. This sparked fireworks for the final two frames.
 
The teams combined for 19 hits, including six Lions with at least one hit.
 
Pitchers of Record
W – Sara Bond (5-1)
L –  Alivia Wilken (6-2)
S – None
 

Game 2 — Detroit Mercy 3, North Alabama 2
 
UNA started with momentum and later held a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning, but a late two-run rally by the Titans led to a 3-2 upset in the nightcap.
 
The Lions got off to a hot start behind a strikeout to strand the bases loaded by pitcher Katie Simon, then a solo homer by senior Hailey Jones to make it 1-0 in the first inning. Detroit Mercy tied it in the fourth with an RBI double, but the Lions got it back in the sixth with a double from Katie Davis.
 
In what was a brilliant outing for Simon, the seventh inning took a turn for the worst with a pair of one-out errors. The second error allowed the tying run. Three batters were hit in the inning, including the last one who brought home the go-ahead run the hard way.
 
Down 3-2, Jones kept her team alive with a two-out single. A strikeout ended the inning and allowed Jordan Kavanaugh to earn her first win in the circle this season. Simon suffered her first loss after a solid 4-0 start against talented teams.
 
Pitchers of Record
W – Jordan Kavanaugh (1-5)
L – Katie Simon (4-1)
S – None
 

COMING UP NEXT
 
UNA closes the tournament with Samford on Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
 
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.