Indianapolis, IN - The postseason works in magical ways sometimes. For the 14th-ranked McKendree University Softball team, they were trying to dethrone the 2nd-ranked UIndy Greyhounds in game two of the Midwest Super Regional on Friday. With weather bearing down on the metro Indianapolis area, and with McKendree (48-15) up one game in the best-of-three series, the Bearcats were wanting to shut down the Greyhounds (59-7) and not let mother nature play a factor as well. Being that all four 2026 meetings were decided by one run, it shouldn't have been a surprise that there was more late drama on Friday. Another home run from Lauren Harris and a home run from Jasmine Myers powered the Bearcats early. With two outs to spare in the bottom of the seventh, Harris played hero, breaking the single-season home runs record with a poetic walk off home run to send McKendree to its first-ever NCAA DII Softball Championship as Super Regional Champions with a 5-4 win.
UIndy nearly made some noise right from the get-go, getting a single and a walk, but both were stranded, thanks to a three-strikeout inning from Sami Huck. Then, on the first pitch of her at-bat in the bottom of the first, Lauren Harris launched a home run to nearly the exact same spot in left field from the day prior, creating an early 1-0 lead.
The Bearcats would set down the Greyhounds 1-2-3 in the second, but UIndy flipped it and did the same. That's when the Greyhounds truly threw their first punch. An RBI double and an RBI single gave the nation's second-ranked team a one-run lead. After a walk, Huck closed out the frame with another strikeout to limit the damage.
In the bottom of the third, Harris was hit on the right knee on the first pitch of her second plate appearance, but would be okay. After all, Jasmine Myers was on deck to back her up. Myers would do just that, fighting through a six-pitch battle to crank a home run to left center field that even cleared the Greyhounds' additional netting above the fence (which protects the nearby streets/homes), putting the Bearcats back on top at 3-2.
Alas, a see-saw affair it would be. An error was soon followed by a first-pitch two-run home run to swing the game back in UIndy's favor at 4-3 Greyhounds through three and a half.
McKendree nearly counter-punched right away with a leadoff four-pitch walk from Ali Grenzebach and Molly Bartz reaching on a bunt, but the next three Bearcats would be retired, perhaps the first true momentum swing UIndy may have felt beyond simply taking the lead.
The Greyhounds just about capitalized. A pair of singles with a sacrifice bunt in between put runners on the corners with just one out, but Jasmine Myers snagging a pop fly in foul territory plus another Huck strikeout kept the scoring threat at bay.
In the bottom of the fifth, McKendree utilized plate discipline, getting back-to-back walks from Harris and Meyers, plus a quality sacrifice bunt from Paisley Twait to put them both in scoring position. However, on what would've been a sacrifice fly, Lauren Harris appeared to slip her hand over the home plate area before being tagged, but was called out on the tag and the inning came to an end.
The Bearcats didn't let the result of the play phase them, though, only allowing a walk in the top of the sixth. That left one chance, at least without needing a walkoff. McKendree went 1-2-3, meaning either UIndy was going to force another if necessary game, or the Bearcats needed to walk it off.
The Greyhounds loaded the bases on a double, single, and walk, but Huck drew a popup to herself to strand all three runners, and McKendree got one last boost going into their last-chance inning.
Huck legged out a 1-1 ground ball to short for an infield hit.
One on. One out. Down one. Game on the line. In an impossible-to-script moment, in stepped Lauren Harris. Harris took the first pitch for a strike. Deep breath. On the next pitch, the McKendree senior launched a Bearcat-record 21st home run of the season over the fence (and the additional protective netting) in left center to walk it off for McKendree.
It all led to absolute jubilation, borderline delirium as the Bearcat faithful started to let it set in. For the first time ever, McKendree Softball had won a regional and would be playing in Chattanooga for the 2026 NCAA Division-II Softball Championship.
SHE SAID IT - QUOTES FROM LAUREN HARRIS
On utilizing the hit by pitch but also not dwelling on it
"She's (Cheyenne Eads) a great pitcher. I have a lot of respect for UIndy. I didn't have any hard feeling about it, just made it about hitting the ball hard in my next at-bat."
On the chess match of approaching at-bats when the other teams know how much of a threat she is
"I just know I have to find a pitch in the zone. I know what I'm comfortable with. I want to stay patient up there. I know, eventually, they're going to have to throw me a ball over the plate."
On the breakdown of the last at bat
"Well, I was sitting up. My three at-bats before, she hadn't really thrown me much there. That one, I was sitting up, and I got the pitch I wanted and I just tried to drive it as far as I could."
On the stresses of trying to lock in leading into that eventual walkoff
"I think it just comes down to my level of training. I trust my abilities, trust my skill. I enjoy the pressure. I love the postseason - I think it's fun. I don't really feel too antsy, too worked up."
On if this long drive to Chattanooga will feel any better than the one from earlier in the regular season
"Oh my gosh, it's unbelievable. I'm almost at a loss for words. I'm so excited to be doing this with all my best friends."
On how poetic it is that this team is on this caliber of journey in her last season of college softball
"It's amazing. I'm so thankful that I could do it for Tarter and the coaching staff. I know this is something we've been working for since my freshman year."
SHE SAID IT - QUOTES FROM SAMI HUCK
On just being confident in herself, even if she can tell it's going to be a back-and-forth hitting-centric game
"Well, I just try and stay calm and let my defense have my back. In games like this, where they've faced me all of yesterday and today. I just know that there's going to be more hits, so I just have to keep on hitting my spots."
On the importance of balancing not being repetitive from Thursday whilst also staying true to her strengths
"I've been doing this game since I was seven years old. I know that I can trust myself. I just don't really get overly confident and try and like, stoop down."
On how poetic it is that this team is on this caliber of journey in her last season of college softball
"It is like the most poetic thing I've ever been a part of. In high school, in JUCO, I've gotten close, but never won it. I'm just so blessed to do it now with this group."
On her and the team's reaction to the walk off hit
"As soon as I got on, I knew we were going to win. As soon as I saw Lo (Lauren Harris) was behind me, I was like 'oh, this is going to be poetic'. Then she hit that ball and I was like 'holy moly'. Ali (Grenzebach) was almost crossing the line (at home plate for Lauren's home run to count) and I had to pull her back. It was just amazing. Everyone was overjoyed."
SHE SAID IT - QUOTES FROM COACH HEATHER TARTER
On where you even start after a game such as this one
"Well, first of all, congrats to Indy on a great season. This team is one of those teams that just doesn't die. They just keep competing, keep fighting. We want to keep going to live another day."
On the pride she has for players like Jasmine Myers, hitting a home run after Lauren's hit by pitch
"The big reason why we brought Jazzy here was to back up Lauren. We needed somebody that could back her up. Right before Jazzy got in the box, I said you do it for her - you back her up, and she did it in a big way."
On what conversation with Sami Huck there would be, if any, knowing it's a hitting battle and not a singular lead held onto
"Sami's very superstitious, so we just let her do her thing. When she's ready to go, we know she's ready to go, and if she's ready to come out, we know she's ready to come out. She kept competing. We knew offensively we had our bats coming up, and she just stayed confident and stuck to herself and got through some really tough innings."
On the tone of the conversation with the team going into the bottom of the seventh
"Just that we have an opportunity. Only being down one, I knew the top of the lineup was coming up. If we could get somebody on, we had a really good chance of ending it."
On how proud she is of Lauren
"I'm so proud. I think it's one of those things that I'm going to have to look back after some time and give some time to process this. Incredible. This weekend that she had was, I mean, that's why we're here. We built this program around her for a reason."
On the poetic nature of this senior group getting to finish their journey in Chattanooga
"Yeah, it's pretty incredible. I told them the second weekend of the year. We went down and played there (Frost Stadium - DII Championship site). I said 'I want you guys to take a look right now'. We're playing here because we expect to be here in May. You couldn't have written it in a better way."
WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE BEARCATS
2026 NCAA DII Softball Championship
vs. TBD - 8 Qualifiers are re-seeded
Thursday, May 28th - 10:00 AM, 12:30 PM, 3:00 PM, or 5:30 PM Central
at Frost Stadium - Chattanooga, Tennessee
Watch Live (NCAA.com) / Link TBA
Live Stats (NCAA.com) / Link TBA
Tickets (NCAA.com) / Link TBA