Cleveland, OH-The Cleveland State softball team left it all on the field on Saturday in its finale at Viking Field in the Horizon League Championship. The Vikings, the defending Horizon League champions, fell one step shy of playing for the right to repeat in 2025. Cleveland State started the day in the elimination bracket and with its backs up against the wall won the first game of the day 4-0 over Green Bay before falling in the final game of the day to Purdue Fort Wayne 4-2.
 
In the first game of the day the Vikings broke open a scoreless game with a run in the second inning as Avery Robinson hit a well-placed ground ball to shortstop that allowed Kylie Gorsuch to scamper home from third with the first run of the game.
 
A sacrifice fly from Delaney Ellis in the bottom of the third plated the second run as Brooke Albaugh scored to make it 2-0 CSU. Emma Gilkerson followed with the big hit, a solo home run to left center field to make it 3-0 Vikings after three innings.
 
Cleveland State scored its final run in the fifth inning as an error in center field on a fly ball that was dropped allowed Ellis to score to make it 4-0. Melissa Holzopfel pitched a gem in the circle as she went the distance for a complete game shutout. Holzopfel allowed just five hits and struck out seven in the game.
 
The win over the Phoenix advanced CSU to its second elimination game of the day against Purdue Fort Wayne, a rematch from Thursday's second round.
 
Almost all the scoring came early as the two teams combined for five runs in the first inning. Purdue Fort Wayne jumped out to a 3-0 lead as the first four batters of the game all collected hits before a double play and a flyout got the Vikings out of trouble.
 
Gilkerson answered for Cleveland State in the bottom of the first as she clubbed her second home run of the day and her team-leading 12^th of the season. This one was a two-run shot that brought home Brooke Albaugh to make it 3-2 PFW after the first inning.
 
From there both pitchers settled in as Holzopfel and Purdue Fort Wayne's Alanah Jones traded scoreless innings. The score remained 3-2 into the seventh inning when the Mastodons' Grace Hollopeter hit a solo home run that widened the lead to 4-2.
 
The Vikings went in order in the bottom of the seventh as the comeback attempt fell just short. Purdue Fort Wayne advances to tomorrow's championship game to take on Robert Morris.

Gilkerson and Avery Robinson were both named to the Horizon League Softball All-Tournament team. Robinson hit .500 and recorded four shutout innings in the Vikings' tournament opener against the Mastodons on Thursday. Gilkerson recorded two home runs and four RBI in hitting safely in all three tournament games. She batted .444 for the three games total. 
 
Cleveland State finishes its season with a 23-21 overall record and a 17-7 record in league play. The Vikings finished as Horizon League Regular Season champions and earned the right to host the Horizon League Championship at Viking Field. This marked the third regular season title in program history and the first in 15 years.